Texas House Democratic Caucus Chair Gene Wu along with other members of the Texas House are joined by Illinois Governor JB Pritzker as they speak about Texas Republican plans to redraw the House map office during a press conference at the Democratic Party of DuPage County office in Carol Stream, IL on Sunday, Aug. 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Mark Black)

Heartland states are at the center of a growing redistricting battle as America’s political parties fight for control of Congress in the 2026 midterm elections.

Redrawing congressional districts typically happen once every ten years after each United States Census. However, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott (R) called a special session for his state’s legislature to redraw the maps before the 2026 midterm elections. While the state can change the maps whenever it wants, the timing of this effort is suspect, because Republicans are expected to face a challenging road to keeping their slim majority in the United States House of Representatives due to President Donald Trump’s crippling agenda in his first seven months in office.

When asked why the Texas GOP is redrawing the maps early, state Rep. Mitch Little (R-Lewisville) told CNN, “Because we can.”

In response to the blatant attempt at padding the Republican Party’s grip on power in the state, Democrats in the state legislature left Texas. Although the Texas Democrats don’t have enough votes to block the GOP’s maneuver, they have enough members to deny the Republicans the quorum needed to hold a vote.

Abbott responded by threatening to remove Democrats from office, saying he will use “his full extradition authority to demand the return to Texas of any potential out-of-state felons.” Abbott also asked the Texas Supreme Court to remove House Democratic Caucus Chair Rep. Gene Wu (D-Houston) for “violating the Texas Constitution.”

More than 50 Texas state House Democrats left the state, and some are currently staying in a hotel in St. Charles, Ill., which received a bomb threat early Wednesday morning.

“In response to the threat, 400 people were immediately evacuated and the area was secured as bomb squad units conducted their investigation,” the St. Charles Police Department said in a statement. “Following clearance from authorities, all guests and staff have safely returned to the premises.”

Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. John Cornyn (R-TX), up for reelection next year, called for the FBI to get involved in bring the Democrats back on Tuesday.

Republicans in Missouri and Indiana are considering following suit with Texas to squeeze more seats out for the GOP, while Ohio Republicans are set to redraw their maps this fall. Last November, the Ohio GOP intentionally misled voters into thinking they were ending gerrymandering in the state, which led to the Republicans keeping control of the redistricting process.  Democratic Govs. J.B. Pritzker, Gavin Newsom, and Kathy Hochul have responded to Texas’ gerrymandering attempt by threatening to redraw their own maps to offset the potential new Republican districts. On Tuesday, the Illinois governor told the media that everything is on the table because of the effect that Republican “cheating” will have on democracy.

Both parties have used gerrymandering to their advantage for years, but recent attempts to end the practice through federal legislation were introduced by Democrats and thwarted by Republicans. In 2019 and 2021, congressional Democrats attempted to pass the For the People Act, which would have required each state to use an independent commission to draw their congressional maps.

Last year, a similar bill was introduced by Sens. Amy Klobuchar (D-MN) and Laphonza Butler (D-CA). Dubbed the Redistricting Reform Act, the bill would have prevented state from engaging in redistricting mid-decade and prohibit the drawing of districts to favor a political party. Both bills received zero support from Republican lawmakers, despite polls consistently pointing to the unpopularity of gerrymandering.