President Donald Trump and his White House are pushing South Carolina lawmakers to redraw the state’s congressional districts, according to a local report.
The White House outreach comes as Trump is riding high following back-to-back wins over the last week, first from the Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Louisiana v. Callais and the second in Indiana, where he was able to successfully oust several state Republicans who defied him on redistricting.
Trump has reportedly spoken with South Carolina Senate Majority Leader Shane Massey on two occasions, according to local news outlet the State.
“He clearly expressed his desire that we take a look at the maps now, especially in light of the Louisiana Supreme Court opinion,” Massey said.
However, Massey said he was not pressured by Trump to take up creating a new congressional map to eliminate the sole Democrat-held district in the state during the conversation.
The Washington Examiner has reached out to the White House for more information.
South Carolina’s legislature has been divided over pursuing a gerrymandered map to eliminate Rep. Jim Clyburn’s (D-SC) district, with detractors, including Massey, arguing it could create two toss-up districts instead of one solid Democratic district.
According to the outlet, Massey said he told Trump he would likely not be supportive of a redistricting effort.
“I told him I will listen to whatever you want to share with me. I will look at whatever you want me to look at. But I’m probably not going to be supportive of this effort,” Massey said of their conversation.
The Supreme Court’s ruling weakened Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act, opening the door for multiple southern red states to redraw their maps in an escalation of a nationwide redistricting war that began last year.
Trump has urged GOP-led state legislatures to draw new maps in the aftermath of the decision, saying in a Truth Social post that “we cannot allow there to be an Election that is conducted unconstitutionally simply for the ‘convenience’ of State Legislatures.”
He continued, “If they have to vote twice, so be it. We should demand that State Legislatures do what the Supreme Court says must be done. That is more important than administrative convenience. The byproduct is that the Republicans will receive more than 20 House Seats in the upcoming Midterms!”
South Carolina’s lawmakers took steps Wednesday to allow the state legislature to consider creating a new map, advancing a proposal that would allow them to return after the legislative session ends on May 14.
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Trump’s reported conversations with the South Carolina leader come after he successfully ousted several Indiana state lawmakers who shot down an effort to redistrict that would likely have given Republicans two more U.S. House seats.
State Sens. Dan Dernulc, Linda Rogers, Travis Holdman, Jim Buck, and Greg Walker were defeated by Trump-backed challengers. The race between state Sen. Spencer Deery and Trump-supported Paula Copenhaver was too close to call. Only state Sen. Greg Goode survived Tuesday night, defeating a challenge from Trump-backed Brenda Wilson.