On August 14, 2025, former President Barack Obama made a rare and forceful intervention in the ongoing national debate over redistricting, joining a 30-minute Zoom call with Texas House Democrats who have been at the center of a dramatic standoff over the future of congressional maps in their state. Obama’s remarks, delivered with characteristic gravity and urgency, were obtained by several major news outlets, including CNN and ABC News, and quickly reverberated across the political landscape.
At the heart of the controversy is a Republican-led effort to redraw Texas’s congressional districts in a way that could net the GOP as many as five additional US House seats for the 2026 midterm elections. Texas Democrats, determined to block what they view as an egregious gerrymander, had fled the state nearly two weeks prior to break quorum and prevent the passage of the new maps. Their absence effectively paralyzed the state legislature, thwarting the GOP’s plans—at least temporarily—and drawing national attention to the Lone Star State.
Obama wasted no time in framing the issue in stark terms. “What we all recognize is we can’t let a systematic assault on democracy just happen and stand by,” he told the Texas delegation, according to CNN. He praised their “courage” and described their actions as “inspiring,” noting that their willingness to take a stand had set an example for others across the country. “Because of your actions, because of your courage, what you’ve seen is California responding, other states looking at what they can do to offset this mid-decade gerrymandering that is highly irregular and is not what we should be doing, to balance out the maps for this upcoming election.”
The former president’s comments mark his most extensive engagement on the redistricting issue to date. As reported by ABC News, Obama’s spokesperson confirmed that he “lauded their fight against the Republican efforts to enact an even more egregious gerrymander in Texas ahead of the midterms” and “made clear that they are part of a bigger effort to protect free and fair elections and commended them for inspiring others with their actions.”
Obama’s critique went beyond the specifics of Texas politics. He warned of a broader pattern of anti-democratic maneuvers taking place across the country. “We’re in a moment right now where not just gerrymandering, but efforts at voter suppression, efforts at questioning the results of elections, efforts at the executive branch, unilaterally doing things that bypass Congress and the people’s representatives, militarization of cities, politicization of our justice departments and our military,” Obama said, as quoted by CNN. “Those are trend lines that remind us this precious democracy that we’ve got is not a given. It’s not self-executed. It requires us to fight for it. It requires us to stand up for it.”
The Texas Democrats, for their part, have been unwavering in their resolve. Texas state Rep. Gene Wu, chairman of the Texas House Democratic Caucus, thanked Obama via social platform X for his support and said the lawmakers “remain committed to fighting for democracy, in Texas & across the country.” Wu later told ABC News, “Having President Obama speak with us and support us is proof that when Texas House Democrats stand up and fight back, we don't stand alone -- we have the support of Democrats at every level who understand that when Republicans attack voting rights in Texas, they're attacking the foundation of our democracy everywhere.”
The Democrats’ decision to flee Texas was not without risk. Republican leaders in the state responded with legal action, seeking to compel the absent lawmakers to return and threatening to strip them of their seats if they continued their protest. Wu described the tense circumstances, telling ABC News that the meeting with Obama had to be conducted from an undisclosed location, “because of Republican threats and surveillance.” He added, “They know their racial gerrymandering scheme is falling apart, so they're resorting to intimidation tactics. But President Obama's support shows the whole country is watching -- and Texas House Democrats won't be silenced by bullies.”
As the standoff stretched into its second week, the Democrats announced they would only return to Texas under two conditions: if the legislature agreed to adjourn without plans to reconvene, or if California introduced its own redistricting legislation to “neutralize” the GOP gains in Texas. This set the stage for a remarkable escalation in the redistricting wars.
California Governor Gavin Newsom, a prominent Democrat, responded in kind. On August 14, Newsom announced plans to redraw California’s congressional maps in a way that could offset the Republican gains in Texas. He called for a special election in November to bypass the state’s independent redistricting commission, aiming to win five additional Democratic seats. According to reporting by CNN and other outlets, Newsom is pressuring Democratic governors in New York and Illinois to take similar steps. The California Legislature’s move is widely seen as an attempt to counterbalance the perceived unfairness of the Texas maps and “neutralize” the GOP’s advantage ahead of the 2026 midterms.
The tit-for-tat nature of these maneuvers has not gone unnoticed. Senator Ted Cruz, a Texas Republican, responded to Newsom’s plan by suggesting that if California eliminates all its Republican districts, Texas should do the same with Democratic ones—leaving the GOP with a net gain. The rhetorical escalation reflects the deepening partisan divide over the very rules of American democracy.
Obama, for his part, expressed hope that the courts and independent commissions would eventually step in to restore fairness to the process. “My hope is that rather than have a race to the bottom where every district is predetermined based on how it’s drawn, that over time, the American people, ideally with the help of the courts, realizes that there’s a better way,” he said during the Zoom call. He advocated for redistricting to be handled “in a non-biased way that an independent commission or some sort of neutral approach was taken so that Democrats and Republicans compete fairly.”
Obama’s involvement in the redistricting fight is part of a broader pattern of increased activism since President Donald Trump returned to the White House in January. At a private fundraiser in July, Obama urged Democrats to “toughen up” in their pushback against the current administration. He has also accused Texas Republicans of waging a “power grab that undermines our democracy,” as he stated in an August 5 post on X.
Looking ahead, Obama is expected to continue speaking on redistricting issues, including at a high-profile Martha’s Vineyard fundraiser for the National Democratic Redistricting Committee next week. As the battle lines harden in Texas, California, and beyond, the fight over congressional maps has become a proxy for the larger struggle over the future of American democracy—a struggle that, if anything, is only intensifying.
For Texas Democrats, the support from Obama and other national figures has been a morale boost in a difficult and uncertain fight. As Obama told the group, “I want all of you to be returning feeling invigorated and know that you have helped to lead what is going to be a long struggle. You’ve helped set the tone for that, and I’m grateful for it.”
