The last couple weeks there has been considerable sound and fury over the push, led by Republican Governor Greg Abbott and President Trump, to call the Texas Legislature into session and redivide congressional lines to add up to five new GOP-leaning U.S. House seats in the 2026 election. Republicans in Ohio and Florida are exploring similar steps.
The purpose is to tip next year’s midterm U.S. House elections in the Republican Party’s favor by having an increased number of safe seats. The trigger is that Democrats currently lead slightly in voter preference for those races.
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Texas Democratic House members, to deny a quorum, have fled to Illinois, taking shelter in Chicago. Abbott has asked law enforcement to track them down and drag those Democrats back to Texas.
Democratically-controlled states, in particular California, New York, Massachusetts and Maryland, have threatened to do the same thing to even the playing field. It is easy to see an escalating tit for tat.
What are the rules governing creating congressional district lines? Article One Section 2 of the U.S. Constitution specifies that the once-a-decade census governs the divvying up of U.S. House seats among the various states. But, it is silent on how often a state, during the period after a census, can reapportion the districts within a state. That is the basis of the Texas effort.
What if Idaho wanted to get in the game and redraw lines before the 2026 election? That is highly unlikely because Idaho only has two congressional seats, both already held by Republican incumbents. For sake of argument, assume the Idaho Legislature was so inclined.
The primary roadblock then is the Idaho Constitution. In 1994 Idaho voters approved a constitutional amendment which states: “Whenever there is reason to reapportion the legislature or to provide for new congressional district boundaries in the state, or both, because of a new federal census or because of a decision of a court of competent jurisdiction, a commission for reapportionment shall be formed . . . .”
Thus, the Idaho Constitution only allows for dividing legislative and congressional lines after the census or if a court strikes down the existing map. The Idaho Supreme Court upheld Idaho’s map after a challenge in 2021. Idaho simply may not redo boundaries this year or until after the next census.
In addition, the Idaho reapportionment commission is bipartisan and has six members, 4 selected by legislative leaders of both parties and one each by each state party leader. Idaho commission members cannot be an an appointed or elected official. That means each major party has three members, establishing parity when it comes to voting on actual maps. As a result the Idaho committee has had a history of bipartisan line drawing, with minimal rancor.
Interestingly enough, the U.S. Constitution empowers Congress to put limits on state line drawing. It hasFailed to do so. For instance, Congress could adopt the Idaho standard that redrawing is only triggered by each decade’s census or a court striking a map. Such would avoid the current partisan scramble playing out in Texas and elsewhere. That might be a positive step once the current hubbub dies down.
About the Author
Steve Taggart is an attorney in Idaho Falls and has worked in Republican politics since his teens, both in campaigns and for elected officials, including running a congressional office.
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Author: Political Potatoes
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