Courts across the country are shaping congressional districts ahead of upcoming elections, with rulings in California, Virginia and New York potentially affecting control of the House of Representatives.
In California, the U.S. Supreme Court declined to block a voter-approved congressional map after a challenge from state Republicans and the Trump administration.
The justices issued a brief order without explanation and recorded no dissents, a common approach when handling emergency appeals.
The ruling will allow the map to take effect during the next election cycle. Republicans argued the new boundaries relied too heavily on race and were designed in favor of Latino voters and democrats.
State officials disputed that claim, saying the number of Latino-majority districts remained unchanged under the revised lines. The updated map could flip five seats currently held by Republicans.
The decision fits into a broader pattern. In December 2025, the Supreme Court previously allowed Texas Republicans to use a favorable map despite a lower court finding that it discriminated on racial grounds.
In Virginia, the state Supreme Court permitted a referendum that could produce another redrawn congressional map, though litigation there remains ongoing and a final ruling could come later.
The cases place multiple redistricting disputes before courts as elections approach. Only a few districts often decide control of Congress.
New York is now part of the same legal landscape. Lawyers for Rep. Nicole Malliotakis have asked the U.S. Supreme Court to intervene in a case involving the 11th Congressional District, which includes Staten Island and parts of southern Brooklyn.
A Manhattan judge ruled the district unconstitutional on Jan. 21, finding its boundaries diluted the voting power of Black and Latino residents and ordered the maps to be redrawn by Feb. 6 before the election cycle begins. The Supreme Court has not yet responded to the emergency request.
Malliotakis’s attorneys argued that waiting for state appeals would create confusion ahead of candidate filing deadlines and disrupt the election process.
Attorneys aligned with Democrats countered that the state court system should resolve the issue without federal intervention and described the appeal as premature.
The district is the only Republican-held congressional seat in New York City. The dispute follows years of legal conflict over district lines in the state.
New York created a bipartisan redistricting commission in 2014 to limit partisan gerrymandering, but courts have repeatedly been asked to intervene when political disagreements stalled or challenged proposed maps.
Previous maps were struck down earlier in the decade, forcing the state to redraw districts under tight timelines.
Election officials now face similar uncertainty as deadlines approach. Redistricting determines which voters are grouped in a congressional district and can significantly influence election outcomes without a single vote being cast.
Control of the House of Representatives is often decided by a small number of seats.
Across California, Texas and Virginia, courts have largely allowed contested maps to proceed while challenges continue.
The pending decision in New York could determine whether the city’s lone Republican district remains intact or becomes part of a broader shift created by judicial rulings, rather than legislative compromise.
For now, the district lines remain unresolved as courts continue to consider the challenges.
