A panel of federal judges from the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled that newly enacted congressional maps drawn by Texas Republicans are a racial gerrymander, diluting the voting strength of Black and Latinx voters in the state.

The ruling is a huge blow to Republicans at both the state and federal levels, including President Donald Trump, who had hoped the new maps would help in a scheme to maintain control of the House of Representatives.

States redraw congressional maps every 10 years, following the federal census. But Trump’s political team had urged Texas Republican state lawmakers earlier this year to redraw maps this year instead , to produce a congressional map that would increase the party’s majority over Democrats by adding an additional five GOP-leaning district

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