The Texas House of Representatives gave final passage on Wednesday to House Bill 4, a controversial Republican-backed proposal to redraw the state's congressional maps and potentially add up to five new GOP-leaning districts.

Entering Wednesday, the bill needed to pass two votes in the House to advance to the Senate. Each vote passed 88-52.

Before the final vote, lawmakers debated a series of amendments offered by Democrats, all of which were rejected by the Republican majority. The bill was the sole item on the agenda for the day's floor session, which began at 10 a.m.

Senate to consider House-passed bill

The Texas Senate, which approved a similar version of the redistricting legislation earlier this week, is scheduled to take up the House-passed bill when it convenes this Thursda

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