GOP Sen. Rand Paul warns the Trump-led redistricting battle could fuel ‘more violence’
Sen. Rand Paul is sounding the alarm over President Trump’s nationwide redistricting push — and the Democrats’ counterattacks.
He says the partisan back-and-forth could make American politics even more volatile by making people feel they don’t have a voice.
On NBC’s “Meet the Press,” Mr. Paul warned that the fight over congressional maps risks alienating Democrats in red states and Republicans in blue states.
“I think that it’s going to lead to more civil tension and possibly more violence in our country,” the Kentucky Republican said Sunday. “I think that it’s going to lead to more civil tension and possibly more violence in our country.”
Mr. Paul argued that congressional maps designed to shut out the minority party only deepen the divide.
“Like in my state, we’re a very Republican state, but we have one Democrat area in Louisville and we have a Democrat congressman. We could carve up Louisville and get rid of that one congressman,” the senator said. “But how does that make Democrats feel? I think it makes them feel like they’re not represented.”
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He pointed to Texas, where Republicans pushed through maps that give them more seats even though Kamala Harris won 42% of the 2024 vote, and California, where Democrats are working to strengthen their hold despite Mr. Trump winning 38% of the 2024 vote.
“In general, when it becomes so extreme, like if California has no Republican representatives after this is done or has one left, I think that makes people so dissatisfied,” Mr. Paul said. “They think, ‘Well, the electoral process isn’t working anymore. Maybe we have to resort to other means.’”
“I don’t want that,” he added.
The redistricting battle began in Texas over the summer, when the GOP-controlled Legislature passed maps likely to net Republicans five seats after Mr. Trump called for the changes.
Democrats in California responded by giving themselves new power to redraw maps, aiming to offset Texas gains.
Republicans in North Carolina and Missouri have also adopted GOP-friendly maps, while Democrats in Virginia are preparing their own changes.
The Trump-inspired push has hit roadblocks. Kansas Republicans couldn’t rally support for a new map, and Indiana’s Senate rejected a plan that would have given the GOP control of all nine congressional seats.
Mr. Trump, who won nearly 60% of the vote in Indiana, has vowed to punish the Republicans who defied him.
