Atlas Ahead

The Redraw

Between August 2025 and June 2026, eleven states changed the congressional map their voters will use — outside the once-a-decade cycle those maps are normally drawn on. This is the record of who redrew, what let them, and what the courts have said since.

+15
Seats to Republicans
+6
Seats to Democrats
R+9
Net, enacted maps
9
Maps in effect
8
Attempts that failed

Why this is the number that matters

A net shift of 9 seats would be a rounding error in a chamber with a comfortable majority. The US House does not have one. Control has changed hands on margins in the single digits in three of the last four decades, which means a redraw of this size is not an adjustment to the map — it is potentially the whole question, settled before anyone votes.

Two cautions on that figure. It is a projection of how each new map is expected to perform, taken from the sources cited on each state below; no general election has been held on most of these lines. And it excludes Missouri, worth a further R+1, where two courts issued opposite instructions on the same afternoon and the question is still open.

Where the lines moved

Each square is a state, sized equally so that a small state is as visible as a large one. Shading is the seat shift and its direction; a state with no fill either did not redraw or tried and failed. The purple ring marks the one map still unresolved.

AK
ME
VT
NH
WA
ID
MT
ND
MN
IL
WI—
MI
NY—
RI
MA
OR
NV
WY
SD
IA
IN—
OHR+2
PA
NJ
CT
CAD+5
UTD+1
CO
NE
MOR+1
KY
WV
VA—
MD—
DE
AZ
NM
KS—
AR—
TNR+1
NCR+1
SC—
DC
OK
LAR+1
MS
ALR+1
GA
HI
TXR+5
FLR+4
Republican gain Democratic gain Attempted, failed Unresolved

What lets a state redraw mid-decade at all

Congressional maps are normally drawn once, after each census. Nothing in the Constitution or federal law requires that, and the Supreme Court held in Rucho v. Common Cause (2019) that federal courts cannot hear claims of partisan gerrymandering at all. What remains are state constitutions, state courts, and the Voting Rights Act — which is why the four routes below produced such different outcomes in states that look politically similar.

Legislature
A legislature the same party controls, redrawing at will. Nothing in federal law limits how often a state may redraw, so where one party holds both chambers and the governorship the only real constraints are its own members and the courts.
Commission
An independent or bipartisan commission, acting under a rule the state constitution imposes on it — not a discretionary choice.
Court
A court, ordering a map after finding the political branches had failed to produce a lawful one.
Ballot Measure
Voters, asked directly to set aside the state's own map-drawing rules for a cycle.

State by state

California

D +5
In effect
Drawn by
ballot measure
Enacted
2025-11-04
On the 2026 ballot
Yes

How it was openedProposition 50, which set aside the independent commission map for this cycle.

The explicit counter to Texas. California had removed map-drawing from the legislature in 2008 and 2010; Prop 50 asked voters to set that aside temporarily, and they did, 64.4% to 35.6%. A federal court upheld the map in January 2026 and the Supreme Court declined the appeal on 2026-02-04.

Where the law standsUpheld; SCOTUS denied review 2026-02-04.

Verified againstWikipedia Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt) Ballotpedia

Texas

R +5
In effect
Drawn by
legislature
Enacted
2025-08-29
On the 2026 ballot
Yes

How it was openedSpecial session called by the governor after a US Department of Justice letter raised racial-discrimination concerns about the existing map.

The first move of the cycle and the one that set it off. Texas had a usable 2021 map; the special session was called anyway. A federal district court in El Paso found the new map an unconstitutional racial gerrymander on 2025-11-18. The Supreme Court stayed that ruling 6-3 on 2025-12-04, so the map struck down below is the map Texas votes on.

Where the law standsStruck down at district court; stayed by SCOTUS 6-3. Merits unresolved.

Verified againstWikipedia Brennan Center for Justice Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt)

Florida

R +4
In effect
Drawn by
legislature
Enacted
2026-05-04
On the 2026 ballot
Yes

How it was openedSpecial legislative session called by the governor.

The largest Republican gain after Texas, and among the last enacted before the election year closed in.

Where the law standsNo challenge reported as of the verification date.

Verified againstWikipedia Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt)

Ohio

R +2
In effect
Drawn by
commission
Enacted
2025-10-31
On the 2026 ballot
Yes

How it was openedConstitutional requirement: the 2021 map passed without bipartisan support, so it expired early and had to be redrawn.

Not a discretionary mid-decade redraw at all - Ohio's constitution forces one. A map adopted without minority-party votes lasts four years instead of ten. The replacement was adopted with bipartisan support and is locked until 2032.

Where the law standsNone. Locked until 2032.

Verified againstWikipedia Ballotpedia

Alabama

R +1
In effect
Drawn by
legislature
Enacted
2026-06-02
On the 2026 ballot
Yes

How it was openedSpecial session after the US Supreme Court lifted an injunction from the earlier Allen v. Milligan litigation.

Alabama spent the first half of the decade under court order to draw a second Black-opportunity district. A 6-3 Supreme Court order removing the prior restraint reopened the map.

Where the law standsInjunction lifted 6-3; new map in effect.

Verified againstWikipedia Brennan Center for Justice, NYU School of Law

Louisiana

R +1
In effect
Drawn by
legislature
Enacted
2026-05-29
On the 2026 ballot
Yes

How it was openedSpecial session following the Supreme Court decision in Louisiana v. Callais.

Downstream of a Voting Rights Act case rather than a partisan opening - Callais changed what Louisiana was required to do, and the legislature redrew accordingly.

