The American Democracy Minute Radio News Report & Podcast for Nov. 24, 2025
As congressional candidates get ready for the 2026 midterms, the districts in which they run are still in limbo, waiting for the outcomes of two important racial gerrymandering cases in Texas and Louisiana.
Nov. 18th, a three-judge federal panel ruled 2-1 that the Texas legislature racially gerrymandered its 2025 maps to deliver five more GOP congressional seats at President Donald Trump’s request. The Trump-appointed judge in the case said QUOTE “substantial evidence shows that Texas racially gerrymandered the 2025 Map.”
Nov. 21st, the State of Texas appealed directly to the U.S. Supreme Court, noting the state’s candidate filing deadline of December 6th. That night, Justice Samuel Alito granted a temporary stay on the lower court’s order, and requested responses from the parties by Monday, Nov. 24th. A decision could come within days or weeks.
Also pending, and even more consequential, is the high court’s decision in Louisiana v. Callais, argued on Oct. 15th. In that case, congressional maps which followed the Voting Rights Act Section 2 statutes and restored African American majority minority districts were challenged as a violation of the Equal Protections Clause of the 14th Amendment. Should the high court agree with Louisiana, the state’s congressional districts could strip Black voting power, and remaining VRA protections could be neutralized nationwide, eliminating 60 years of precedent.
We have more at AmericanDemocracyMinute.org. I’m Brian Beihl.
Today’s Links
Articles & Resources:
American Democracy Minute – Trump-Requested Texas Congressional District Gerrymandering Blocked by Federal Court Panel
U.S. District Court for the Western District of Texas – El Paso – MEMORANDUM OPINION AND ORDER
U.S. Supreme Court – Appeal by State of Texas in League of United Latin American Citizens v. Abbott
Texas Tribune – Supreme Court temporarily restores Texas’ new congressional map
NPR – Redistricting deadlines for the midterms loom as states wait for a Supreme Court ruling
American Democracy Minute – Outlook for the Voting Rights Act Dims, as Court’s Conservatives Appear to Turn Away From Their Own Precedent
SCOTUSBlog – (2021) Alito blasts media for portraying shadow docket in “sinister” terms
Groups Taking Action:
LULAC, MALDEF, NAACP Legal Defense Fund, Lawyers Committee for Civil Rights Under Law, ACLU, Legal Defense Fund, Power Coalition for Equity and Justice
Register or Check Your Voter Registration:
U.S. Election Assistance Commission – How to Register And Vote in Your State
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