Trump's new congressional map in Texas still stymied as Gavin Newsom
urges president to give up
[August 12, 2025]
By BILL BARROW, NADIA LATHAN and SOPHIA TAREEN
AUSTIN, Texas (AP) — Texas Republicans were unable again Monday to
approve new congressional districts to meet President Donald Trump's
demands as California Gov. Gavin Newsom and other Democrats urged
Republicans to stand down and avoid a partisan brawl spanning multiple
statehouses.
Texas Democratic lawmakers remained outside of Texas after leaving the
state to deny their GOP colleagues the quorum necessary to vote on
Trump’s aggressive redistricting play and push the stalemate into its
second week. The president's agenda also spurred Democratic governors,
including Newsom, to pledge retaliatory redistricting efforts in their
states — setting up the possibility of an extended standoff that could
upend the 2026 midterm elections.
Newsom urged Trump in a letter Monday to abandon his scheme, telling the
president he is “playing with fire” and “risking the destabilization of
our democracy.”
At the Texas Capitol, House Speaker Dustin Burrows adjourned another
attempted session within minutes of its early afternoon opening. He used
the brief gathering to chastise dozens of Democrats who have civil
warrants out for their arrest. Because they are out of state, those
lawmakers are beyond the reach of state authorities.
Burrows said Texas law enforcement agencies have been to the residences
of the absent legislators, “conducting surveillance, knocking on doors”
and calling their cellphones trying to bring them to the statehouse.
“The search continues, and it will not stop,” the speaker said. Later he
added, “Eventually you will be here.”
Just a few seats could determine control of Congress
Burrows' GOP House majority wants to redraw districts so that five more
Republicans can be elected. Trump, who has said the GOP is “entitled” to
the seats, is pushing other Republican-controlled legislatures to follow
suit as he tries to avoid a repeat of the 2018 midterms. Those elections
during Trump's first presidency yielded a new Democratic majority in the
U.S. House that stymied his agenda and twice impeached him. Existing
maps nationally put Democrats within three seats of a House majority at
a time when there are only several dozen competitive districts out of
435.
“Stealing congressional districts — mid-decade — is wrong,” Texas Rep.
Trey Martinez Fischer, one of the lawmakers who left the state, said
Monday. “It’s just nothing other than old-school cheating.”
Texas Democrats intend to run out the clock on their current special
session, which cannot extend beyond Aug. 19. But Gov. Greg Abbott said
he’ll call lawmakers back to the Statehouse again and again until enough
Democrats show up to reach the attendance threshold required to vote on
the bill.
Responding to Texas, Newsom and other California Democrats are
considering new boundaries to yield a five-seat shift toward Democrats,
neutralizing any Texas change. That would require, however, getting
California voters to set aside existing maps drawn by an independent
commission. New York Gov. Kathy Hochul and Illinois Gov. JB Pritzker
have promised similar efforts in their Democratic-run statehouses.
In his letter to Trump, Newsom said he prefers that independent bodies
draw political districts rather than partisan legislatures, as is done
in Texas and most GOP-controlled states. But, Newsom wrote, “California
cannot stand idly by as this power grab unfolds.”
If Texas and “the other states call off their redistricting efforts,”
the governor added, “we will happily do the same. And American democracy
will be better for it.”
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Rep. Joe Moody, D-El Paso, right, and Rep. Mary Gonzalez, D-Clint,
take their seats in the House Chamber at the Capitol in Austin,
Texas, Monday, Aug. 11, 2025. (Jay Janner/Austin American-Statesman
via AP)
In Austin and around the country, Texas officials dig in
The absent Texas lawmakers are staying in Illinois, New York and
elsewhere. They have appeared with Newsom, Pritzker and Hochul at
various points and say they have no intention of returning as long
as Republicans are intent on mollifying Trump.
Abbott and Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, a U.S. Senate
candidate, want state courts to remove Democratic lawmakers from
office, asserting that they have abandoned their posts. Paxton has
asked an Illinois court to enforce the Texas warrants issued for
absent lawmakers so they could be arrested beyond Texas' borders.
State Rep. Rhetta Bowers, who’s also staying in Illinois, pointed
back to some white politicians’ tactics during the Civil Rights
Movement. She noted the proposed Texas maps would disproportionately
affect districts represented by Black and Latino Democrats, and she
raised concerns about Abbott and Paxton’s use of law enforcement and
the justice system against their political opponents.
Those are “the very same tactics used against Black and brown
Americans” who pushed for passage of the Voting Rights Act of 1965,
she said.
“Their fight is our fight, and just like the Civil Rights heroes of
the past, no matter the cost we are prepared to see it through to
the end,” Bowers said.
At the very least, the Democrats face $500 fines for each daily
absence under legislative rules.
Ramón Romero, Jr., one of the Democrats staying outside Chicago,
confirmed Monday that he and his colleagues have consulted with
attorneys. “They know where we are,” Romero said. “We feel very safe
here in the state of Illinois.”
Democrats urged Abbott to focus on flood response and he declined
In Austin, Rep. Joe Moody was one of just nine Democratic lawmakers
present in the House chamber on Monday. He expressed solidarity with
colleagues he said “are doing something that is absolutely within
their right” as members.
“The idea that quorum can be broken is enshrined in the Texas
Constitution. So are the efforts to compel them” to return, Moody
said.
From his speaker's chair, Burrows never mentioned the redistricting
legislation, instead highlighting that the special session also
includes several disaster response measures after catastrophic
floods in July killed at least 135 people in the state. He said
those bills are set for action on the floor Tuesday morning.
“The only thing standing between Texas and real disaster relief is
whether our absent colleagues decide to show up tomorrow,” Burrows
said.
Abbott last month added the redistricting proposal to a lengthy
agenda he gave to lawmakers in ordering them back to the Texas
Capitol for the special session. Texas Democrats balked and urged
the governor and legislative leaders to prioritize the flood
response over Trump's agenda.
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Barrow reported from Atlanta. Tareen reported from Chicago.
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