The backlash from red states in response to Governor Gavin Newsom’s criticism of alleged gerrymandering in Texas is now picking up steam—and the irony isn’t lost on many observers. Kansas is already looking to eliminate its lone Democratic-leaning congressional district. Now, Florida is reportedly preparing to redraw its congressional map as well.
Governor Ron DeSantis has indicated that redistricting efforts in Florida will move forward in 2026. The goal? To potentially eliminate a Voting Rights Act-protected district that was drawn largely along racial lines, while increasing the number of Republican-leaning seats in the state. Some conservative commentators argue that the Florida GOP should act quickly, warning that Democratic-appointed judges may intervene once any new map is proposed.
“It’ll happen in the spring, and the legislature, I fully anticipate, will produce a revised congressional map, maybe with 29 seats, maybe with the current 28, maybe with the VRA district, maybe eliminating that,” said DeSantis.
Critics of Newsom’s stance argue that his vocal opposition to Texas’s redistricting efforts has unintentionally triggered a larger wave of red-state redistricting. “Newsom and his fellow shortsighted Democrats should have kept their big yaps shut,” one poster quipped, reflecting the sentiment among some conservative circles. The theory is that while red states still have room to redraw maps to their advantage, most blue states have already maximized their gains after years of redistricting—leaving them with little flexibility to respond in kind.
