New congressional maps in Texas, Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, Tennessee and North Carolina have split many majority-Black and plurality-Black districts into majority-White areas. The changes follow a Supreme Court decision that weakened Voting Rights Act protections. Republicans say the maps aim to strengthen their position ahead of midterms.
The mid-decade redistricting began after President Trump called for new maps last year. A late April Supreme Court ruling struck down Louisiana's map as an unconstitutional racial gerrymander and reduced safeguards against racial discrimination in district drawing.
In Texas the new map shifts five seats toward Republicans and has already eliminated one Black congressional seat in the Houston area. Black voters in neighborhoods such as Sunnyside and Missouri City were moved into districts with lower Black populations.
Florida enacted its map in May, lowering the Black share of the 20th District from nearly 53 percent to 45 percent. Louisiana, Alabama and Tennessee each eliminated one of their two majority-Black districts, while North Carolina's 2025 map reduced the Black share of the 1st District from 42 percent to 34 percent.
Voting in these states is racially polarized, with nearly 78 percent of Black voters supporting Kamala Harris in 2024. Republican officials maintain the maps simply improve their party's prospects.
