New York’s constitution prevents mid-decade redistricting, complicating Dem plans to counter Texas Republicans
As Texas Republicans gear up to redraw congressional maps and potentially lock in a larger House majority ahead of 2026, Democrats in New York are scrambling to catch up—by proposing a change to the state’s redistricting process that would not go into effect until after the midterm elections.
The bill from Democrats in the State Assembly and Senate would permit New York to redraw its congressional borders mid-decade instead of every 10 years, as stipulated in the state’s constitution, the New York Times reported.
Because the bill amounts to a constitutional amendment, however, Democrats would have to approve the measure in two consecutive legislative sessions. Voters would then have to approve it via a statewide referendum. That means “the earliest the lines could be redrawn would be 2028,” a fact the Times buried in the third-to-last paragraph of its piece. Texas, by contrast, can convene its state legislature to redraw congressional lines with no constraints.
The timing problems did not stop top Democrats from celebrating the move from their partymates in the New York Legislature. Sen. Ruben Gallego (D., Ariz.) responded to the Times piece in a tweet reading, “No unilateral disarmament. Democrats everywhere should be thinking this way in 2026, and going into 2030.”
The proposed bill comes as Texas Republicans assemble for a special legislative session aimed in part at redrawing the state’s congressional map to carve out additional districts likely to elect GOP candidates. In turn, Texas Democrats are plotting a walkout that would deny their Republican counterparts the quorum needed to pass a new map.
In addition to New York, Democrats have floated launching similar redistricting efforts in blue states like California and New Jersey. Voters in all of those states have passed constitutional amendments that place the redistricting process in the hands of distinct commissions and include specific timelines for commissioners to meet and approve maps.
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