East Texas lawmaker says new congressional maps will be legal, represent Texas values

Published 11:00 pm Sunday, July 27, 2025

An East Texas lawmaker with a role in congressional redistricting says committee members will hear concerns raised by the Department of Justice as they redraw the state’s congressional maps.

State Rep. Cole Hefner, R-Mount Pleasant, is one of 21 Texas House members appointed to the House Select Committee on Redistricting, which is working during the special legislative session at the Capitol in Austin to redraw the borders of the state’s 38 congressional districts.

President Donald Trump wants Texas lawmakers to redraw the state’s congressional districts to help ensure that Republicans maintain a majority in the U.S. House in the 2026 midterm elections. Republicans expect that the midterm election could be rough for the party, and their majority in the House – 219 Republicans to 212 Democrats – is slim.

Lawmakers normally redraw the state’s congressional boundaries once every decade following the latest results of the U.S. Census. To do so mid-decade is uncommon.

The Department of Justice informed Texas lawmakers that four of the state’s congressional districts were drawn unconstitutionally based on racial factors, the Texas Tribune reported. Abbott added redistricting to the special session of the Legislature, which also includes topics such as flood relief.

“This is something that’s important to the Trump administration,” Hefner said. “The DOJ has said there’s some issues there. So, we’re going to hear the testimony, hear the debate and make decisions according to what we find out.”

Texas’ current congressional maps have been challenged in court, and Texas officials said they were not drawn according to racial factors, the Tribune reported. But now that the Department of Justice has said otherwise, Texas officials have agreed with that determination.

Texas Democrats have protested the redistricting process, saying it’s a power-grab on the part of Republicans.

Hefner said redistricting is a “highly political process” decided by the party that’s in power.

“But I believe that we’re going to draw maps that reflect our values and keep them within the legal boundaries,” he said. “Some people are gonna like it. Some aren’t, but we’re going to strive to do what’s best for our state and keep everything legal.”

Each congressional district should include about 766,000 Texans, according to the state’s redistricting website.

Democrats in the Texas Legislature have threatened to use various tactics to stop the redistricting process, such as breaking quorum and leaving the state.

Hefner said representatives “were elected to work, not to turn tail and run, but they have to make that political calculation.”

The House has fines and penalties in place for members who break quorum and leave the state.

“Somebody could give them the money,” Hefner said, “but they have to explain to their people why they weren’t on the field of battle.”

State Sen. Bryan Hughes, R-Mineola, is a member of the Senate redistricting committee. His office did not respond to requests for comment.

During an interview earlier this month with the News-Journal, Hughes said of redistricting: “That’s something that has to be done right, and we want to make sure that the people we’re sending to Congress represent the people of Texas and the people of Texas’ values.”