Texas Gov. Greg Abbott quietly signed a bill into law Friday morning that redraws congressional maps in the state, that could result in up to five seats currently held by Democrats to flip Republican.

In a post on X, Abbott said he signed what he called the "One Big Beautiful Map" into law. 

"Texas is now more red in the United States Congress," Abbott said.

Texas Democrats have said that once Abbott signs the bill into law, they would file a lawsuit against the state.

Texas redistricting map approved amid political tensions

Texas lawmakers approved the map Saturday, creating five new districts favoring Republicans. The move came after President Donald Trump requested it.  

Republicans have a narrow majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, and the president's party historically loses seats in the midterm elections. Texas's new maps would give Republicans a better chance to hold onto their majority for the last two years of Mr. Trump's term.

"The five new Republican majority-leaning seats we believe for all the right reasons, legal reasons, and the right reasons politically that our state deserves those additional five seats because this state has changed dramatically," Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick recently said to CBS News Texas. 

The effort by Mr. Trump and Texas' Republican-majority Legislature that prompted state Democrats to hold a two-week walkout also kicked off a redistricting effort in California, with other Democratic-led states hinting that they may follow suit. California Gov. Gavin Newsom and California Democratic state lawmakers are moving forward with a November special election to put a new congressional map before the voters that could help Democrats gain five seats. California Republican are waging a legal battle of their own to stop that from happening. 

Republican Sen. Phil King, the Texas measure's sponsor, previously denied accusations alleging that the redrawn districts violate the Voting Rights Act by diluting voters' influence based on race.

"I had two goals in mind: That all maps would be legal and would be better for Republican congressional candidates in Texas," he said.

Abbott has predicted it will survive any court challenges, and that other Republican-led states will make similar moves seeking new seats for the GOP in Congress.