A political showdown is unfolding in Texas, where state Republican lawmakers are trying to game the system to give their national party an advantage in next year’s midterm elections. They’ve hit a temporary roadblock, for now. But the whole gambit has huge national implications.

If you’re just tuning in, a quick summary: In July, President Donald Trump told reporters that he wanted lawmakers in Texas to redraw the state’s congressional districts to flip five currently Democratic-held seats in Republicans’ favor. Redrawing congressional maps, known as redistricting, usually happens every decade across the country, after the US Census has collected the........

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