Texas House adopts controversial congressional map

EL PASO, Texas (KVIA)-- After an almost eight hour House floor session, the Texas House adopted the congressional map 88-52 that adds five GOP seats to the state.

There were enough members to establish a quorum and pass laws, two weeks after democrats left the state to dodge the redistricting vote. 

Democrats put forth 12 new amendments to the bill, all of them shut down by Republicans. 

Author of the bill, Todd Hunter who said today that these new drawn congressional districts are based primarily on political performance. 

"Giving partisan political performance as an acceptable reason and clarification from these courts. We have redrawn the congressional map with that emphasis," Hunter said on the floor.

In 2019 the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that states can draw electoral maps on these grounds.

Section 2 of the voting rights act, says the map cannot limit the voting power of people of color. Which is what State Rep. from El Paso Vincent Perez says is what's happening.

"Where they've drawn the lines? Where they are only accountable to another group based solely on the color of their skin. All Americans, all Texans, whether Republican or Democrat, black, white or Hispanic, should be appalled. At what's happening here today that our government is wanting a map where it would not be held accountable to the majority of the residents in its state, but to the ones that it hand selects and in this case, by race," Perez said.