The walkout of Democratic lawmakers from the Texas Legislature may ultimately fail to prevent Republican legislators from forcing through new political maps drawn to swing five U.S. House seats to that party.

But the public contretemps has accomplished one big thing for the Democrats. By drawing attention to the gerrymander in Texas, they have bought time for other states to follow Texas’ lead. That could help Democrats blunt the Republican advantage out of Texas, though Republicans are pushing for new maps in other states they dominate, potentially with fewer obstacles.

On Wednesday, dozens of Democratic legislators attending the annual National Conference of State Legislatures meeting in Boston rallied in front of the Massachusetts Statehouse, some holding signs reading, “Texas Is Firs

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