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In a Houston neighborhood, residents worry their votes and concerns will be neglected if state lawmakers pass a redistricting plan. At President Trump's urging, Republicans are poised to approve maps that would give the GOP an edge in next year's congressional elections. Houston Public Media's Andrew Schneider went to an area that could be redrawn, shifting it from a district represented by a Democrat to one that tilts Republican.
ANDREW SCHNEIDER, BYLINE: Houston's Denver Harbor neighborhood is largely Latino and tends to vote Democratic. It's a mix of small homes and small industry. One of the major concerns for residents has been deportations.
RENE PORRAS: Everybody is nervous.
SCHNEIDER: That's Rene Porras, a Vietnam combat veteran and small business owner.
PORRAS: I have a little local taqueria and Mexican bakery, and business is down for the last three or four weeks. I mean, really down. And I talk to my other friends that have businesses, and the same thing - where did the immigrants go?
SCHNEIDER: Immigration is one of the big issues facing the congressional district, and for more than 30 years it's been represented by Democrats in the U.S. House - currently Sylvia Garcia. But if Republican state lawmakers get their way, as urged by President Trump, the neighborhood will be sliced off and melded to eastern suburbs and exurbs in a new congressional district. Porras says he's angry.
PORRAS: Since Trump's proposed this, he's so unpopular around here it's incredible. Everything from cutting services and Medicaid. All the things he didn't mention during the election or said he's not going to cut, that's exactly what he's doing.
SCHNEIDER: Rita Robles, a community activist, says people in Denver Harbor don't make much money compared to the neighborhoods it would be joined with in the new district.
RITA ROBLES: They make six figures, you know, anywhere from $50,000, $60,000 and up to six figures.
SCHNEIDER: An analysis by the Texas Legislative Council, an agency that does research for lawmakers, shows that while the current district voted for Kamala Harris for president last year, voters who would be in the new district went for Donald Trump by a wide margin. While Denver Harbor's current district twists and turns across Houston, its proposed new home is more compact, and it will still be majority Hispanic, even though Democratic leaders might not like how they vote. Cindy Siegel chairs the Harris County Republican Party.
CINDY SIEGEL: They know that there has been a shift in the last election, that the Hispanic community, more Hispanic voters, in fact, supported President Trump, voted for him.
SCHNEIDER: And some Republicans say they are seeking a partisan gain.
TOM OLIVERSON: I think it's well within our right to do so.
SCHNEIDER: Texas House Majority Leader Tom Oliverson, who represents northwest Harris County, spoke with Houston Public Media.
OLIVERSON: There are many, many states where redistricting for partisan performance has been a way of life for 20, 30 years, particularly in Democrat states.
SCHNEIDER: But partisan redistricting can overlap with racial gerrymandering, which is illegal. Michael O. Adams is a political science professor at Texas Southern University.
MICHAEL O ADAMS: What we're witnessing in this redistricting proposal and the midterm cycle is what I would call a master class in demographic manipulation.
SCHNEIDER: That's what it seems like to some people in Denver Harbor, including Rene Porras.
PORRAS: This has got to be stopped. I don't know how. And I'm against gerrymandering, OK? But if Texas does it, then I'm all for California and Massachusetts and Illinois doing the same thing.
SCHNEIDER: California's Governor Gavin Newsom has said that if Texas redistricts, he'll ask voters to approve new congressional districts in his state, with the aim of picking up seats for Democrats.
For NPR News, I'm Andrew Schneider in Houston. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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