Redistricting in Texas

Process by which Texas redraws legislative and congressional district boundaries

Elections in Texas

File:Seal of Texas.svg

Federal government

|  Presidential elections

* 1848
* 1852
* 1856
* 1860
* 1872
* 1876
* 1880
* 1884
* 1888
* 1892
* 1896
* 1900
* 1904
* 1908
* 1912
* 1916
* 1920
* 1924
* 1928
* 1932
* 1936
* 1940
* 1944
* 1948
* 1952
* 1956
* 1960
* 1964
* 1968
* 1972
* 1976
* 1980
* 1984
* 1988
* 1992
* 1996
* 2000
* 2004
* 2008
* 2012
* 2016
* 2020
* 2024

Presidential primaries

Democratic
2004
2008
2012
2016
2020

Republican
2004
2008
2020
U.S. Senate

* 1846
* 1847
* 1851
* 1853
* 1857
* 1859
* 1859 sp
* 1870
* 1871
* 1875
* 1876
* 1881
* 1882
* 1887
* 1888
* 1892 sp
* 1893
* 1894
* 1899
* 1901
* 1905
* 1907
* 1911
* 1913
* 1913 sp
* 1916
* 1918
* 1922
* 1924
* 1928
* 1930
* 1934
* 1936
* 1940
* 1941 sp
* 1942
* 1946
* 1948
* 1952
* 1954
* 1957 sp
* 1958
* 1960
* 1961 sp
* 1964
* 1966
* 1970
* 1972
* 1976
* 1978
* 1982
* 1984
* 1988
* 1990
* 1993 sp
* 1994
* 1996
* 2000
* 2002
* 2006
* 2008
* 2012
* 2014
* 2018
* 2020
* 2024
* 2026

U.S. House

* 1846
* 1849
* 1851
* 1853
* 1855
* 1857
* 1859
* 1866
* 1869
* 1870
* 1871
* 1872
* 1874
* 1876
* 1878
* 1879
* 6th sp
* 1880
* 1882
* 1884
* 1886
* 1887
* 2nd sp
* 1888
* 1890
* 1892
* 9th sp
* 1894
* 1896
* 11th sp
* 1898
* 1900
* 1901
* 6th sp
* 1902
* 4th sp
* 1903
* 8th sp
* 1904
* 1905
* 8th sp
* 1906
* 1908
* 1910
* 1912
* 1913
* 10th sp
* 1914
* 1916
* 1918
* 1919
* 12th sp
* 1920
* 1922
* 13th sp
* 1924
* 1926
* 1928
* 1930
* 17th sp
* 1931
* 14th sp
* 1932
* 1933
* 7th sp
* 8th sp
* 15th sp
* 1934
* 1936
* 1937
* 10th sp
* 1938
* 1940
* 1942
* 1944
* 1946
* 6th sp
* 1947
* 9th sp
* 16th sp
* 1948
* 15th sp
* 1950
* 18th sp
* 1951
* 13th sp
* 1952
* 7th sp
* 1954
* 1956
* 1958
* 1960
* 1961
* 20th sp
* 1962
* 4th sp
* 13th sp
* 1963
* 10th sp
* 1964
* 1966
* 8th sp
* 1968
* 3rd sp
* 1970
* 1972
* 1974
* 1976
* 1st sp
* 22nd sp
* 1978
* 1980
* 1982
* 1983
* 6th sp
* 1984
* 1985
* 1st sp
* 1986
* 1988
* 1989
* 12th sp
* 18th sp
* 1990
* 1991
* 3rd sp
* 1992
* 1994
* 1996
* 1997
* 28th sp
* 1998
* 2000
* 2002
* 2003
* 19th sp
* 2004
* 2006
* 22nd
* 2008
* 2010
* 2012
* 2014
* 2016
* 2018
* 27th sp
* 2020
* 2021
* 6th sp
* 2022
* 34th sp

State government

|  General elections

* 2006
* 2010
* 2014
* 2018
* 2020
* 2022

Gubernatorial elections

* 1845
* 1847
* 1849
* 1851
* 1853
* 1855
* 1857
* 1859
* 1861
* 1863
* 1866
* 1938
* 1940
* 1942
* 1944
* 1946
* 1948
* 1950
* 1952
* 1954
* 1956
* 1958
* 1960
* 1962
* 1964
* 1966
* 1968
* 1970
* 1972
* 1974
* 1978
* 1982
* 1986
* 1990
* 1994
* 1998
* 2002
* 2006
* 2010
* 2014
* 2018
* 2022

