Redistricting in Texas: A horror story

VARSHINI REGUPATHY: Redistricting in Texas has arrived, bringing with it horrifically gerrymandered maps all across the board. The new district maps, recently approved by Governor Abbott, all solidify the Republicans’ grip on the state despite significant demographic changes. 

The state legislative map, congressional map, and State Board of Education map have all been passed through Abbott’s desk, all exhibiting signs of extreme gerrymandering. But today, I want to take a deeper look at the newly drawn congressional districts. 

The issue with these districts, apart from the obvious and rampant gerrymandering, is that they simply eliminate competitive races within the state, making all but 3 districts solid red and solid blue. Based on the 2020 vote margin, only 3 proposed districts are within a 10 point margin and a singular proposed district — the 15th Congressional district — is within a 5 point margin.

Republicans in the state legislature have clearly drawn the map to bolster their party’s power rather than choose to allow Texans to accurately take part in representative democracy. Republicans chose bolstering incumbent power over drawing the maps to increase the number of Republican seats. 

This fact shows a clear line of thinking: Power over representation. The Republicans in the Texas legislature clearly value their party’s grip on power over the democratic rights of their constituents. 

Texans deserve the chance to have meaningful civic debates in competitive elections. Many have argued that these new maps will decrease civic engagement. After all, why vote when you already know the result? In a state with already low voter turnout, these new maps can only discourage voters further. 

This discussion merits a plea to remember these redistricting fights in the coming elections. Often, when heinous and discriminatory legislation comes out of the Texas legislature and the Governor’s office, or when Ted Cruz says something positively ridiculous on the national stage, the discourse turns to a blatant attack on Texas. The conversations follow a certain vein of attacking not only the Texas government, but Texans themselves. I’ve seen posts, although jokingly, advocating for Texas to leave the United States along with conversations with the air of “they deserve it, they voted them in”.

I understand peoples’ anger surrounding the actions coming out of the Texas government, and trust that I share this anger. But one has to remember the nuance surrounding political battles in Texas. 

When I started this column, I stated that I wanted it to contribute to the dissecting of the Texan political landscape, as to combat the presentation of Texas as a conservative bastion. Political battles in Texas simply are not held on an even playing field. When watching the terrible, often discriminatory, legislation that comes out of Texas, the rest of the country needs to remember that within those districts are organizers, activists, and everyday citizens fighting against an oppressive system for their own representation and rights. 

Texas is not a red state where a large majority of citizens agree with what the leaders are saying and doing. Texas is a red state in which the leaders unabashedly participate in power grabs through gerrymandering, silencing voters of color and denying Texans the right to fair representation. 

Varshini Regupathy is a sophomore in the McDonough School of Business studying Business and Global Affairs. She is the daughter of Indian immigrants and a proud native Texan.