Republicans Went All In on Redistricting Ahead of the Midterms. Why Did It Fail?

In states including Texas, North Carolina, Ohio, Alabama, and Florida, Democrats pulled out wins in a number of districts that were reshaped in the effort to bolster Republican candidates, helping to fuel the biggest blue wave in 50 years.Congressional maps are traditionally redrawn once a decade to adjust for population and demographic changes after national census data is released. In the summer of 2025, however, President Donald Trump pressed state Republicans to break with that tradition and redistrict mid-cycle—a push that multiple GOP-led states ultimately joined. The party had hoped to gain as many as 10 additional seats nationwide as a result of the new maps. But political experts tell TIME that although redistricting can have a large impact on elections, in this instance it was no match for the challenge Republican candidates faced amid Americans’ historically low approval of Trump and his Administration ahead of the midterms, which they say soured many Americans toward the Republican party by the time Tuesday’s elections rolled around. “There's only so much that redrawing the boundaries can do if your party is or your President is exceptionally unpopular,” Mark Jones, a p...