By Ashlee Banks
Special to the AFRO
Members of the Congressional Black Caucus gathered at the U.S. Capitol on Sept. 9 to condemn Republican-led redistricting efforts, describing them as a “racist” strategy that threatens to weaken Black political representation in Congress.
U.S. Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.-30) told the AFRO that President Donald Trump and members of the GOP are “incredibly cowardice.”
“They rushed through tax breaks and then cuts to Medicare and a tax on Social Security and cuts to American jobs,” said the California lawmaker.
Kamlager-Dove said that once the current administration “realized that the American people were aware of their shenanigans” and “going to hold them accountable in 2026,” they came up with “this new scheme to rig elections, silence the votes of hundreds of 1000s–if not millions–of voters, and work to snatch away representation in the form of seats that are held by Black members of Congress.”
U.S. Rep. Glenn Ivey (D-Md-4) told the AFRO that Republicans are “scared.”
“They’re way underwater with Trump’s big, ugly bill, the trillion dollar cuts in Medicaid,” said Ivey. “They’re trying to find seats and I think they recognize they’re going to be losing seats in the election. So essentially, they’re just trying to cheat.”
The press conference was hosted by CBC Chair Yvette Clarke (D-N.Y.-09). The New York lawmaker was joined by several members of Congress including U.S. Reps. Wesley Bell (D-Mo.-1), Al Green (D-Texas-09), Emilia Sykes (D-Ohio-13) and André Carson (D-Ind.-07).
Many of the lawmakers in attendance, who represent districts where Republican-controlled state legislatures have redrawn congressional maps, say they plan to challenge the maps in court and mobilize public opposition.
Clarke told reporters during the press conference that if these “racially gerrymandered maps” are upheld by the courts, the CBC could lose seats.
“ would undermine decades of progress in securing fair representation for our community,” said the Democratic lawmaker. “Their strategy is clear dilute the voting power of black and brown communities to cling to power by any means necessary. What we’re seeing in states like Texas, Missouri and others, is nothing short of a direct assault on our representation in Congress.”
Missouri is one of the states at the center of the dispute. The state legislature recently approved new congressional lines that would add another Republican-leaning district, a move that could divide the Kansas City-based district represented by Rep. Emanuel Cleaver (D-Mo.-5), a 20-year veteran of Congress and a member of the caucus.
During the press conference Rep. Cleaver told reporters that the legislature in Missouri is “out of control.”
“We are at a moment where there are powers trying to place this nation into the 1950s and they’re trying to reverse the direction of the country,” said Cleaver.
“I grew up in the South. This is one of the ugliest moments I’ve seen and felt in my lifetime,” he added.
Texas has also advanced a new congressional map that would strengthen Republican chances in districts currently represented by Democrats, including Green, Marc Veasey (D-Texas-33), Julie Johnson (D-Texas-24), Greg Casar (D-Texas-4) and Lloyd Doggett (D-Texas-37. That plan depends heavily on Republicans sustaining their recent gains among Hispanic voters throughout the 2026 midterm elections.
Reps. Green and Veasey, said during the conference that the racial motivations behind the maps must be made explicit as the U.S. Supreme Court considers a pending case out of Louisiana. That case challenges the constitutionality of Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, which prohibits voting procedures that discriminate on the basis of race, color or membership in a language minority group.
CBC members warned that the Court’s ruling will not be limited to Louisiana, but it could ultimately reshape majority-minority districts across the country.
Rep. Kamlager-Dove told the AFRO that these redistricting tactics by Republicans are “regressive.”
“Instead of moving us to the future or making us great again, Donald Trump is making us Jim Crow again,” she added.