AUSTIN, Texas (AP) _ After a marathon debate that dragged into the wee morning hours, the GOP-led Texas House has approved a redistricting plan that would all but guarantee a continued Republican majority — albeit a smaller one than the party has now.
The map, approved on a 92-52 vote Thursday, would pit several Republicans against each other, the natural result of an unsustainably large supermajority. Some Republicans wanted to make the map a much bolder grab for conservative seats. The effort fizzled.
There is only so much the GOP can do given the constraints of federal anti-discrimination laws and shifts in population away from conservative rural areas and toward the suburbs that have seen explosive and diverse population growth.
The House map faces another procedural hurdle before it can move to the Senate.
(Copyright 2011 by The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved.)