AUSTIN -- Lawmakers in Austin and Washington began scrambling to determine the impact of new census figures on their political futures Thursday as Hispanic leaders charted plans to transform a decade of surging population growth to greater representation in Congress and the state Legislature.
A hefty 25 percent population increase in Tarrant County -- which pushed the number of residents to more than 1.8 million -- stoked talk that the state's third-largest county may pick up an additional legislative seat, although lawmakers aren't likely to know for sure until further in the redistricting process.The detailed population data presented to Gov. Rick Perry and legislative leaders will serve as the starting point for the Legislature's task of redrawing congressional and legislative districts to conform with population changes over the last decade.Staff members for the Texas Legislative Council went to work immediately to enter the data into a state computer system that will be used to draw new congressional and legislative maps.Redistricting will overshadow much of the Legislature's work through the remainder of the session, with all sides bracing for an ultimate legal challenge."Obviously, members are going to be looking at these numbers hard and fast all weekend long," said Rep. Lon Burnam, D-Fort Worth.D-FW wants a new seatThe fast-growing Dallas-Fort Worth area appears likely to receive at least one of four new congressional seats destined for Texas while rural areas prepared to lose representation in the statehouse because of declining or stagnant population. As expected, the big story from the statistics centered on Hispanics, who accounted for two-thirds of the state's growth over the past decade.In Tarrant County, growth among minorities was exemplified in Democrat Wendy Davis' 10th state Senate district, which includes most of Fort Worth and half of Arlington. The number of Hispanics increased by 49 percent over the past decade and accounted for 61 percent of the district's growth.African-Americans increased by almost 30 percent while growth among Anglos was less than 1 percent.More than two dozen leaders of Latino groups met in a "summit" at Austin's Four Seasons Hotel to chart their goals for the upcoming redistricting battle.Dallas attorney Domingo Garcia, who organized the meeting, said the leaders believe Hispanics should get three of the four new congressional seats, including one in the Metroplex. Latinos now make up 38 percent of the Texas population, up from 32 percent in 2000.The proposed "Hispanic Opportunity" district in the Metroplex, Garcia said, would be carved in a dumbbell-shaped pattern stretching from southwest Tarrant County along the Interstate 30 corridor to the Oak Cliff section of south Dallas.New Hispanic seats?Additionally, the Hispanic leaders also want to create a new state Senate district that would basically follow the same pattern as the proposed congressional district and are eying the possibility of an additional Hispanic legislative district in Tarrant County. District 90, which is represented by Burnam, is currently the only majority Hispanic district in Tarrant County.Garcia described the leadership task force as a "Who's Who" of Latino political, business and political groups. Participating groups, he said, include the League of United Latin American Citizens, the Southwest Voter Registration Education Project and the Mexican-American Legal Defense and Education Fund.Lawmakers will use the population figures to redraw lines for the state's enlarged congressional delegation -- which will increase from 32 to 36 seats -- as well as the 31 state Senate districts and the 150 seats in the state House. Based on the statistics released Thursday, the population of the congressional districts will be roughly 698,000. Senate district populations will be about 811,000 and House districts will be about 167,000.Population in many of the urban districts, including those in the Metroplex, has grown far beyond the average mandated by the new population figures, meaning that incumbents in those districts will see their districts shrink to meet the new standards. By contrast, districts in under-populated areas will be required to take on additional residents.State Sen. Jane Nelson, who represents Denton and Tarrant counties, saw her suburban 12th district grow to just over a million, more than 202,000 residents above the ideal standard. Of the eight Republicans and two Democrats who now represent Tarrant County in the state House, five districts had populations above the ideal and five were below, according to the Texas Legislative Council.Tarrant representationState Rep. Charlie Geren, R-Fort Worth, said he believes Tarrant County may be poised to pick up an 11th member in the state House. Geren said his District 99 could shed about 60,000 residents and neighboring state Rep. Vicki Truitt, R-Keller, could lose about 70,000 constituents -- nearly enough to make up a new district, said Geren, a member of the House Redistricting Committee."Obviously there's a lot of growth in Tarrant County," he said."The fight will be on to see if we can get to 11 in Tarrant County. But that means someone has to lose a member."Rep. Marc Veasey, D-Fort Worth, who is also on the redistricting committee, said that while the county has shown "tremendous growth," he said the numbers may be short of that needed to create another district.U.S. Rep. Michael Burgess, R-Lewisville, said the new census numbers show that his District 26 is "big."While each district should have a little less than 700,000 people, Burgess said maps show his has about 915,000. District 26, which stretches from parts of south and east Tarrant County, includes large portions of Fort Worth, north through Denton County, all the way to the Red River in Cooke County.Big changes comingNo congressional or legislative district will go unchanged by the time the process is complete, though incumbents in both parties hope that the changes will either give them a stronger political base or at least keep them from being vulnerable to a serious challenge in the next election."It's good news for us that we are growing rather than shrinking," Burgess said. "But I don't want to lose any part of my district. I've worked hard up and down the corridor, and I want to continue to work in those communities. At the end of the day, I know Texas' congressional map will look different."Republicans are in strong shape to control the process since they hold the governor's office and both houses of the Legislature. Statewide Republican officials also hold all five seats of the Legislative Redistricting Board, which would step in to draw state House and Senate boundaries if the Legislature fails to do so.But Democrats are looking toward the Justice Department in President Barack Obama's administration to serve as a counterweight in the highly partisan process.The Justice Department is required to certify a new redistricting plan under the 1965 Voting Rights Act to make sure that it doesn't impair minority representation.Dave Montgomery, 512-476-4294Anna M. Tinsley, 817-390-7610Texas clout grows in Congress, Electoral College
When it comes to added strength in Congress, Texas is in a league by itself. Because the seats go where the people are, Texas and other states in the Southwest are gaining influence.
Texas already has the largest Republican delegation in Congress, with the GOP holding 20 of the state's 32 seats. In the 2010 elections, the party picked up another three seats, two of them in heavily Latino districts in South Texas. With all the new growth, Texas will now have 36 seats and 38 presidential electoral votes.
Texas grew by more than 20 percent over the last decade, more than twice the national rate of 9.7 percent. The state's population stands at 25.1 million. -- The Associated Press
Have more to add? News tip? Tell us
