Maryland Governor Pushes For Redistricting to Counter Trump Gerrymanders: ‘Come Next November, We Will Have Fair Maps’

Maryland Gov. Wes Moore (D) announced Tuesday the creation of a redistricting commission to recommend redrawing the state’s congressional map, signaling his support for a plan to counter President Donald Trump’s gerrymanders in GOP-controlled states. 

But with a key lawmaker opposing the effort, significant hurdles remain.

“Maryland will not just sit on its hands while Donald Trump continues to pick and choose which states have fair maps and which states don’t,” said Moore in an interview with the podcaster Brian Tyler Cohen Tuesday. “When we know he’s just trying to rig the rules because he knows it’s the only way for him to win an election.”

Republican lawmakers in Texas, Missouri and North Carolina have redrawn their maps this year, paving the way for Trump’s plan to rig the 2026 election by creating more Republican seats in Congress. California and Virginia have fought back, taking steps to add more Democratic seats to offset those potential GOP gains. 

While Democrats in California and Virginia entered the battle with swift, decisive legislative moves, the path in Maryland may be more difficult. 

Maryland Senate President Bill Ferguson (D) last week came out against redistricting, arguing the risk would be too high and the possibility of gaining a seat unlikely. Ferguson reiterated his opposition Tuesday, referring in a statement to “overwhelming concern” about the effort.

The commission announced by Moore, which would be chaired by U.S. Sen. Angela Alsobrooks (D), is expected to hold public hearings before making recommendations to the governor and lawmakers by the end of the year. 

The goal appears to be to build public support for a redraw, leading lawmakers to ultimately get on board.

Moore told Cohen the commission would spend time “listening to Marylanders, and going all around and hearing where Marylanders are on this issue — but with a very firm understanding that, come next November, we will have fair maps.”

Ferguson will serve on Moore’s redistricting commission, along with Commission Chair and former Attorney General Brian Frosh (D), Cumberland Mayor Ray Morriss and Speaker Adrienne A. Jones (D). 

U.S. Rep. Andy Harris (R), whose district would be targeted by the effort, said in a statement that the commission “was obviously rigged from the start.”