Democrats won or held several U.S. House districts that Republican-controlled legislatures had redrawn before the 2026 midterms, according to a States Newsroom report republished by Alabama Reflector¹.

In Alabama, Rep. Shomari Figures, a Democrat, won nearly 54% of the vote in a district the state legislature had redrawn to be more favorable to Republicans, the report said¹. Figures told supporters, “I’m at a loss for words, because we had the deck stacked against us”¹.

President Donald Trump urged Republicans in 2025 to pursue mid-decade redistricting, a process that usually follows the census every 10 years, the story said¹. The effort began in Texas in the summer of 2025 and spread as both parties sought new maps ahead of this week’s elections¹.

A late April U.S. Supreme Court decision limited federal constraints on racial gerrymandering, after which Southern states redrew maps that had included majority-Black districts, according to the report¹. Republicans had hoped extra seats would offset typical midterm losses for the president’s party¹.

The nonpartisan Cook Political Report with Amy Walter had estimated new Republican maps could add as many as 15 seats, Alabama Reflector reported, citing maps advanced in Florida, Louisiana, North Carolina, Tennessee, Alabama and Texas¹. Democrats redrew California and picked up five targeted seats there, the same account said¹.

As of Thursday afternoon, Democrats had 247 House seats and Republicans 153 in Associated Press tallies cited by the story, with 35 races uncalled¹. A Wednesday memo from the National Democratic Redistricting Committee said Republicans made no net gains in states where they targeted Democratic seats¹.

In Florida, Gov. Ron DeSantis signed a map in May aimed at four additional Republican seats; Democrats now appear likely to keep all four, the report said¹. In North Carolina, Republicans are on track to lose six seats, and Democratic Rep. Don Davis won the 1st District with just over 50%¹.

Texas lawmakers sought five additional Republican seats; the party flipped one newly drawn district and had a net loss of one seat, according to the story¹. University of Houston political scientist Brandon Rottinghaus said mapmakers had assumed Latino voters would keep backing Republicans, an assumption that did not hold in 2026¹.

The NAACP reported strong Black turnout, and NPR-analyzed exit polls cited in the story put Black support for Democrats at 81%, compared with 70% in 2024¹. Alabama turnout was nearly 44%, up from nearly 39% in 2022, the report said¹.

Maryland voters approved Question 3 with 60% of the vote, a measure Gov. Wes Moore said would allow new maps¹. Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp, a Republican, said he would not call a special session to redraw maps before Democrat Keisha Lance Bottoms takes office in January¹.

Missouri voters rejected a GOP-drawn “Missouri First” map 62% to 38%; it had not been in effect for 2026 after a state Supreme Court ruling, the story said¹. The White House did not respond to questions about further Republican redistricting, according to Alabama Reflector¹.

Sources

1. Alabama ReflectorTrump’s gerrymandering push flops as Democrats win redrawn seats5:59 AM

Read the original at Alabama Reflector ↗