The White House Office of Intergovernmental Affairs is bringing together state and local officials to discuss redistricting before the 2026 midterms, according to The Nebraska Examiner.
The discussions come as Texas prepares to implement new congressional maps, and now there's an effort to potentially draw new ones in Nebraska.
State Sen. John Cavanaugh, who is running for Congress in Nebraska's 2nd Congressional District, said no official talks have taken place at the Legislature. However, he believes this represents the Trump administration's attempt at influencing the 2026 midterms.
"The Republicans and Trump have shown that they will go to any lengths to change the rules of the game to their benefit. If they don't think they can win a fair election, they're going to try and rig the election," Cavanaugh said.
Republican Brinker Harding is also running to replace Rep. Don Bacon. Harding sent a statement about the idea of drawing the district more red:
"We hear from voters every day—and my message of safer streets, lower taxes, and bringing Nebraska common sense to Washington DC will win no matter how the district lines are drawn," Harding said.
Crystal Rhoades and Denise Powell are also running for Bacon's seat and oppose redrawing the map.
"Having the most competitive district we can have is helpful. It's good for our democracy. It's good for a two-party system. And most people want to continue to have that," Rhoades said.
Powell said the potential redistricting feels dishonest.
"This is truly changing the rules in the middle of the game and I think Nebraskans we really value honesty and integrity. This feels like none of that. This feels like politicians serving the will of one person," Powell said.
Members of Gov. Jim Pillen's staff also made their way to Capitol Hill. A spokesperson said:
"The Governor's chief of staff and policy director were both invited and are attending. Team Pillen has worked hard to build relationships throughout President Trump's Administration, and we are always excited for opportunities to strengthen our partnership."
Congressional District 2 covers most of Omaha and parts of Sarpy County. The district was redrawn in 2011 to remove Bellevue and add more rural areas of Sarpy and Saunders counties. The last redistricting occurred in 2022.
Nebraska's state constitution allows the Legislature to redistrict after each federal census every 10 years.
This story was reported on-air by a journalist and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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