Redistricting across the US has turned into all-out war between the Democrats and the Republicans ahead of the 2026 midterm elections in November.
While both parties have enacted plans to redistrict since July 2025, Republicans are potentially poised to flip up to 14 US House seats in their favor following last week’s bombshell Supreme Court decision.
The landmark ruling said Louisiana unconstitutionally gerrymandered by race to form a new voting district, setting a new precedent.
This has spurred a movement to redraw political districts in several southern states, including Florida, Louisiana, Tennessee, Mississippi, Alabama and South Carolina which could result in the new GOP seats.
Republicans currently hold a slim majority in the House of Representatives with 217 seats to 212 for Democrats. There is also one independent, former Republican Kevin Kiley of California, and five vacancies — at least three of which will be filled ahead of the Nov. 3 midterms.
With 14 more Republican seats, the party would go a long way to keeping the house. According to website 270towin.com current standings are 212 safe and likely seats for the Democrats and 205 safe and likely Republican seats, leaving 18 up for grabs in Congress to make up its 435 total.
“Obviously it’s encouraging,” said Republican political strategist and pollster Adam Geller, CEO of National Research Inc. “But I really think that right now we have to wait and see where things land, and wait until districts are drawn and certified.”
That’s because the political map is changing almost daily.
California, Missouri, North Carolina, Ohio and Texas have already passed new congressional maps and a lawsuits led by a voting rights groups in Utah also resulted in a new congressional map.
Here’s where things have already changed, and where they stand to shift following the Supreme Court decision on the Voting Rights Act:
The court ruled the state’s congressional map included unconstitutional gerrymandering, using race to create a black majority district. Republican Governor Jeff Landry delayed the state’s House primary elections last week in order to redraw the electoral map to account for population changes. The Republicans currently hold four of Louisiana’s six House seats, which Landry is now hoping to take from the Democrats to make six.
In Tennessee, Republican Gov. Bill Lee called a special legislative session last week to redraw the state’s congressional map. Lee said legislators “owe it to Tennesseans to ensure our congressional districts accurately reflect the will of Tennessee voters.” Lee is targeting the sole Democratic House seat in Memphis.
In Alabama, Republican Gov. Kay Ivey called a special session in order to redraw a map giving Republicans the advantage in all seven of the state’s congressional districts. The new maps could result in flipping two seats from the Democrats so Republicans would control all of the state seats in the House of Representatives.
On Monday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis signed into effect a new congressional map that could see the Republicans flip four of the Democrats’ eight current House seats. The state has 28 seats in the US House of Representatives, and DeSantis has redrawn 21 districts to favor his party.
Last month, the US Supreme Court approved a new Texas map after a lower court struck it down. Republicans currently have 24 congressional seats in Texas, while Democrats have 13. With the new map, GOPers are hoping to squeeze out as many as five additional seats.
In October, the state legislature approved a new map which would flip one Democratic seat. The result would give Republicans control of 11 of North Carolina’s 14 House seats.
Perhaps the most radical plan of all has been introduced in Washington DC, which is a new Republican-led bill launched to “Make DC Square Again.” This would return land in Arlington County and the city of Alexandria that was taken by Virginia in 1846, largely to protect the local slave trade from federal abolition efforts.
The measure came about after voters in Virginia passed a referendum last month which favors Democrats.
In response to the Texas redraw, California Gov. Gavin Newsom passed an amendment to change the state’s congressional map to benefit Democrats. Voters passed a gerrymandered California map, under Proposition 50, to carve out five more Democratic seats in Congress. The measure passed in November, but the Supreme Court ruling could throw a wrench into the new maps, experts said. Last year, California Republicans immediately sued arguing that the new maps were nothing more than racial gerrymandering
Last month, voters in Virginia approved a redistricting plan that could create four additional Democratic House seats. Republicans are challenging the new map, arguing that Democratic legislators did not follow the law when approving a referendum. The updated voting districts could result in Democrats taking 10 of the state’s 11 seats in the House in November.
Not all attempts to redistrict have been successful. In March, the US Supreme Court blocked New York Democrats from redrawing New York City’s lone Republican House seat in Staten Island following an emergency appeal from Rep Nicole Malliotakis. The order grants a stay, barring a state judge from redrawing the 11th Congressional District map ahead of the midterm elections.
However, following the Supreme Court’s decision on Louisiana last month, New York lawmakers have called to amend the state Constitution to “reform” its ban on partisan gerrymandering in the state.
Gov. Wes Moore put forward a map to redistrict the state and boost Democrats chances in the midterms, but it was rejected by the state legislature, controlled by Democrats, as they were concerned it would not pass under judicial review.
The Illinois House of Representatives last week paused a proposed amendment to redistrict according to race, following the recent Supreme Court decision. Republicans currently hold three of the state’s 17 US House seats.
The state could add a Democratic seat after a state judge rejected a congressional map drawn by the Republican-controlled state legislature last year. Judge Dianna Gibson adopted a map drawn by a centrist group which had filed suit against a previous Republican proposal.
Redistricting usually takes place every ten years following the national census, in order to accommodate population changes. The only state which was originally due to redistrict in 2026 had been Ohio.
“We’ve gone from redistricting every ten years to what feels like every five minutes,” said David Wasserman, an elections analyst for the Cook Political Report, a nonpartisan newsletter. “We’re in an era of manic redistricting. And if one party doesn’t seize the opportunity, the other party will.”
The first move was made by Texas last year, after President Trump called on the state’s Republicans, to redraw their voting maps to gain a Republican edge in the 2026 midterms. The effort resulted in up to five additional US House seats for Republicans in Lone Star State.
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