Few issues have been more misunderstood and misreported than Texas congressional redistricting. It is typically characterized as a partisan brawl of Democrats versus Republicans with Republicans holding the upper hand and winning. In truth, the battle is Republicans versus Hispanics and African Americans.
Republicans hold every district in Texas controlled by Anglo voters. Democrats in the Texas delegation win by gaining overwhelming support from African American and Hispanic voters. Not one of the current Republicans in the Texas congressional delegation has ever won a majority of the Hispanic or African American vote.
In short, Republicans in Texas get elected by Anglos. As a result, when drawing districts they must run the high risk of violating the US Voting Rights Act by alternately packing and cracking minority neighborhoods to create as many Anglo controlled districts as possible.
New census justifies new minority NOT Republican seats
The growth over the last decade reported in the new census brought four new congressional seats to Texas. As the Lone Star Project reported several weeks ago, all of these seats are the result of minority and not Anglo population growth.
Given the rapidly growing population and political influence of minorities in Texas, the Republican plan to retain and expand their control will be based on the DeLay method of undermining the voting strength of Hispanics and African Americans. Texas Republicans will take the risk of violating the Voting Rights Act knowing that they have the benefit of millions of dollars in taxpayer funds to cover legal costs and to counter the minority advocacy organizations and other fair-minded groups who will inevitably challenge them in State and Federal Court.
