Texas Lawmaker Testifies GOP Used Minority Communities as ‘Pawns’ in New Map

EL PASO, TEXAS — A Texas Democrat testified in federal court Thursday that Republican leadership used minority communities as pawns when they redrew the state’s congressional map this summer at the request of President Donald Trump. 

State Sen. Royce West (D-Dallas) told the court the latest Texas redistricting process was a bad faith, secretive effort that began with a letter from the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) to state leadership demanding they dismantle five congressional districts where minority voters currently are able to elect their candidates of choice.

“It’s always the minority communities that end up being the pawns,” West testified, adding that public testimony was not taken seriously by Republican lawmakers and he suspected the map was already done before the process even began.

While arguing the legal analysis in the DOJ letter was wrong, West pointed out one of the five districts the department deemed unconstitutional was actually created by a federal court. 

West’s testimony came on the second day of a consequential federal hearing to determine whether the new GOP gerrymander can be used in the upcoming election.

Though federal courts have allowed states to engage in partisan gerrymandering since the landmark Rucho v. Common Cause ruling in 2019, racial discrimination in redistricting is illegal.

Minority voters* and voting advocates suing to block the new gerrymander continued to argue Thursday that Republicans drew a racially discriminatory map, while attorneys for the state insisted the map is a partisan gerrymander that complies with the law.

An attorney representing the state grilled West, pressing him to call the map a partisan gerrymander rather than a racial one. But West repeatedly responded that Republicans had drawn the map at the expense of minority voters. 

The three federal judges in the hearing have remained tight-lipped, but U.S. Circuit Judge Jerry Smith – appointed by former President Ronald Reagan – jumped in Thursday after the state attorney asked West whether the map was a partisan gerrymander. Smith demanded West respond with a yes or no answer. West said no.  

State Rep. Senfronia Thompson (D-Houston) later took the stand, testifying that state Rep. Todd Hunter (R-Corpus Christi), the author of the redistricting bill, had knowledge that the new map will harm minority communities in Houston. 

The legislature in 2021 proposed combining two Houston congressional districts with majority minority populations – a plan Thompson and her colleagues were able to block by explaining the potential impact to minority communities, she said. This time, however, Hunter moved forward with that approach regardless. 

*Some Texas voters are represented by the Elias Law Group (ELG). ELG firm chair Marc Elias is the founder of Democracy Docket.