Lieutenant gubernatorial elections

* 2010
* 2014
* 2018
* 2022

Attorney General elections

* 2018
* 2022

Senate elections

* 2006
* 2008
* 2010
* 2012
* 2014
* 2016
* 2018
* 2020
* 2022

House of Representatives elections

* 2006
* 2008
* 2010
* 2012
* 2014
* 2016
* 2018
* 2020
* 2022

Constitutional amendments

* 2005
* 2007

Austin

|  Mayoral elections

* 2003
* 2006
* 2009
* 2012
* 2014
* 2018
* 2022

Corpus Christi

|  Mayoral elections

* 2012
* 2014
* 2016
* 2017 sp
* 2018
* 2020

Dallas–Fort Worth

|  Arlington mayoral elections

* 2001
* 2003
* 2005
* 2007
* 2009
* 2011
* 2013
* 2015
* 2017
* 2019
* 2021

Dallas mayoral elections

* 1856
* 1857
* 1875
* 1904
* 1925
* 1961
* 1963
* 1995
* 1999
* 2002 sp
* 2003
* 2007
* 2011
* 2015
* 2019
* 2023

Dallas municipal elections

* 2015
* 2019

Fort Worth mayoral elections

* 2003
* 2007
* 2009
* 2011
* 2015
* 2017
* 2019
* 2021

Denton mayoral elections

* 2020
* 2022

Plano municipal elections

* 2017
* 2019
* 2021

El Paso

|  Mayoral elections

* 2001
* 2003
* 2005
* 2009
* 2013
* 2017
* 2020

Municipal elections

* 2017
* 2020

Houston

|  Mayoral elections

* 1987
* 1989
* 1991
* 1993
* 1995
* 1997
* 1999
* 2001
* 2003
* 2005
* 2007
* 2009
* 2011
* 2013
* 2015
* 2019
* 2023

Municipal elections

* 2005
* 2007
* 2009

Laredo

|  Mayoral elections

* 2018

Lubbock

|  Mayoral elections

* 2006
* 2008
* 2010
* 2012
* 2014
* 2016
* 2018
* 2020

San Antonio

|  Mayoral elections

* 2005
* 2007
* 2009
* 2011
* 2013
* 2015
* 2017
* 2019
* 2021

Category Government

* v
* t
* e

Redistricting in Texas is the process by which electoral district boundaries for the Texas House of Representatives, Texas Senate, Texas Board of Education, and the United States House of Representatives are redrawn following each decennial census in the United States. Redistricting is governed by the Texas Constitution, state statute, and applicable federal law, and is carried out primarily through the legislative process rather than by an independent commission.

Redistricting in Texas has played a central role in the state’s political and legal history and has been subject to repeated judicial review over multiple decades, reflecting the interaction between state authority, federal constitutional standards, and evolving enforcement of voting rights protections.[1]

## Contents

* 1 Constitutional and legal framework
* 2 Redistricting process
* 3 Judicial review and litigation
* 4 2003 mid-decade redistricting
* 5 2021 redistricting cycle
* 6 See also
* 7 Further reading
* 8 References

## Constitutional and legal framework[edit | edit source]

Under the Texas Constitution, redistricting is conducted through the regular legislative process, requiring passage by both chambers of the Texas Legislature and approval by the governor, unless a gubernatorial veto is overridden. This framework assigns primary authority for drawing district boundaries to elected officials rather than to a nonpartisan or independent body. Redistricting applies to state legislative districts, Congressional districts, and State Board of Education districts, each of which follows distinct constitutional or statutory requirements.[2]

Federal law also constrains Texas redistricting, including requirements arising from the Constitution of the United States and federal voting rights statutes. For much of the late 20th and early 21st centuries, Texas redistricting plans were subject to heightened federal oversight and frequent litigation, reflecting the interaction between state legislative authority and federal enforcement mechanisms governing representation and nondiscrimination in voting.[3]

