Texas Rep. Veronica Escobar is speaking out against a proposed congressional redistricting map that would redraw El Paso’s 16th District—stripping it of major infrastructure and placing key parts of the city under the representation of a lawmaker who lives 500 miles away.
The map, recently filed in the Texas House of Representatives, looks like it’s designed to add to President Donald Trump’s influence ahead of the 2026 midterms, with the possibiity of flipping five additional House seats. One of the most controversial elements would shift Fort Bliss, the El Paso International Airport, and other eastern areas of El Paso County out of Escobar’s district and into Texas’s 23rd, currently represented by Republican Rep. Tony Gonzales.
In an interview, Escobar explained that the true downside of the redistricting map is that people are being represented by a “member of congress who lives 500 miles away.” She describes Gonzales as someone who “parachutes in for a day or maybe two days… takes a couple of photos, and leaves.”
Escobar argued that this kind of arrangement makes it difficult for El Pasoans to hold their representative accountable—and easier for that representative to vote against the community’s interests. She pointed to a recent vote opposing a new VA clinic next to the William Beaumont Army Medical Center as a stark example of the risks.
Fort Bliss and the El Paso International Airport are not just local fixtures, Escobar said—they are vital economic engines and national security assets.
Rep. Gonzales did not respond to a request for comment. But Escobar questioned that silence, suggesting it may not be accidental. “I do know there are a lot of Republicans in the House of Representatives who are deeply disturbed by this effort, but they are afraid to speak up,” she said.
This isn’t the first time Texas Republicans have pursued redistricting outside of the normal cycle. A similar effort in 2003 led to a dramatic standoff, with Democratic lawmakers fleeing the state to break quorum. Escobar said she would support similar resistance if the process becomes as aggressive as it was two decades ago.
Criticism of the map isn’t confined to Democrats. The El Paso County Republican Party also expressed opposition, noting that the changes would do little to benefit the city. “We are being ignored because too many of the voting populous vote for Democrats,” the party said in a statement, adding that El Paso deserves three full congressional districts of its own.
Whether the proposed map advances remains to be seen, but Escobar’s message was clear: El Paso deserves representation that lives in and fights for the city every day—not just during campaign season.
