Texas Republicans prevailed Wednesday in a vote for a bill that would allow lawmakers to redraw a district map to add five new Republican-leaning seats in the US House of Representatives. The bill has been backed by President Donald J. Trump and has drawn national attention for its potential effects on the 2026 midterm elections and beyond.

The 88-52 vote for House Bill 4 was along party lines. Rep. John Bucy III, of Austin, railed against the bill on the floor:

House Bill 4 is not about representation. It is not about fairness. It is a desperate, mid-decade power grab engineered in Washington, executed in Austin, and paid for by the Texans we’re supposed to represent. Let me be clear: This is Donald Trump’s map. It clearly and deliberately manufactures five more Republican seats in Congress because Trump himself knows the voters are rejecting his agenda. And instead of respecting that rejection, he’s changing the rules. Instead of listening to the people, he’s trying to silence them. And Texas Republicans have been more than willing to help.

Texas Governor Gregory Abbott said in a statement Wednesday that he would sign the bill once it lands on his desk. He has referred to the legislation as part of a “Texas First agenda.” He stated:

I congratulate Speaker Burrows and the Republican members of the Texas House of Representatives for passing congressional districts that better reflect the actual votes of Texans,” Abbott said in a statement. “While Democrats shirked their duty, in futility, and ran away to other states, Republicans stayed the course, stayed at work and stayed true to Texas.

Republicans have held a strong majority in Texas for the last two decades. The new map would redistrict conservative voters into areas currently held by Democrats and would condense some Democratic-held districts.

Other states are attempting similar redistricting efforts, including California, Maryland and Illinois, which are seeking to bolster their Democratic majority. Meanwhile, Ohio, Florida, Indiana, and Missouri are attempting similar efforts to what the Texas Republicans have worked toward.

Earlier this month, Texas Democrats, including Bucy, left the state in a two-week walkout to break quorum in its legislature in an attempt to delay the vote on the legislation. Extraordinary measures were taken to get those nearly 50 lawmakers who fled the vote back to the state, including filing lawsuits to remove them from office and issuing arrest warrants. Democrats returned Monday on their own accord.

The Texas Senate passed an initial vote 19-2 for the redistricting map on Aug. 12.

Republicans maintained a majority in the US House in the 2024 election by three seats.