Fresh polling shows voters in both states are cool to mid-decade mapmaking, but for very different reasons. 

The redistricting wars are officially here. 

Texas Republicans are charging ahead with a mid-decade map redraw that could flip five Congressional districts from blue to red.  

California Democrats are threatening to answer in kind, redrawing their maps to offset any Republican gain in the Lone Star state.  

But the California constitution requires the Congressional districts to be drawn by an independent, non-partisan commission. That’s why Governor Gavin Newsom is asking voters to approve an amendment to the constitution allowing the state legislature to draw new, temporary maps. 

This isn’t just political theater. It’s a genuine arms race over who controls Congress after the 2026 midterms – and both sides are testing the limits of their state’s rules.
 

What the Public Thinks 

Fresh polling from YouGov and Politico shows voters in both states are not happy about mid-decade mapmaking. 

Both states’ mid-decade redistricting schemes are unpopular: 

In California, there’s rare cross-party agreement. Democrats, Republicans, and independents all want to keep the maps drawn the way they are:  

The fight in Texas is much more sharply polarized. Republicans overwhelmingly support the legislature’s mid-decade redraw, while Democrats and independents oppose it just as strongly: 

The polling underscores how hard it will be for leaders in either state to sell voters on breaking their own rules. 

 In California, convincing a majority to strip power from an independent commission will be an uphill climb. In Texas, Republicans risk alienating independents and moderates who see mid-decade gerrymanders as a bridge too far. 

Rep. Kevin Kiley, a California Republican, has introduced legislation to ban mid-decade gerrymandering in all states. Could that be the ceasefire that ends the redistricting wars?