When Texas Republican lawmakers redrew the state’s congressional districts at the behest of President Trump this summer, neither they, nor the president, left any question about what motivated them.

They were changing the maps to benefit their party, a practice known as gerrymandering.

“The underlying goal of this plan is straightforward: improve Republican political performance,” state Rep. Todd Hunter, the sponsor of the new voting map, declared from the House floor before it was signed into law.

It was a statement that surprised some with its explicit partisanship.

But this public embrace of political redistricting, a widely unpopular tactic , serves a purpose. It is intended to guard the new maps against legal challenge.

With the new Republican-friendly Texas maps setting off a

See Full Page