WASHINGTON — Texas won’t be able to use its newly redrawn congressional map adding five more Republican-leaning seats ahead of the 2026 midterm elections after a panel of federal judges ruled the boundaries amount to an illegal race-based gerrymander.

In a 2-1 ruling on Tuesday, the court ruled that the Lone Star State must instead use its previous map that was approved in 2021. The decision deals a major blow to the Trump administration, which has been pushing GOP-led states to redraw their congressional maps ahead of next November to ensure Republicans can maintain their slim majorities in Congress.

“The map ultimately passed by the Legislature and signed by the Governor — the 2025 Map — achieved all but one of the racial objectives that DOJ demanded,” U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Brown

See Full Page