By Brett Davis, The Center Square
January 7, 2026
(The Center Square) – Democratic lawmakers in Washington state on Tuesday pre-filed legislation for mid-decade congressional redistricting. The proposal is part of a broader national trend of a surge in efforts to redraw maps outside the typical post-census cycle.
House Joint Resolution 4209, sponsored by House Majority Leader Joe Fitzgibbon, D-West Seattle, and state Rep. Sharlett Mena, D-Tacoma, is a proposed constitutional amendment that would allow the state Legislature to conduct congressional redistricting between decennial censuses.
The resolution would authorize the state to redraw its congressional district maps in the middle of the 10-year cycle, deviating from the current practice of redistricting only after the federal census every 10 years.
“Washington state is not going to just sit by while Donald Trump and his allies in Texas, Missouri, North Carolina and Ohio seek to rig the US House to lock in a Republican majority,” Fitzgibbon wrote in a Wednesday press release. “Democracy is on the line, and Washingtonians deserve a voice in whether or not Trump gets a hand-picked Congress.”
Per HJR 4209, if the state constitution is amended, the Legislature could adjust the congressional map with a simple majority vote in each chamber if another state engages in mid-decade redistricting for reasons other than a court order.
Rep. Travis Couture, R-Allyn, responded to the redistricting proposal via X on Wednesday morning.
“They want to change the state constitution to gerrymander away remaining Republican seats in WA,” Couture posted, referencing that only two Republicans represent Washington state in Congress.
With a high-stakes battle for the 2026 midterms looming, the Evergreen State appears poised to join the trend of states using congressional redistricting for partisan advantage. U.S. Rep. Michael Baumgartner, R-Spokane, and U.S. Rep. Dan Newhouse, R-Sunnyside, are the only two Republicans who represent Washington state in Congress, compared to 10 Democrats, including both senators.
The Center Square was unable to immediately reach Baumgartner for comment on Wednesday.
Rep. Jim Walsh, R-Aberdeen, who chairs the Washington State Republican Party, said amending the state constitution shouldn’t be trivial like HJR 4209, calling it “bad” policy and “hyperpartisan.” He thinks the idea is a “tit-for-tat” response to President Donald Trump’s call for redistricting in Texas.
Last summer, Texas Republicans initiated a mid-decade redrawing to gain several U.S. House seats. That prompted California Democrats, led by Gov. Gavin Newsom, to launch a counter-effort to flip Republican seats in the state through Proposition 50, which was approved by voters in November.
“It doesn't do any good for anybody in Washington; it doesn't do any good for any voter. It doesn't assure any voter of a stronger voice. It's hyperpartisan,” Walsh told The Center Square, “designed to warp concepts like fair and balanced and equal into a partisan pretzel that favors the Democrat party.”
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis, a Republican, announced on Wednesday that he’s planning to call a special session on redistricting in Florida for April. Republicans there are looking to redraw the Sunshine State’s congressional map.
“Voters deserve free and fair elections and an equal voice in Congress. Early partisan redistricting in other states stacks the deck nationally, diluting Washington’s representation before our voters ever weigh in,” Mena wrote in a Wednesday press release. “This legislation defends an independent process and ensures power remains with the people — not partisan mapmakers.”
Walsh thinks that if HJR 4209 were to pass, costly lawsuits would follow the loss of Republican districts.
In order for the constitutional amendment to pass, a two-thirds majority in each chamber must vote for HJR 4209. Democrats hold strong majorities in the House and Senate, but are just a few seats shy of a two-thirds majority in both, meaning HJR 4209 would require a few Republican votes as well.
Walsh said he doesn’t think any Republicans are willing to sign on, but wouldn't rule out some members of his party making deals with Democrats to pass this if they support Republican proposals.
“WA Democrats have filed a constitutional amendment (apparently) as a signaling piece of legislation to show what they plan to do if they should get a ⅔ majority in the Legislature in the 2026 election,” the Conservative Ladies of America’s Washington state chapter posted to X on Wednesday morning.
The Center Square contacted House and Senate leaders on both sides of the aisle for comment and will update the story with their perspectives as they respond. Senate Majority Leader Jamie Pedersen, D-Seattle, responded to The Center Square’s inquiry on Wednesday evening after publishing.
Last July, Pedersen told the Washington State Standard that there was “literally no way” to redistrict before 2026. That same article quoted Fitzgibbon saying “It’s not on the table for us.” While the House majority leader has since changed his tone, Pedersen held his position.
“My position has not changed,” Pedersen told The Center Square. “I do not support mid-decade redistricting for Washington and do not see a path to pass such a constitutional amendment in the Senate.”
About an hour later, Fitzhibbon responded to The Center Squre’s inquiry. While Republicans say his proposal does little but fuel partisan fires, he said HJR 4209 is an attempt to prevent Trump from securing a permanent Republican majority in the U.S. House.
“Several large Republican states, notably Texas but also North Carolina, Ohio, and Missouri, have in the past few months, at the behest of Donald Trump, redrawn their congressional maps to try to lock in as many safe Republican seats as possible,” he told The Center Square. “I do not believe it is healthy for our representative democracy for an out of control, corrupt president to get to hand-pick who will serve in what has become a subservient branch of government.”
Sen. Jeff Wilson, R-Longview, said no party should get to a point where they get an upper hand in redistricting. He thinks the process in Washington state ensures a fair fight and has met its goal. It’s an issue he wants to tackle every 10 years and said you have to be prepared, but now isn’t the time.
“But I'm not going back to the bad old days when a majority party can steamroll a minority,” Wilson told The Center Square. “It's not right. It's not fair, and it doesn't preserve a process that truly can represent fairness in redistricting.”
Washington's 60-day legislative session starts on Jan. 12.