Federal court challenge to Texas’s congressional and state legislative maps, alleging vote dilution in violation of § 2 of the Voting Rights Act, intentional racial discrimination, and the unconstitutional malapportionment of the state House maps.  This case has been consolidated with several others also alleging constitutional and Voting Rights Act violations of the congressional and state legislative maps.

The Brooks plaintiffs sought a preliminary injunction in 2022 on their constitutional race-based claims with respect to Senate District 10.  On Feb. 1, 2022, the court denied the preliminary injunction, with a full opinion on May 4, 2022; the U.S. Supreme Court denied jurisdiction over the appeal on Nov. 21, 2022.

Several years of discovery litigation followed, largely foreclosing discovery based on legislative privilege, and a different elections case determining that privilege is not waived when legislators communicate with third parties.  On May 22, 2025, the Fifth Circuit determined that it did not have jurisdiction over the interlocutory discovery appeals; objections to the discovery rulings would have to be litigated after a final disposition of the case.

On Feb. 21, 2025, the court determined that it was bound by the en banc decision in Petteway v. Galveston County, which barred VRA claims on behalf of multiple minority groups within one district.

A bench trial was held May 21 – June 11, 2025.  Before trial, plaintiffs submitted charts summarizing the various claims against the Congressional plan, state Senate plan, and state House plan.  On Aug. 11, 2025, the court noted potential pending redrawing of congressional maps, and Supreme Court argument in Callais and a potential cert. petition in Turtle Mountain related to the VRA, and sua sponte stayed further proceedings.

When the legislature passed a mid-decade congressional map (HB 4) on Aug. 23, 2025, plaintiffs filed complaints challenging the new map, on grounds including violation of § 2 of the Voting Rights Act, intentional racial discrimination,  the unjustified predominant use of race, unconstitutional malapportionment given the mid-decade timing, and unconstitutional partisan gerrymandering.