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Democratic lawmakers are defending redistricting efforts across the country, calling their efforts a necessary failure for similar Republican-led plans, while saying vulnerable Republicans should work harder to prevent an “arms race” that reshuffles district lines nationally.
“I think the system is fundamentally broken, but let’s be clear, Republicans have started a redistricting arms race. And so, Democrats are left with no choice but to level the playing field for the sake of democracy,” Rep. Jason Crow, D-Colo., told Fox News Digital.
The lawmakers’ comments come as the Supreme Court handed down a ruling Wednesday reshaping the framework of the Voting Rights Act of 1965 and opening the door to the possibility of renewed redistricting efforts ahead of the 2026 midterms.
In its 6-3 decision Wednesday, based on ideological grounds, the court vacated Louisiana’s 6th Congressional District, which was redrawn for predominantly black voters in 2024. The court also ruled that states cannot use races to draw districts that disenfranchise voters or help minority communities support their preferred candidates.
Supreme Court orders new arguments in decisive election case
The facade of the US Supreme Court building in Washington, DC, seen in October 2024. (Photo Combine via Valerie Plesh/Getty Images)
It’s unclear which states might reevaluate their maps in light of the decision.
“It’s a very nefarious thing that the Supreme Court has done, and it’s a very desperate thing that Republicans are doing to cling to unearned power,” Rep. Mark Takano, D-Calif., said.
Since President Donald Trump urged state lawmakers to expand the GOP’s 217-213 majority by eliminating five Democratic seats in Texas, states including California, Utah, Missouri, Louisiana, Ohio, Virginia and North Carolina have followed suit.
Recently, the Florida legislature approved a plan to eliminate four Democratic districts.
DeSantis launches Florida redistricting campaign to potentially add more GOP House seats
Florida state Rep. Angie Nixon, a Democrat, attempted to disrupt final approval of a Gov. Ron DeSantis-backed redistricting bill by shouting with a bullhorn on the House floor. (Wilfredo Lee, File/AP Photo; Rep. Angie Nixon, official government website)
While most Democrats have blamed Trump for the redistricting efforts, others believe that the willingness to use redistricting to gain partisan advantage is far-fetched.
“I blame it all on the Democrats,” said Rep. Mark Vessey, D-Texas.
“In 2003, when Tom DeLay was majority leader, and he said he wanted to get rid of five Democrats in Texas, we didn’t react. We let him come around and slap us, we let him come around and slap us, and we didn’t do anything about it,” Veasey said, referring to another Republican redistricting effort of the mid-decade that was not challenged by Democrats in other states.
Veasey believes that this time, vulnerable Republicans in Democratic-leaning states have invited their destruction by not voicing opposition to Republican efforts in Texas.
Vesey said, “He didn’t say anything. The time to speak, especially for Republican members from California, was their time to speak and they didn’t say anything.”
Beto encourages Democrats to fight ‘fire with fire’ in Texas redistricting fight
Representative Mark Vesey speaks during a news conference outside the US Capitol on July 23, 2025 in Washington, DC. (Alex Wong/Getty Images)
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Representative Christian Menefee, D-Texas, like many of his Democratic colleagues, lamented the redistricting struggle, but argued that pretending the situation did not exist was unrealistic.
“Look, in an ideal world, we would have no political posturing. We can’t have people trying to drive black and brown people out of their districts and then put a partisan blanket over them. But because we don’t live in that world, we have to fight fire with fire,” Menefee said.
