The Maryland Freedom Caucus objects, but Wes Moore is refusing to let Donald Trump’s redistricting campaign go unanswered.
“The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.” — Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.
(ANNAPOLIS, MD – September 3, 2026) – I like Jasmine Crockett.
No. Let me keep it real.
I love me some Jasmine Crockett.
Sharp. Gorgeous. Articulate. Knowledgeable. Factual. Tenacious. Bold. Fearless.
That is one bad Black woman.
Jasmine Crockett is quite possibly the most dynamic politician in America. She walked into Congress, stood flat-footed, and spoke truth to power on a regular basis. She called out foolishness. She exposed tomfoolery. She confronted the chicanery we have watched unfold in Congress, where so-called adults have too often behaved like three-year-olds.
Actually, I should give three-year-olds more credit.
We all knew how these things tend to play out. We knew they would get mad. We knew they would come after her. Jasmine had to know it, too.
But she stood up anyway.
That woman carried the spirit of Harriet Tubman. She carried the spirit of the freedom fighters who stood up in far more dangerous times—when men brought horses, ropes, and burning crosses to Black families’ front doors and dragged our people into the night.
Those freedom fighters stood up anyway.
Jasmine Crockett stood up, too.
And, yes, this woman is from Texas. She knew how to ride. She knew how to bring her posse. She came to Washington, and she did her thing.
What happened to Jasmine Crockett
Texas Republicans redrew Crockett’s 30th Congressional District and placed her home inside the reconfigured 33rd District. Although she legally could have sought another House term, the new map scrambled districts, constituencies, and the political futures of several Texas Democrats. Crockett ultimately ran for the United States Senate, lost the Democratic primary, and will leave Congress in January.
Let us be precise: Republicans did not defeat Crockett in a congressional election, and her former district did not suddenly become Republican. Most of her existing constituents remained in the heavily Democratic 30th District. Crockett chose the Senate race.
But the Republican map displaced her residence, disrupted her political path, and helped create the circumstances in which one of the nation’s most powerful Black voices will no longer serve in the House of Representatives.
In my view, what happened to Jasmine Crockett was a political hit—an effort to remove a powerful voice and silence a politically brilliant mastermind of a politician.
What was done to Jasmine Crockett will not be forgotten.
It will not.
We in the Black community are extraordinarily proud of her—and I am certain many people outside the Black community are proud of her, too. We are proud of her fearlessness. We are proud of her willingness to put herself and her future on the line. We are proud that she refused to shrink, bow, or remain silent.
America needs Jasmine Crockett. In fact, America needs a thousand more Jasmine Crocketts—people willing to stand boldly, fearlessly, proudly, and intelligently; people willing to speak life not only over Black people, but over the entire nation.
Go ahead, Jasmine Crockett.
We are proud of you. You represent us well every day. Keep doing what you are doing.
This was bigger than Jasmine
What happened in Texas was part of a broader campaign that has stretched across two calendar years.
In July 2025, President Donald Trump began pressuring Texas Republicans to redraw their congressional map mid-decade. The stated political objective was to produce as many as five additional Republican seats before the 2026 midterm election.
Those were not simply lines on a map. The changes disrupted Black representation and the careers of Black members of Congress.
Texas Republicans dismantled Rep. Al Green’s district and forced him into a Democratic primary against another Black incumbent, Rep. Christian Menefee. Green lost, bringing his 21-year congressional career to an end.
In Louisiana, Republicans eliminated Rep. Cleo Fields’ majority-Black district and replaced it with one favoring Republicans. Fields subsequently announced that he would not seek reelection to Congress.
In Missouri, Republicans attempted to dismantle the Kansas City district represented by Rep. Emanuel Cleaver. The Missouri Supreme Court later blocked that map from being used in the November 2026 election unless voters approve it.
The fight began in Texas. Before long, governors and legislators across America were forced to decide whether they would watch quietly or respond.
Pritzker gave them refuge
More than 50 Democratic members of the Texas House left their state in August 2025. Their departure denied the Republican-controlled chamber the quorum it needed to pass Trump’s map.
They were not going on vacation. They were trying to stop—or at least delay—a political power grab.
Many traveled to Illinois, where Gov. J.B. Pritzker welcomed them.
Texas House Speaker Dustin Burrows issued civil arrest warrants directing Texas authorities to locate the missing lawmakers and return them to the Capitol. Gov. Greg Abbott threatened to remove them from office. Attorney General Ken Paxton pursued legal action. Sen. John Cornyn even announced that the FBI would help locate them.
These legislators were not criminal fugitives. Breaking quorum was not a federal crime, and the Texas civil warrants had no automatic authority in Illinois. But the threats were real. The pressure was real. A bomb threat later forced an evacuation from the Illinois facility where some of the lawmakers were staying.
