The Republican Party has recently been redrawing voting maps in many states to win back seats in the House of Representatives. Going into the midterm elections, the House is split 218 to 213, with a slight majority towards the Republican Party. This slim majority is worrying to the party, as it takes away the ability to ensure specific bills will pass.
Usually, the party not in Office takes control of the House of Representatives after the midterm elections. This would mean that the Democratic Party could more easily pass bills out of the House, and more influentially, stop bills that President Trump attempts to pass. The Republican Party is aiming to stop this from happening and is even trying to raise its control of the House of Representatives further by redrawing four state maps.
The Republican Party has redrawn the maps for Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, and Ohio. This will help them gain 9 seats in the House of Representatives. To counteract this, the Democrats have redrawn the maps for California and Utah. If these redraws are effective, 3 seats will be flipped in favor of Republicans. In addition to these states, there are also three other states currently writing legislation to redraw congressional maps. According to the NCSL (National Conference of State Legislatures), states are enacting mid-decade map changes at rates that have not been present since the 19th century.
Overall, both parties are trying to control the House. Control is extremely important as bills start in Congress. The Speaker of the House is also a member of the majority party, meaning that bills proposed by the majority party are more likely to be discussed and passed. If the Democratic Party is successful in turning the House, they would be able to pass many more bills that they would like.
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