AOTL: Texas Legislature Releases Gerrymandered Senate Map Proposal that Fails to Reflect the State’s Growing Communities of Color and Urban Populations

For Immediate Release:
September 18, 2021
Contact:
Fabiola Rodriguez
rodriguez@redistrictingaction.org

Texas Legislators must do better and draw a map that accurately reflects census data and takes into account community input

Today, the Texas State Legislature released its first draft Senate map marking an important moment in Texas’ redistricting process. As expected, the map published today has clear signs of gerrymandering and ignores what the census data told us: that 95 percent of Texas’ population growth came from people of color and was centered in urban and suburban communities. That’s why it’s critical that the Legislature hold additional hearings. They must take into account public testimony to understand ways the map should be improved to most accurately reflect the state’s growing and diverse population and communities of interest. 
 
Statement from Texas AOTL State Director, Genevieve Van Cleve: 
 
“The Senate map proposal released today once again proves that Texas Republicans have no interest in representing the people of the Lone Star State -- their only concern is maintaining power, even if it comes at the expense of our democracy. This map has clear signs of gerrymandering and is a complete disservice to the people of Texas. It ignores community input and the census data which shows Texas' population growth came from people of color and was centered in urban and suburban communities.
 
“Even more problematic, the map has zero competitive seats and there is extreme cracking and packing in urban centers and surrounding areas including in and around: Austin, Dallas-Fort Worth, Houston, San Antonio, including Collin, Denton, Harris, Ft Bend, and Bexar counties. And while Hispanics made up nearly half of Texas’ growth over the past decade, the map fails to adequately reflect this growth. 
 
“To say that this map fails Texans is an understatement. We must hold Republican legislators accountable and ensure they hold additional hearings that allow public input, and create a new Senate map that reflects community input and the census data.  All On The Line Texas has worked tirelessly to inform thousands of Texans about how to make their voices heard as part of this process. We remain committed to supporting the participation of as many Texans as possible to ensure the final Senate map appropriately reflects the diverse communities across our state.”
 
 
 

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