1. United States
2. Ohio
3. Letter

I am writing to urge you to oppose partisan gerrymandering and support measures that ensure fair representation for all voters. The Supreme Court's recent decision allowing Texas to use a congressional map that could help Republicans gain five additional House seats demonstrates how mid-decade redistricting is being weaponized to manipulate election outcomes rather than reflect the will of voters. A three-judge panel, including a Trump nominee, held a nine-day hearing in October and found that challengers are likely to prove the Texas map violates the Constitution by discriminating against voters based on race. The panel cited a Department of Justice letter and public statements from Republican state lawmakers suggesting their mapdrawer manipulated racial demographics to eliminate districts where Black and Latino voters together make up the majority. Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton openly celebrated that the map "reflects the political climate of our state," confirming that partisan advantage, not fair representation, drove the redistricting. This is not an isolated incident. California responded with its own mid-decade redistricting that could gain Democrats five seats. North Carolina recently implemented a redrawn map favoring Republicans. Missouri, Florida, Indiana, and Virginia may pursue similar changes before the 2026 midterms. This escalating cycle of partisan map manipulation undermines the fundamental principle that voters should choose their representatives, not the other way around. Justice Elena Kagan wrote in her dissent that the Supreme Court's decision "ensures that many Texas citizens, for no good reason, will be placed in electoral districts because of their race," calling this a clear constitutional violation. When both parties engage in gerrymandering, the real losers are constituents whose voices are diluted or silenced entirely. I urge you to support federal legislation establishing independent redistricting commissions and clear standards prohibiting racial and partisan gerrymandering. Our democracy depends on fair maps that respect community boundaries and give every voter an equal voice.