Texas Democrats in Congress vowed Wednesday to fight a Republican redistricting proposal, with several blasting the new map as an illegal effort to muffle the state’s minority voices.

“This map is a disaster — crafted to divide neighborhoods and rig the game for Donald Trump,” U.S. Rep. Julie Johnson, D-Farmers Branch, said in a statement. “It’s a desperate move from a party losing its grip on a changing state.”

Johnson is among the incumbents who would be most affected by the proposal, which would dramatically change District 32 that she represents by stretching it into GOP-dominated rural areas.

Johnson said the proposed lines would fracture communities across Dallas, Richardson, Garland, Mesquite and Balch Springs, diluting the voting power of Black, Hispanic and Asian Americans in Texas.

“Texas is a majority-minority state. Instead of empowering those voters, Washington, D.C. drew maps to erase them,” Johnson said. “It’s strategic, intentional, and violates voting rights. This map is an insult to our democracy and our voters’ intelligence. Every Texan deserves a fair vote and a real choice — and I will fight like hell to make sure they get it.”

Many Texas Republicans in Congress have avoided saying much about redistricting since the idea surfaced earlier this summer. Most represent solidly red, safe districts.

Any public criticism of the move would open them to potential attacks by President Donald Trump, who has said he wants new lines to flip five Texas seats from Democrats to Republicans, bolstering the party’s prospects in the 2026 midterm elections.

Public comments also could end up being used as evidence in the near-certain legal challenges to come.

Republicans in the delegation generally avoided the topic of redistricting in their Wednesday posts on X and most either declined comment or did not respond to emailed and texted requests for comment on the proposed map and Democratic criticisms.

U.S. Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Irving, defended the Legislature’s decision to redraw congressional boundaries.

“When you think about how other states have handled it, I think they’re totally within their purview to do that,” Van Duyne said during a joint interview with The Dallas Morning News and KXAS (NBC 5). “It’s not without precedent. The Supreme Court has found that it’s absolutely legal to do so. That’s something that the courts, that the legislature chooses to do. We’re going to be 100% supportive of it.”

U.S. Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth, would be significantly affected by the proposal, which would move him into the same district as longtime incumbent U.S. Rep. Roger Williams, R-Willow Park.

The new boundaries are not about democracy, Veasey said in a statement, but rather an effort by Trump and Gov. Greg Abbott to consolidate power.

“We will fight in the courts, in the streets, and at the ballot box,” Veasey said. “No matter how hard they try, we aren’t going anywhere.”

U.S. Rep. Greg Casar, D-Austin, objected to the proposed merger of the 35th District, which he represents, with the 37th, represented by U.S. Rep. Lloyd Doggett, D-Austin. Casar and Doggett issued statements criticizing the proposal and pledging to fight it.

U.S. Rep. Lizzie Fletcher, D-Houston, said in a statement the map is a “betrayal” of all Texans, regardless of their political affiliation.

“The map violates the Voting Rights Act and the Constitution, diluting the voices of minority communities across Texas and dismantling districts that represent the political will of Texas voters,” Fletcher said.

U.S. Rep. Sylvia Garcia, D-Houston, said fighting the redistricting is about standing up for the principle that people should choose their elected leaders, not the other way around.

“The new redistricting maps out of Austin are exactly what we believed they would be: a power grab, driven by the Felon in the White House—one which will likely be rubber-stamped by Governor Abbott and his MAGA Republican allies,” Garcia said in a statement.

U.S. Rep. Veronica Escobar, D-El Paso, said in a statement the map would strip from her district major parts of El Paso County, Fort Bliss, the El Paso International Airport and a new VA health care center.

Escobar added the proposed map is “nearly identical” to a 2021 proposed map that was defeated.

“We’ve been through this redistricting battle before and El Pasoans stood up to demand our community be represented by someone who lives here, not over 500 miles away,” she said, encouraging constituents to speak out against the plan.

U.S. Rep. Joaquin Castro, D-San Antonio, said in a statement the proposed map is a direct violation of the Voting Rights Act.

“Alongside the Texas Democratic delegation, I will do everything I can to fight this attack on the voting rights of Texans,” Castro said. “This is part of a wider plan by Trump to undermine our democracy. And I will continue to fight for my constituents regardless of boundaries.”

The redrawn lines would push two South Texas districts that have typically been competitive further toward Republicans.

U.S. Rep. Henry Cuellar, D-Laredo, won reelection last year months after being accused in a federal indictment of participating in schemes involving bribery, illegal foreign influence and money laundering.

Cuellar has denied the allegations. His bid for another term will be made more difficult by the news lines.

In response to questions about the redistricting, Cuellar’s campaign provided a statement that did not criticize the proposal, but rather touted his connection to the district and his work as a senior Appropriations Committee member to secure funding for priorities in the region.

U.S. Rep. Vicente Gonzalez, D-McAllen, represents another swing district in South Texas that would get redder under the new map. In a statement, Gonzalez said his district would become a “blatant Trump-rigged district” under the proposal.

“What they forget is that I’m still a lawyer. We will fight this disgraceful attempt to cheat Lone Star State voters in Federal Court, and will win again in an era where Trump is deeply underwater,” Gonzalez said.

View this article in the Dallas Morning News.