## Redistricting process[edit | edit source]

The redistricting process begins following the release of detailed population data from the decennial United States census. In Texas, census data is provided to legislators through the Texas Legislative Council, which supports map drawing using geographic information systems and demographic datasets. Legislators draft district boundaries and introduce redistricting bills, which proceed through the standard legislative process, including committee consideration, floor debate, and final passage in both chambers.[4]

If the Texas Legislature fails to enact state legislative district maps during the first regular legislative session following the census, authority transfers to the Legislative Redistricting Board, a Texas constitutional body composed of statewide elected officials. This constitutionally established body consists of the lieutenant governor, speaker of the Texas House of Representatives, attorney general, comptroller of public accounts, and commissioner of the General Land Office. Maps adopted by the board are not subject to gubernatorial veto and carry the force of law once implemented. Congressional redistricting authority does not transfer to the board and remains exclusively with the legislature.[5]

The Texas Legislature may alter enacted district maps later in the decade through mid-decade redistricting, either in response to judicial rulings or as part of subsequent legislative action. While such revisions are uncommon, Texas law permits legislative modification of district boundaries outside the decennial cycle, and courts have reviewed these actions for compliance with constitutional and statutory standards.[6]

## Judicial review and litigation[edit | edit source]

Texas redistricting plans have been reviewed repeatedly by federal courts, particularly following enactment of the Voting Rights Act of 1965. Courts have examined whether district boundaries comply with constitutional requirements, federal statutory protections, and applicable standards governing equal population, racial discrimination, and electoral fairness. Judicial intervention has, at times, resulted in court-ordered interim maps or mandated revisions to legislatively enacted plans.[7]

Litigation related to Texas redistricting has occurred across multiple decades and has involved both state legislative and congressional districts. These cases have shaped the practical application of redistricting law in Texas by defining the scope of permissible legislative discretion and the circumstances under which federal courts may impose remedial or interim districting plans.[8]

## 2003 mid-decade redistricting[edit | edit source]

The resulting congressional district plan was challenged in federal court and ultimately reviewed by the Supreme Court of the United States. In League of United Latin American Citizens v. Perry (2006), the Court upheld portions of the plan while requiring revisions to specific districts, confirming that mid-decade redistricting is not per se unconstitutional but remains subject to federal statutory and constitutional constraints.[9]

## 2021 redistricting cycle[edit | edit source]

As with prior redistricting cycles, the 2021 Texas maps were subject to administrative review and legal challenges following their enactment. The plans governed elections beginning in 2022 and remained under judicial consideration as courts evaluated claims regarding compliance with federal constitutional and statutory requirements, illustrating the continued legal significance of redistricting in Texas elections.[10]

## See also[edit | edit source]

* Texas state elections
* Texas Legislature
* Legislative Redistricting Board
* Gerrymandering in the United States

## Further reading[edit | edit source]

* Congressional Research Service (2021). Congressional Redistricting: Legal and Constitutional Issues (Report). Library of Congress. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite report}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
* Bickerstaff, Steve (2007). Lines in the Sand: Congressional Redistricting in Texas and the Downfall of Tom DeLay. University of Texas Press. ISBN 978-0-292-71474-8.
* Issacharoff, Samuel (2020). The Law of Democracy: Legal Structure of the Political Process (6th ed.). Foundation Press.

## References[edit | edit source]

1. ^ "Redistricting in Texas". Legislative Reference Library of Texas. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
2. ^ "Texas Constitution, Article III". Texas Legislature. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
3. ^ "Redistricting and the Voting Rights Act". U.S. Department of Justice. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
4. ^ "Redistricting Resources". Texas Legislative Council. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
5. ^ "Legislative Redistricting Board". Legislative Reference Library of Texas. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
6. ^ "Redistricting in Texas". Legislative Reference Library of Texas. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
7. ^ "Redistricting Cases". Supreme Court of the United States. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
8. ^ "Redistricting Litigation". U.S. Department of Justice. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
9. ^ "League of United Latin American Citizens v. Perry, 548 U.S. 399 (2006)". Supreme Court of the United States. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
10. ^ "2021 Redistricting in Texas". Legislative Reference Library of Texas. Retrieved February 6, 2026.`{{cite web}}`: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

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