Where the law standsFacing challenges; unsettled at the verification date.

Verified againstWikipedia Brennan Center for Justice, NYU School of Law

North Carolina

R +1
In effect
Drawn by
legislature
Enacted
2025-10-22
On the 2026 ballot
Yes

How it was openedRegular legislation; a governor's signature is not required for redistricting bills in North Carolina.

North Carolina's governor cannot veto a redistricting bill, which makes it the cheapest redraw in the country for whichever party holds the legislature. A federal three-judge panel approved the map on 2025-11-26.

Where the law standsApproved by a federal three-judge panel 2025-11-26.

Verified againstWikipedia Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt)

Tennessee

R +1
In effect
Drawn by
legislature
Enacted
2026-05-07
On the 2026 ballot
Yes

How it was openedExtraordinary session called by the governor.

The ACLU sought a temporary block on 2026-05-26; a federal judge declined.

Where the law standsBlock sought and denied; map proceeding.

Verified againstWikipedia Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt)

Utah

D +1
In effect
Drawn by
court
Enacted
2025-11-10
On the 2026 ballot
Yes

How it was openedState-court ruling in a lawsuit over the legislature's handling of a voter-approved redistricting initiative.

The only Democratic gain of the cycle that came from a courtroom rather than a legislature or a ballot box. The court-ordered map creates one safe Democratic seat in a state that had none. Republican appeals failed in both state and federal court.

Where the law standsAppeals exhausted; map in effect.

Verified againstWikipedia Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt)

Missouri

R +1
Contested
Drawn by
legislature, then referendum, then federal court
Enacted
2025-09-28
On the 2026 ballot
Undecided

How it was openedSpecial session called by the governor.

The 2022 map gave Republicans a 6-2 edge; the 2025 map was drawn for 7-1, splitting Kansas City and targeting the 5th District. Opponents gathered roughly 300,000 signatures to force a referendum. On 2026-09-08, hours before the ballot-finalisation deadline, the US Supreme Court declined to revive the new map - and minutes later a federal district judge issued a 14-day temporary restraining order forbidding officials to use any map EXCEPT that one. Two courts, opposite instructions, the same afternoon.

Where the law standsUNRESOLVED. SCOTUS declined the Republican emergency appeal on 2026-09-08; a federal TRO the same day compels the 2025 map and runs 14 days. Election officials have said publicly that they do not know which map applies.

Verified againstMissouri Independent KOMU 8 (Columbia, MO) Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt) Wikipedia

Arkansas

Did not pass
Drawn by
legislature plus court
Enacted
—
On the 2026 ballot
No

How it was openedConstitutional amendment and a racial-gerrymander suit.

The amendment died in committee; a federal court found no racial gerrymander in June 2025.

Where the law standsNo violation found.

Verified againstWikipedia

Indiana

Did not pass
Drawn by
legislature
Enacted
—
On the 2026 ballot
No

How it was openedSpecial session.

The clearest refusal of the cycle: the Senate rejected the proposal on 2025-12-11, with 21 Republicans joining 10 Democrats against it.

Where the law standsn/a

Verified againstWikipedia Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt)

Kansas

Did not pass
Drawn by
legislature
Enacted
—
On the 2026 ballot
No

How it was openedSpecial session.

The special session lacked the votes; leadership said it would return to the question in the January 2026 regular session. It did not produce a map.

Where the law standsn/a

Verified againstWikipedia

Maryland

Did not pass
Drawn by
legislature
Enacted
—
On the 2026 ballot
No

How it was openedSpecial session.

The House passed a redraw; the Senate refused to take it up in February 2026. A separate constitutional amendment was blocked by a trial court on procedural grounds and later reinstated to the 2026 ballot by the state Supreme Court - so Maryland's mechanism question is still open even though its map is not.

Where the law standsAmendment reinstated for the 2026 ballot.

Verified againstWikipedia Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt)

New York

Did not pass
Drawn by
court plus legislature
Enacted
—
On the 2026 ballot
No

How it was openedState-court redistricting action.

The US Supreme Court blocked the state-court redistricting on 2026-03-02.

Where the law standsBlocked by SCOTUS.

Verified againstWikipedia Brennan Center for Justice, NYU School of Law

South Carolina

Did not pass
Drawn by
legislature
Enacted
—
On the 2026 ballot
No

How it was openedSpecial session resolution.

The Senate resolution fell short of a two-thirds majority in May 2026, with Republicans among those voting against.

Where the law standsn/a

Verified againstWikipedia Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt)

Virginia

Did not pass
Drawn by
ballot measure
Enacted
—
On the 2026 ballot
No

How it was openedProposed constitutional amendment.

Voted on 2026-04-21; the Virginia Supreme Court struck the referendum down on 2026-05-08.

Where the law standsStruck down.

Verified againstWikipedia Loyola Law School (Prof. Justin Levitt)

Wisconsin

Did not pass
Drawn by
court
Enacted
—
On the 2026 ballot
No

How it was openedRedistricting lawsuits.

The Wisconsin Supreme Court declined to hear the case; later challenges were rejected.

Where the law standsDeclined.

Verified againstWikipedia

Where this came from

Every state row above cites the sources it was verified against, and each is listed here with what kind of source it is. Two are advocacy organisations that litigate in this area; they are reliable on dockets and dates, and their characterisations are a party's. Wikipedia is used for chronology and is corroborated wherever it carries a status.

Statuses verified 2026-09-09. Page built 2026-09-09 from data/redistricting/maps_2026.json. Missouri is live and will change.