This week, a panel of three federal judges in the Western District of Texas struck down Texas’s proposed redistricting maps.
The panel ruled 2-1. If the ruling stands, then Texas must use redistricting maps from 2021.
Circuit Judge Jerry E. Smith wrote a scathing 104-page dissent. Smith accused U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Vincent Brown of "pernicious judicial misbehavior." Smith claimed that the ruling was a byproduct of "judicial activism."
BREAKING: A panel of federal judges has enjoined Texas from using its redrawn congressional maps , ordering the state to use its 2021 boundaries. https://t.co/8flrn3RDMs pic.twitter.com/KXsZzxrFpm
— Kyle Cheney (@kyledcheney) November 18, 2025
BREAKING - Fifth Circuit Judge Jerry E. Smith issued a fierce dissent against federal Judge Jeffrey Brown’s decision striking down Texas’s new congressional map, condemning the ruling as blatant judicial activism that harms Texans while benefiting George Soros and Gavin Newsom. pic.twitter.com/sScuPe5vrl
— Right Angle News Network (@Rightanglenews) November 19, 2025
“In 37 years as a federal judge, I’ve served on hundreds of three-judge panels," Smith wrote. "This is the most blatant exercise of judicial activism that I have ever witnessed.”
He later continued: “The main winners from Judge Brown’s opinion are George Soros and Gavin Newsom. The obvious losers are the People of Texas and the Rule of Law.”
In November, California voters passed Proposal 50, which aims to give Democrats more seats in the U.S. House. The Department of Justice has sued and asked a court to toss the proposal. The lawsuit claims that the California redistricting maps use race as a proxy to advance political interests.
So the judge who wrote for the majority of the three-person panel challenging Texas' redistricted map didn't give the dissenting judge time to review the opinion, nor did he take the time to review the dissent before issuing said opinion.
— Benjamin Weingarten (@bhweingarten) November 19, 2025
Judge Smith, dissenting, calls this "the… pic.twitter.com/ove51r2uba
🔥"The main winners from Judge Brown’s opinion are George Soros and Gavin Newsom. The obvious losers are the People of Texas and the Rule of Law." Judge Jerry Smith pulls no punches accusing Judge Brown of misconduct in enjoining Texas's map. His full preliminary statement below pic.twitter.com/2RiC7N6IpH
— Eric W. (@EWess92) November 19, 2025
Both parties are trying to gain an advantage in the U.S House. President Trump has called on Indiana Republicans to redistrict the state and add two more Republican seats, but it's unclear if Indiana lawmakers have the votes. Republicans currently hold majorities in the House and Senate.
🔥"The main winners from Judge Brown’s opinion are George Soros and Gavin Newsom. The obvious losers are the People of Texas and the Rule of Law." Judge Jerry Smith pulls no punches accusing Judge Brown of misconduct in enjoining Texas's map. His full preliminary statement below pic.twitter.com/2RiC7N6IpH
— Eric W. (@EWess92) November 19, 2025
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