[1]Swing LeftSwing Left
Hi John,
With the 2025 election now behind us, we’re looking ahead to the 2026
midterms and the path to flipping the House. A major factor shaping that
path is redistricting. This year, at Donald Trump’s urging, Republican-led
states launched aggressive mid-decade efforts to redraw congressional maps
in their favor.
Trump knows the U.S. House majority is at risk in next year’s midterms,
and Republicans are trying to lock in an advantage before voters can weigh
in and hold them accountable. Now, states across the country are
considering or implementing new maps, and those decisions will determine
which districts will be most competitive in next year’s elections.
As our priority remains putting our collective efforts into the most
effective ways to elect a Democratic House majority, which is our best way
to put a real check on the Trump administration, we want to keep you
updated on everything that’s happening.
Here’s where things stand:
In Texas, a federal court recently blocked the new gerrymandered map
designed to give Republicans up to five additional House seats. Texas
appealed the case to the Supreme Court, which has temporarily allowed the
map to remain in place while they consider the case. The Supreme Court is
signaling they will move quickly, so we expect to hear more here soon.
Missouri, Ohio, and North Carolina have enacted new congressional maps as
well, further gerrymandering their states in favor of Republicans. In
Missouri, voters are fighting back, and are collecting signatures for a
ballot referendum that would let Missourians vote in a special election on
whether to repeal the gerrymandered map.
Florida, Indiana, and Kansas (where Republicans have majorities in the
state legislature) are at various stages of considering map changes,
though some efforts have stalled or slowed due to legislative
disagreements or lack of support.
In Utah, Republicans are planning to appeal to the Supreme Court to block
a new congressional map instituted by a state court that creates one safe
Democratic seat around Salt Lake City. This comes after Republicans have
repeatedly tried to draw maps with no blue seats, ignoring the
requirements of a redistricting initiative passed by voters in 2018.
But this isn’t a one-sided fight. Democratic-led states are taking action
too, and this community helped make that possible.
In California, with the support of the Swing Left community, voters passed
Proposition 50, allowing the legislature to temporarily redraw the maps in
Democrats’ favor ahead of the 2026 elections. Litigation is ongoing, but
this could significantly offset the unfair advantage Republicans are
trying to gain in other states.
In Virginia, the state legislature approved the first step of a
constitutional amendment that would allow lawmakers to redraw the state’s
congressional map ahead of the 2026 election. And since Democrats expanded
their control of the legislature in this year’s elections—another victory
this community made possible—the newly sworn-in legislature will be able
to approve the amendment for the required second time in January. It will
then go before voters in a statewide referendum.
There is also activity in states like Maryland, where Governor Wes Moore
reconstituted the state’s Redistricting Advisory Commission. The group
will begin meeting this month. Although far from certain, it’s possible
that Maryland could reconsider its map in response to changes happening
elsewhere.
What this means for Swing Left’s strategy:
Republicans are working hard to tilt the playing field. That makes the
work we’re doing now to shore up competitive Democratic campaigns more
important than ever.
Right now, Swing Left is targeting 22 districts—a mix of Democratic-held
seats we need to defend and Republican-held seats we need to flip. These
are the places we believe your time and money can have the greatest impact
on flipping the House. As we’ve already done this year, we’ll continue to
update these targets so our efforts stay focused where it matters most.
[ [link removed] ]If you’d like to support this work, consider making a contribution of
$25, or any amount that works for you, split between Swing
Left and the eventual Democratic nominees in each of these target
districts.
[ [link removed] ]Donate $25 Now
Your support powers our nationwide organizing work—including our
knock-every-door canvassing program, [ [link removed] ]Ground Truth—and ensures
Democratic candidates in these must-win districts have the resources they
need the moment their primaries end.
As always, we’ll continue to keep you up to date on the most impactful
ways to take action.
Thank you for everything you do,
— The Swing Left Team
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