Have Republican efforts to redistrict the House turned into a sham? A state-by-state guide

Republicans undertook a historic effort to redraw congressional districts in several states in the middle of the decade, aiming to maintain control of the House. This effort was pushed back Tuesday night, when the GOP was on the verge of losing every district it was trying to capture. gerrymander.

There were several reasons why states began what was previously a rare practice of redistricting in the middle of the decade. Republican efforts began when President Trump ordered Texas lawmakers to redraw their map to get up to five seats for the GOP.

But despite all the efforts made, Democrats took control of the House Tuesday, with CBS News estimating that Democrats could end up with 251 to 268 seats in the House.

As the House shifts decidedly toward Democrats and Democrats take steps in a few states to counter GOP efforts, Republicans face the possibility of having created what’s known as a “dummymander,” a situation in which one party attempts to gerrymander, but ends up benefiting the other party.

Here’s a state-by-state breakdown of how the redistricting efforts have gone:

Texas

Texas Republicans entered Election Day controlling 24 seats, while Democrats controlled 13 and there was one vacant seat in a Republican-leaning district. By redrawing the map, the Republicans sought to highlight Mr. Trump’s achievements in South Texas to win five additional seats.

As of Wednesday, Republicans had won 24 seats and Democrats had won 14 seats, making Texas a dummy.

Ohio

A commission made up of mostly Republicans hand-picked by GOP lawmakers redrew Ohio’s map to yield two additional seats for their party. Republicans have heavily targeted longtime Democratic Rep. Marcy Kaptur’s district in the northern part of the state and Rep. Greg Landsman’s Cincinnati-area district.

Heading into Tuesday night, Ohio Republicans controlled 10 seats and Democrats controlled five. Seven Democrats, including Kaptur and Landsman, won Tuesday night, and CBS News estimates another district is likely Democratic. Republicans only won seven districts, making Ohio a sucker.

North Carolina

Although North Carolina has a Democratic governor, Republican lawmakers have a veto-proof majority in the Legislature and pushed through a new map who tried to oust Democratic Rep. Don Davis.

North Carolina Republicans controlled 10 House seats before Election Day, while Democrats controlled four, including Davis’ district. As of Wednesday, four Democrats had won and CBS News estimated that five more were likely Democrats. Republicans had yet to win any races, with CBS News estimating one race to be likely Republican and four others to be toss-ups.

If Democrats end up winning one of the undecided races, North Carolina will be a dummy.

Louisiana

Louisiana lawmakers redrew their districts after the The Supreme Court ruled in June that compliance with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act could not justify the state’s use of race to redraw House district boundaries.

Louisiana entered Election Day with four House seats controlled by Republicans and two by Democrats. The new map aimed to eliminate one of the majority black neighborhoods which currently have Democratic representatives.

As of Wednesday, Republicans had won three districts, while Democrats had won one. CBS News believes one district is a toss-up and the state’s 5th district will go to a runoff. If Democrats win either of these districts, Louisiana will be nothing more than a dummy.

Alabama

After the same decision of the Supreme Court, Alabama Republicans sought to eliminate the state’s two majority-black districts.both represented by Democrats. Both incumbents were re-elected Tuesday, so Republicans gained no more than the five they already controlled, making Alabama a dummy.

Tennessee

Tennessee lawmakers also redrew their map after the Supreme Court’s decision to target Nashville’s only Democratic district.

Before Election Day, Republicans had eight seats and Democrats one. As of Wednesday, Republicans had won six seats and two races were set to go to runoffs, including the newly drawn 9th District in Nashville. If Democrats win one or both districts, Tennessee will be a jerk.

Florida

Led by Florida Republican Governor Ron DeSantis, GOP lawmakers redrew their map to obtain up to four additional seats for their party.

As Election Day approached, Republicans controlled 20 seats and Democrats eight. As of Wednesday, Republicans had won 16 seats, Democrats had won seven, and CBS News deemed five districts to be toss-ups. If the Democrats win one of the toss-up races, Florida will be a dummy.

Missouri

Last year, Missouri’s GOP-led legislature redraw their map making one of the state’s two Democratic districts friendlier to Republicans. But the card’s legality was challenged, and a state court ruled it could only be used if approved by voters. The Supreme Court three times blocked Missouri to use the new map, leaving the 2022 congressional districts in place for Tuesday’s elections.

Heading into Election Day, Republicans controlled six districts while Democrats held two. Democrats flipped another district, giving them three seats to Republicans’ five.

Indiana

Mr. Trump had also pushed Indiana lawmakers to pass a map that would sideline the state’s two Democratic lawmakers and make it a 9-0 Republican delegation. Despite pressure from Mr. Trump, the The GOP-led state Senate rejected the new map.

Using the same boundaries as the last two cycles, Democrats held on to their two seats and flipped a third, bringing the state’s representation to 6-3.

South Carolina

South Carolina Republicans also sought to redraw their map after the Supreme Court ruling, aiming to outpace powerful Democratic Rep. Jim Clyburn and bring the state’s representation to 7-0 for Republicans. But the the measure failed in the state Senateand Clyburn was re-elected Tuesday. Two other races are considered draws.

California

In response to Texas redistricting efforts, the California Democratic Party Governor Gavin Newsom presented a ballot measure to redraw the map to gain five seats for Democrats, which was resolutely approved by voters.

As Election Day approached, Democrats held 43 districts and Republicans held nine. As of Wednesday, Democrats won in 42 districts, while CBS News estimates six more are likely Democratic. Republicans won two districts and two more will likely be Republican.

Since Democrats gained seats in California, this is a successful gerrymander for Democrats.

Utah

In 2025, a judge threw out Utah’s congressional map that favored Republicans in all four districts and then a district court. rejected the redistricting map selected by the GOP-controlled legislature and instead I selected a card it would create a Democratic-leaning congressional district in Salt Lake City.

According to the new map, Democrat Ben McAdams won Salt Lake City’s 1st District by 47 points.

Virginia

Virginia Voters Definitively Approved a ballot measure in April to redraw the congressional map to favor Democrats in 10 districts and Republicans in one. But the the map was rejected by the Virginia Supreme Courtputting back the map drawn in 2021.

Heading into Tuesday, Democrats held six seats while Republicans held five. Using the same boundaries as the last two cycles, Democrats won seven seats, Republicans two and two are considered toss-ups.

Maryland

Maryland’s state constitution requires congressional districts to be compact and connected, and Democratic Gov. Wes Moore and other Democratic lawmakers have championed a ballot initiative to remove these restrictions on redistricting.

The ballot initiative, known as Question 3, increased by 20 points on Tuesdayso Democrats will likely redraw their map now to get ahead of their lone GOP representative.