Texas pre-census redistricting blocked by court

In a 2-1 ruling, a panel of federal judges in El Paso blocked Texas from using a redrawn map of U.S. House of Representatives districts that would have given Republicans additional seats. The U.S. Constitution requires such districts to be “as nearly equal in population as practicable,” but the panel ruled that the new map unfairly discriminates against black and Hispanic voters. Texas Governor Greg Abbot filed an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court yesterday. This dispute is part of a larger national battle over redistricting, with Missouri and North Carolina legislatures also wanting to implement new maps that are more favorable to Republicans, while California wants to give additional seats to Democrats.