Pritzker Calls Texas Redistricting ‘Cheating,’ Defends Illinois Map

Illinois Governor JB Pritzker sharply criticized Texas Republicans’ mid-decade redistricting plan, calling it unconstitutional and accusing Governor Greg Abbott and President Donald Trump of trying to “cheat the American people out of their votes.” In an interview broadcast Sunday on NBC’s “Meet the Press,” the Democrat said the proposed map would undermine democracy and dismissed Abbott’s description of Illinois’ lines as a “joke.” Texas Republicans last month unveiled a draft congressional map that analysts say could lock in as many as five additional safe GOP seats. Democratic legislators responded by leaving the state, many of them gathering in Illinois and other Democratic-led states, to deny the Texas House a quorum. Abbott has said the lawmakers will be arrested if they return and has vowed to call repeated special sessions until the maps are approved. Pressed on accusations that Illinois engages in the same partisan tactics, Pritzker defended the map drawn after the 2020 census, noting it followed public hearings and legislative debate. The current configuration awards Democrats 14 of Illinois’ 17 U.S. House districts even though Donald Trump won 44% of the state’s vote in 2024, a disparity critics cite as evidence of gerrymandering. Pritzker, whose personal wealth is estimated at $3.7 billion, also said he would not rule out a run for the White House in 2028, adding that any future decision would be guided by “the people of Illinois.”