Welcome to DU! The truly grassroots left-of-center political community where regular people, not algorithms, drive the discussions and set the standards. Join the community: Create a free account Support DU (and get rid of ads!): Become a Star Member Latest Breaking News Editorials & Other Articles General Discussion The DU Lounge All Forums Issue Forums Culture Forums Alliance Forums Region Forums Support Forums Help & Search

4bonhoffer

(141 posts)
Tue Jul 8, 2025, 03:33 PM Jul 2025

Don't blame Texans ?

Y'all keep electing freaks who screw you. Yep, I found myself going there, BUT , Texas is heavily gerrymandered. There's a lot of people who are getting screwed due to this.
However, the supreme ct. has said that gerrymandering and voter caging ( tossing legitimate voters off of voting rolls ) are LEGAL!!!!!
The republicans have been going hog wild on both while too many democratically controlled blue states act as if doing the same is somehow beneath them. It's feckless, and just plain stupid at this point. If the Democratic party would do to republican voters what has been done to far too many Democratic voters then this might put a stop to this. Perhaps even making it illegal , as it once was.
Right now IT'S LEGAL !!!! , and to not fight fire with at this point is a slap in the face to all voters, and especially black & brown voters who are most affected by this. https://www.tpr.org/government-politics/2024-09-24/gerrymandering-gives-gop-a-five-seat-advantage-in-texas-study-says

14 replies = new reply since forum marked as read
Highlight: NoneDon't highlight anything 5 newestHighlight 5 most recent replies

HelpImSurrounded

(560 posts)
2. Gerrymandering is a serious problem but does not apply to Statewide presidential elections
Tue Jul 8, 2025, 03:47 PM
Jul 2025

Governor, Lt Governor, US Senators and president are voted on statewide. Many people here need to just get off their ass and vote.

comradebillyboy

(10,937 posts)
11. Voting is the answer. But convincing an apathetic
Tue Jul 8, 2025, 05:37 PM
Jul 2025

electorate is difficult given the current rightward perspective of the media. The old "liberal" media is long gone and the Dems haven't figured an effective way to get their message out in the new media environment.

HelpImSurrounded

(560 posts)
12. I agree its a serious challenge but we have to try
Wed Jul 9, 2025, 09:19 AM
Jul 2025

Obama ran a 50-state campaign and won.

We need to take lessons from that.

fujiyamasan

(1,234 posts)
3. At some point the voters in the state have to take responsibility
Tue Jul 8, 2025, 03:56 PM
Jul 2025

Clearly the voters there prioritize other things like controlling women’s bodies with abortion bans, extremely lax gun laws, and making sure there’s no safety net for anyone. They also like their politicians as corrupt as they can get like Cruz, Patrick, and Abbot.

No democrat has won statewide in Texas in over 30 years. The last time was 1994!

stopdiggin

(15,043 posts)
9. once in a while - it helps to just tell it like it is ...
Tue Jul 8, 2025, 04:47 PM
Jul 2025

It's a red state - because TX voters (white, black, brown and pistachio flavored) - have this disconcerting tendency to vote ... Ready for it? RED!

(and have been doing so for so many years - that it gets rather hard to play the 'bamboozled' card)

ck4829

(37,426 posts)
4. I do feel bad for the children of Texas. They have been failed by their communities time and time again
Tue Jul 8, 2025, 03:57 PM
Jul 2025

Whether it’s Uvalde, the Amish locale where we had the first measles death of 2025, or the county surrounding Camp Mystic; it is the children who suffer when the voters of Texan communities prioritize the arts of “own the libs” or “stick it to the Democrats” more than loving their children.

JI7

(93,235 posts)
5. How many died in the Fires in LA and the recent LA "riots" ?
Tue Jul 8, 2025, 04:05 PM
Jul 2025

The right wing is always going on about how the mostly blue cities are destroyed.

But if we criticize what goes in red areas they get outraged at us making it political and how we need to think about the victims.

One woman that is a doctor posted on social media about the bad things going on and how to deal with it and some crazy wingnuts told her to stop saying things are bad in the country and stop disrespecting Trump even though she didn't mention him by name. They said we must be proud of this country and thankful.

markodochartaigh

(5,048 posts)
7. Texas is heavily gerrymandered
Tue Jul 8, 2025, 04:14 PM
Jul 2025

and has low rates of voter participation.

However 4.8 million people in Texas voted for Harris/Walz, more than any other state except California.

When Home Depot, Hobby Lobby, Chik fil a, etc. support Republicans and anti-empathetic policies do you blame the workers or do you blame the people who run the company?

MagickMuffin

(18,089 posts)
10. Tarrant County's election "judge" Tim O'Hare is working regerrymandering our county
Tue Jul 8, 2025, 04:58 PM
Jul 2025


He was a republican county chair and now controls our elections. He is completely corrupt.

It’s hard to win against them when they are in charge and control of our elections.

Don’t blame this Texan I’ve never voted for a republican.


LetMyPeopleVote

(175,074 posts)
13. Republicans are trying to further gerrymander a state that already has districts that look like this:
Thu Jul 10, 2025, 02:45 PM
Jul 2025

LetMyPeopleVote

(175,074 posts)
14. Texas Redistricting-As a voting rights volunteer, I was amused to learn a new term "dummymander"
Fri Jul 11, 2025, 03:07 PM
Jul 2025

I have been volunteering on voting rights/voter protection since 2004 when I went to Florida as part of the Kerry Edwards voter protection team. I have testified before committees of both the Texas House and Senate on gerrymandered districts. Part of my testimony was used in a prior lawsuit that unfortunately failed. Texas is heavily gerrymandered. My congressional district went from a R+1 to a R+21 as part of the last gerrymander. trump wants Ohio and Texas to re-gerrymander their districts to help in the midterms. I was amused to see that these efforts run a risk of failing

https://www.politico.com/news/2025/07/11/texas-redistricting-00448145

But in Texas, Republicans are in danger of creating a so-called dummymander, whereby an attempt to draw more seats for one party accidentally benefits the other. Texas’ congressional map already heavily favors the GOP, so any changes to further benefit the party would have to walk a careful line. Adding Republican voters to blue districts to reduce Democrats’ margins means taking those same voters out of the red districts where they reside. The result is more competitive districts across the board — ones Democrats hope to take advantage of as they harness anti-Trump energy in the midterms.

“They are playing a little bit of roulette with these maps,” said Rep. Julie Johnson (D-Texas). “In a wave election like what we have a potential opportunity for in ‘26 I think it makes these Republicans very vulnerable.”

Texas has 38 House seats, with 25 held by Republicans. Members of the state’s Democratic delegation huddled with House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries as the redistricting talk ramped up, with follow-up meetings planned.

Jeffries warned in a statement Wednesday that an aggressive map could “result in making several incumbent House Republicans vulnerable to fierce general election challenges.”

“Republicans are cutting off their nose to spite their face,” he added.....

Democrats are almost certain to sue over whatever new maps are created in both Ohio and Texas, said John Bisognano, president of the National Democratic Redistricting Committee.

“I imagine we will have a lot to say about the map they create and the legalities of it,” he said Thursday.

On top of everything else, there is a trial going on with respect to the Texas maps that these efforts may affect.

This will be fun to watch
Latest Discussions»General Discussion»Don't blame Texans ?