The new maps create four GOP-leaning majority-Hispanic districts in the Lone Star State.
Texas Republicans are betting big on their recent gains with Latino voters, releasing new congressional maps that heavily favor the GOP and create four red, majority-Hispanic districts in the process.
Wednesday’s issuance of the redrawn lines is touching off a fierce partisan battle over the ethics of mid-decade redistricting, forcing Democrats to respond to President Donald Trump’s aggressive action in Texas. It’s also exposing the importance each party is placing on one of the most coveted demographics in the country as they fight for control over the House next year.
The GOP’s maps indicate the party is bullish on Latino voters continuing their rightward political shift even without Trump atop the ballot. It’s a move that doubles down on a strategy Republicans were already implementing across the country, targeting heavily-Hispanic House districts as they seek to capitalize on their recent gains with a group of voters who have the power to carry them to a majority come 2026. In 2024, 48 percent of Hispanic voters cast their ballots for Trump, compared to 36 percent in 2020, according to Pew Research.
“Hispanic communities are sick and tired of radical Democrats turning their backs on them time and again,” said National Republican Congressional Committee Hispanic press secretary Christian Martinez.
The strategy comes with a lot of risk.
Despite shifting toward Trump last year, Latino voters — in Texas and elsewhere — were more likely to split their tickets and back downballot Democrats. And polls show voters have soured on Trump’s handling of the economy, after inflation under former President Joe Biden drove Latino support for Trump last year.