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Redistricting Divides Black Communities Across 6 States, New Maps Show
New maps in Texas and five other states have divided Black areas into majority-white districts during mid-decade changes.
How we reported this
Predominantly Black communities in Texas, Florida, Louisiana, Alabama, Tennessee and North Carolina have been split and absorbed into majority-white areas during redistricting, according to NPR reporting.
Texas map changes affect Houston neighborhoods
In Texas the new map shifted five House seats toward Republicans and reduced Black congressional representation in the Houston metro area. The boundaries now affect Sunnyside, Missouri City, the Third and Fifth Wards, and northern suburbs such as Independence Heights and Greens Landing. These adjustments form part of broader mid-decade redistricting that began after summer 2025.
Ten states altered congressional maps
The National Conference of State Legislatures reports that ten states changed congressional maps in mid-decade redistricting since summer 2025, including Texas, Louisiana, Florida, Alabama, North Carolina and Tennessee. The process has produced new district lines that cross longstanding community boundaries in multiple states.
Adjustments in Tennessee, Alabama and Louisiana
The New York Times reports that Tennessee’s new map split Memphis into three districts and eliminated the state’s only majority-Black congressional district. Alabama is left with one majority-Black district centered on Selma. Louisiana’s revised map keeps a majority-Black seat in New Orleans but changes the Baton Rouge-area district that had been majority-Black.
Local effects in the Houston region
Residents in Houston neighborhoods including Sunnyside, Missouri City and the Third and Fifth Wards now fall under different congressional lines than before the recent redraw. The same boundary shifts extend to Independence Heights and Greens Landing in the northern suburbs. These alterations align with the five-seat shift toward Republicans noted in Texas.
The changes follow the pattern of predominantly Black communities being split and absorbed into majority-white areas across the six states. Further outcomes for representation will depend on how the new districts function in upcoming elections.