Dozens of protesters gathered in the Texas Capitol Building in Austin on Friday to protest the Republican effort to redistrict the Texas congressional district map. KETK/FOX51 News covers East Texas,

Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton in a response letter to the DOJ argued the congressional districts in question were not drawn in a way that's race-based. But Paxton said he does support a special session on redistricting, citing "recent changes to the legal and political landscape."

Jasmine Crockett said Friday that GOP-proposed congressional maps in Texas would draw her out of the district where she lives, part of a redistricting effort Democrats say is aimed at at picking up five seats to keep Republican control of the U.

Democratic district will remain, and more people living in areas surrounding Austin will be represented by Republicans.

The legislative hearing was part of a rapidly moving redistricting process, pushed by President Trump, that could see the map approved next week.

Democratic lawmakers are trying to build a case that Republicans in Texas have engineered a rushed and unfair process for redrawing the state’s congressional districts