Tennessee passed a new congressional map Thursday following a special legislative session that will favor Republicans in all nine of the state’s districts. If approved, the new map could ensure Tennessee sends only Republicans to Congress after the midterms.

The move comes in the wake of the U.S. Supreme Court gutting the 1965 Voting Rights Act that required states with a history of racial discrimination to ensure minority representation in Congress. It’s now legal for maps to be drawn along partisan lines without racial concerns.

Specifically, the map splits the 9th Congressional District, which was the only majority-Black district left in the state, and included the entire city of Memphis. About 60% of voters in District 9 are Black.

If signed into law by Gov. Bill Lee (R) as expected, the plan will split Shelby County, which houses Memphis, into three separate districts that could flip the seats for Republicans. In 2022, Tennessee Republicans eliminated a Democrat-held House seat in the Nashville area by carving the metro area up in a similar fashion.

“Lee and lawmakers were pressured by President Donald Trump to draw a new map as the president faces the prospect of an unfavorable 2026 midterm election result,” reported The Tennessee Lookout. “Traditionally, the party in the White House loses seats in midterm elections, and Trump’s approval rating of around 40% is the same as in 2018, when Republicans lost 41 seats and control of the U.S. House.”

“Tennessee is a conservative state, and this map ensures that our congressional delegation reflects that,” said State Sen. John Stevens (R). “This is about allowing Tennessee to maximize its partisan advantage.”

But state Sen. London Lamar (D) argued ahead of the vote, “This map diminishes Memphis. Racism doesn’t become less racist just because it’s called partisan.”

The head of the Tennessee Equity Alliance claimed the new map is akin to Republicans cheating.

“Don’t get it twisted, this isn’t new,” said Tequila Johnson. “This is the same old Tennessee where the Klan was born in Pulaski, Christmas Eve 1865. The same Tennessee that wrote the first Jim Crow law in the country in 1881… this is the same Tennessee that tried to expel two Black lawmakers [in 2023].”

Hundreds of protesters packed the capitol building, and Tennessee State troopers arrested those who refused to leave during the session.

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