by Ben Whedon
Maryland lawmakers are set to meet in August for a special session to mull redistricting, they announced on Wednesday.
The proposed ballot initiative, if approved, would set up a November election on the matter and would not affect the 2026 midterms, according to The Hill.
Maryland is a heavily Democratic-leaning state, but currently has a Republican-leaning congressional district that could be eliminated in a partisan gerrymander.
Many Republican-led states have changed their district maps in time for the 2026 midterms and Republicans overall have netted roughly one dozen seats in this cycle via map changes.
States that have redrawn their maps include Tennessee, Florida and Alabama.
Tennessee’s new congressional map favors Republicans by a 9-0 advantage. Before, Republicans had the advantage 8-1.
Democratic Rep. Steve Cohen, who has represented the Memphis district for nearly 20 years, retired after state legislators redrew Tennessee’s congressional map.
“These districts were drawn to beat me. They were drawn to defeat me,” he said. “Memphis is my home and that’s what I fight for and I want to do it again. And if I get the chance, I’ll do it, but otherwise, I’ll be retiring from Congress and from, I guess, public life.”
Democratic-led redistricting efforts have met with mixed success, with courts upholding a change by Calfornia and striking down one in Virginia.
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Ben Whedon is a reporter for Just the News. Zachery Schmidt is the digital editor of The Star News Network and contributed to this story.
Photo “Maryland Capitol” by Martin Falbisoner. CC BY-SA 3.0.