Pritzker stood beside them, supported them politically and logistically, and made it clear that Texas could not use its civil warrants to seize lawmakers in Illinois.
That is what I mean when I say Pritzker gave them refuge.
The walkout lasted about two weeks. It did not ultimately stop Texas Republicans from passing their map, but it delayed them, exposed the story nationally, and gave other Democratic states time to prepare a response.
Newsom fought fire with fire
California Gov. Gavin Newsom moved quickly.
In August 2025, Newsom launched what California called the Election Rigging Response Act. He asked California voters to temporarily set aside the congressional map drawn by the state’s independent redistricting commission and adopt a new map for the 2026, 2028, and 2030 elections.
The California map was designed to produce as many as five additional Democratic seats—the same number Trump sought from Texas.
Newsom did not pretend that this was ordinary reform. He called it fighting fire with fire.
California voters approved Proposition 50 on November 4, 2025, with approximately 64% of the vote. California had answered Texas.
Moore refused to surrender
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore also saw what was happening.
As early as August 2025, Moore called the Republican campaign a partisan power grab and said Maryland would evaluate its options. By September, he was describing the attack on Black and Brown political representation as political redlining.
On October 30, Moore publicly called on Maryland lawmakers to redraw the state’s congressional districts. On November 4, he created the Governor’s Redistricting Advisory Commission to hold hearings, gather public input, and recommend a new map.
In January 2026, the commission recommended a map that could make Republican Rep. Andy Harris’ 1st District competitive. Moore personally testified in support of the proposal, and the Maryland House passed it. Senate President Bill Ferguson, however, refused to advance it, citing constitutional, legal, and political concerns.
Moore kept pushing.
During his February 11 State of the State address, he asked lawmakers not to let the democratic process die in the Free State. Later, when the proposed map itself could not advance, Moore supported a constitutional amendment that would allow Maryland voters to determine the rules governing congressional districts.
That amendment became Question 3.
The Supreme Court of Maryland has now ruled that Question 3 must appear on the November 2026 ballot. The court did not approve a new congressional map. Question 3 does not redraw a single district and will not affect the 2026 election.
The court also agreed that the original ballot description was misleading and ordered it rewritten. That concern should not be dismissed. Voters deserve honest, understandable language—especially when they are being asked to amend their state constitution.
But the court rejected the effort to remove the question entirely. Maryland voters will decide.
Moore called the ruling a victory for the democratic process. He said Maryland would not remain flat-footed while Republicans engaged in political redlining.
His conclusion was simple: “In Maryland, we do not surrender.”
Three facts every American should know
First, Trump pushed Republican-controlled states to redraw congressional maps between censuses to manufacture additional Republican seats. Texas alone sought five.
Second, Black political representation suffered real consequences. Al Green lost after being forced into a race against another Black incumbent. Cleo Fields’ majority-Black district was eliminated. Jasmine Crockett’s home was drawn out of her district, disrupting her congressional career.
Third, the resistance became an interstate political confrontation. Texas Democrats fled their state. Texas issued civil arrest warrants. Pritzker protected the lawmakers in Illinois. Newsom secured a California counter-map. Moore launched Maryland’s response.
This was not routine redistricting. It became a national struggle over congressional power, Black representation, and whether one political party must continue honoring norms after the other party abandons them.
Sometimes you must hit back
It is unfortunate that national political warfare has found its way into Maryland politics.
There has been some wonderful bipartisan participation in this state. Democrats and Republicans have worked together on important issues, and Maryland has benefited from that cooperation. I would prefer to see that tradition continue.
However, this president has broken political norms and left Maryland Democrats with little choice but to bite back.
I understand some of the objections. Partisan gerrymandering is dangerous regardless of which party controls the pencil. I understand why some people believe Maryland should refuse to participate in the same political warfare it condemns elsewhere.
But a basic lesson comes to mind.
It is a lesson that almost every Black mother in Baltimore City has taught her child: If somebody hits you, hit them back.
It may be a crude lesson. It may make some people uncomfortable. But if you allow someone to keep hitting you without defending yourself, eventually that person will begin to think you are a punching bag.
You are not a punching bag. You are a human being.
Maryland is not obligated to stand still while other states manipulate congressional lines, diminish Black political representation, and help determine who controls the United States Congress.
The disorder extends beyond redistricting. We have entered wars of our own making. We have imposed tariffs without a logical economic justification. We have created enemies when doing so was neither necessary nor beneficial. Chaos, disruption, and unnecessary confrontation have replaced diplomacy, predictability, and stability.
It is my hope that, sooner rather than later, our state, our country, and ultimately our world can return to some semblance of normalcy—because what we are witnessing right now is completely off the hook.
Until then, bravo to Gov. Wes Moore for doing what so many of our mothers taught us to do.
Sometimes, when somebody hits you, you must hit back.
This is one of those times.
