Lawmakers in several southern states will be meeting this week to consider redistricting plans in response to a U.S. Supreme Court ruling that weakened the Voting Rights Act. Republican Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has called legislators into a special session starting Monday that could enable a new date for congressional primaries. Tennessee Republican Gov. Bill Lee has announced a special session starting Tuesday to redraw the state's U.S. House districts. And Louisiana lawmakers also are in session to consider how to redraw districts after the Supreme Court struck down a majority Black district in the state.

A Supreme Court decision striking down a majority Black congressional district in Louisiana has amplified an already intense national redistricting battle. The court's ruling Wednesday limits the use of race in drawing voting districts. In response, Louisiana Gov. Jeff Landry has suspended the state's May 16 congressional primary to allow time for state lawmakers to draw new House districts. Alabama Gov. Kay Ivey has called a special session to start Monday in case the Supreme Court allows the state to change its U.S. House districts. President Donald Trump also is urging Tennessee officials to redraw House districts to try to gain another seat for Republicans.

A panel of three federal judges has blocked Texas from using a new congressional map that Republicans drew in hopes of picking up five U.S. House seats. That map had touched off a nationwide redistricting battle and is a major piece of President Donald Trump's efforts to preserve a slim Republican majority ahead of the 2026 elections. In a 2-1 ruling Tuesday, a panel of federal judges in El Paso sided with opponents who argued that Texas' unusual summer redrawing of congressional districts would harm Black and Hispanic residents. Texas Gov. Greg Abbott vowed a swift appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court and defended the map.

Texas Republicans are pushing to finalize a mid-decade redraw of the state's congressional map. The GOP-controlled Senate debated the bill on Friday, with Democrats questioning its legality. They argue it violates the Voting Rights Act by diluting racial voter influence. California Democrats responded to the Texas effort by passing legislation Thursday for a special election to approve their own redrawn map. The moves are part of a broader redistricting battle among states. Both parties are redrawing lines to secure power ahead of the midterms, with accusations of gerrymandering on both sides.

The Republican-controlled Texas House of Representatives kicked off a heated debate over a new congressional map creating five new potential GOP seats that is expected to pass the chamber later Wednesday as part of a growing national redistricting battle. The plan is the result of prodding by President Donald Trump, eager to stave off a midterm defeat that would deprive his party of control of the House of Representatives. Texas Democratic state lawmakers delayed the vote by leaving the state, but enough returned this week for the body to reconvene. The GOP House speaker assigned round-the-clock police monitors to Democrats to keep them from leaving again.

Texas Republicans have ended a legislative session without approving new congressional maps but quickly began another intended to satisfy President Donald Trump's wishes for redistricting that bolsters the GOP. Democrats blocked the plan by leaving the state during a special session that Republicans adjourned on Friday. They immediately began another. Meanwhile, California Democrats are preparing to counter Republican gains in Texas. The redistricting battle has become a national issue, with both states at the forefront. California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday announced a special election to approve redrawn districts. Texas Democrats have indicated they would return to Austin only after California more formally begins its process to counter Republicans.