Texas Republicans are moving to redraw the state’s congressional district map and flip five House seats for the GOP — an unusual mid-decade redistricting effort that comes at the urging of President Donald Trump ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. To block the map’s passage, Texas Democrats have fled the state, denying Republican state leaders the quorum needed to hold a vote.
Political science fellow Mark P. Jones joined “Baker Briefing” to break down the political standoff and what’s at stake for electoral politics in Texas and nationwide.
Subscribe and listen to “Baker Briefing” on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, YouTube, or wherever you listen.
View the transcript for this episode. This transcript was AI-generated and has not been through editorial review.
Hosted by David M. Satterfield, the “Baker Briefing” podcast delivers timely analysis on breaking policy developments and other critical policy issues of the day in conversations with experts at the Baker Institute. New episodes are released weekly.
Select episodes of “Baker Briefing” are recorded in front of a live audience at Rice University in Houston, Texas. These recordings are free and open to the public. To learn about upcoming recordings and other public programming from the Baker Institute, subscribe to our “Events Digest” newsletter, delivered weekly.
This material may be quoted or reproduced without prior permission, provided appropriate credit is given to the author(s) and Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. The views expressed herein are those of the individual author(s) and do not necessarily represent the views of Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy.
