Democratic New York Governor Kathy Hochul addressed the ongoing feud between Democratic and Republican governors attempting to redistrict their congressional maps to gain seats for their parties.
[NOTE: When MAGA-aligned Texas Governor Greg Abbott redrew the Lone Star State’s map in August, Democratic California Governor Gavin Newsom responded by doing the same — but had to get Californians to vote on it first. (They approved in November.) In the wake of the Supreme Court’s decision last week to weaken a key part of the federal Voting Rights Act, Tennessee’s Republican Governor Bill Lee is also working on a new GOP-favorable congressional map — and with limited public input.]
As gerrymandering efforts heat up nationally, Hochul warned this week: “New York will not be handcuffed in the fight for our democracy. We didn’t start this redistricting fight, but we will finish it.”
She added, “Donald Trump started this with an intentional decision to try to undermine all the laws in every state and try to badger state legislators into so doing.”
Actually, you did start it. New York did mid-decade redistricting last cycle and tried again this cycle. This is your fourth attempt at partisan gerrymandering since becoming governor. https://t.co/f6pB8n6TqO
— Mike Lawler (@lawler4ny) May 5, 2026
U.S. Representative Mike Lawler (R-NY), who considered running for Governor last year but is instead running for re-election, criticized Hochul, replying: “Actually, you did start it. New York did mid-decade redistricting last cycle and tried again this cycle. This is your fourth attempt at partisan gerrymandering since becoming governor.”
Former Deputy Secretary of State for Management and Resources and chief of staff for the U.S. National Security Council, Brian P. McKeon, replied: “Tom Delay [sic] started this nonsense of mid-decade redistricting over 20 years ago.”
[NOTE: Then-House Majority Leader Tom DeLay (R-TX) led the controversial 2003 Texas redistricting effort, which prompted Democrats to stage walkouts and flee the state to prevent a quorum. Democrats responded in the same manner when Abbott redrew the map in 2025. Both times, Democrats failed to stop the redrawing of the maps.]