Attorney General Ken Paxton has announced his plans to appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court after a three-judge federal panel temporarily blocked Texas' newly drawn congressional map from being used in the 2026 elections.
The ruling dealt another setback to the mid-decade redistricting process pushed by President Donald Trump, who had urged Republican lawmakers nationwide to redraw maps to boost GOP congressional gains ahead of the 2026 midterms.
Paxton sharply condemned the court's decision, framing the ruling as a political attack rather than a legal one.
"The radical left is once again trying to undermine the will of the people. The Big Beautiful Map was entirely legal and passed for partisan purposes to better represent the political affiliations of Texas," said Paxton.
He added that Democrats "rely on false accusations of racism" when Republicans use the same partisan redistricting tactics long employed in states like California, Illinois, and New York.
Governor Greg Abbott (R) shared Paxton's position, calling the injunction "clearly erroneous" and insisting the Legislature acted well within its constitutional authority.
"The Legislature redrew our congressional maps to better reflect Texans' conservative voting preferences, and for no other reason," said Abbott. "Any claim that these maps are discriminatory is absurd and unsupported by the testimony offered during ten days of hearings."
The blocked map dismantled five Democratic-leaning districts and prompted immediate lawsuits from minority voters and civil rights groups, who argued the changes intentionally diluted the voting power of Black and Hispanic Texans.
Texas is expected to request an emergency stay from the Supreme Court as Paxton vows to "defend Texas's Big Beautiful Map" and restore it ahead of the 2026 elections.
