The US Supreme Court will allow Texas to use a new congressional map that could aid Republican efforts to consolidate their majority in the upcoming 2026 midterm elections.
Thursday’s unsigned decision comes after Texas filed an emergency request last month to stop a lower court ruling that blocked the new map, which was passed by the state Legislature and signed into law by Republican Gov. Greg Abbott in August.
In a clear 6-3 decision, the Supreme Court said in its “preliminary assessment of this case” that Texas met the requirements for emergency relief and that the lower court “committed at least two serious errors.”
Three liberal justices dissented.
In November, a lower Texas court said evidence suggested the new voting districts were “racially gerrymandered,” and ordered the state to use congressional lines that existed before redistricting earlier this year.
Challenges to the mid-decade redistricting process came after Democratic lawmakers in Texas fled the state over the summer to delay votes on the new map, helping to spark a race across other states to change their maps as well.
California proposed new maps to offset Texas’ gains, which voters approved during special elections in November.