At Trump's urging, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott has requested lawmakers potentially redraw the state's electoral map. Opponents warn it could backfire.

By taking up new congressional maps pushed by President Trump first, Republicans hope to discourage Democrats from walking out of a special session before they vote on flood relief.

President Donald Trump‘s pressure on Texas Republicans to redraw congressional maps with more GOP-friendly districts has reignited a sprawling battle that will determine control of the House during the 2026 midterm elections.

The Texas GOP knows the risk. In the 2010s, the Republican-controlled Legislature drew political lines that helped pad the GOP’s House majority. That lasted until 2018, when a backlash against Trump in his first term led Democrats to flip two seats in Texas that Republicans had thought safe.

President Donald Trump on Tuesday said he believed Republicans could pick up five seats in the U.S. House of Representatives by redrawing districts in Texas, which could boost his party's odds of defending its thin majority in next year's midterm elections.

President Trump is pushing Texas to redraw its congressional map to favor Republicans - a plan Beto O’Rouke is warning could backfire on the GOP nationally. NBC News’ Ryan Chandler reports from Dallas on Governor Abbott’s special legislative session.