January 22, 2026
Mr. Lawler introduced the following bill; which was referred to the Committee on the Judiciary, and in addition to the Committees on Oversight and Government Reform, and House Administration, for a period to be subsequently determined by the Speaker, in each case for consideration of such provisions as fall within the jurisdiction of the committee concerned
To require the congressional districts established by a State to meet certain requirements, to prohibit States from carrying out more than one congressional redistricting after a decennial census and apportionment, to exclude aliens without lawful status under the immigration laws from number of persons used to determine apportionment of representatives and number of electoral votes, and for other purposes.
Section 1. Short title
This Act may be cited as the Fair Apportionment and Independent Redistricting for Maps that Avoid Partisanship Act
or the FAIR MAP Act
.
Sec. 2. Requirements for congressional districts
(a) Requirements
The congressional districts of a State shall meet each of the following requirements:
(1)
Each congressional district in the State shall consist of contiguous territory (except to the extent necessary to include any area which is surrounded by a body of water).
(2)
Each congressional district in the State shall be as compact in form as practicable.
(3)
No congressional district in the State shall be drawn to discourage competition, or for the purpose of favoring or disfavoring an incumbent, a particular candidate, or a particular political party. In establishing congressional districts, the State shall consider the maintenance of cores of existing districts, of pre-existing political subdivisions, including counties, cities, and towns, and of communities of interest.
(4)
To the extent practicable, the population of each congressional district in the State shall not vary from the population of any other congressional district in the State (as determined on the basis of the total count of citizens of the United States and aliens with lawful status under the immigration laws (as such term is defined in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101)) of the most recent decennial census conducted by the Bureau of the Census).
(b) Effective date
Subsection (a) shall apply with respect to congressional districts established on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.
Sec. 3. Limit on congressional redistricting after an apportionment
The Act entitled An Act for the relief of Doctor Ricardo Vallejo Samala and to provide for congressional redistricting
, approved December 14, 1967 (2 U.S.C. 2c), is amended by adding at the end the following: A State which has been redistricted in the manner provided by law after an apportionment under section 22(a) of the Act entitled
.An Act to provide for the fifteenth and subsequent decennial censuses and to provide for an apportionment of Representatives in Congress
, approved June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a), may not be redistricted again until after the next apportionment of Representatives under such section, unless a court requires the State to conduct such subsequent redistricting to comply with the Constitution, to enforce the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (42 U.S.C. 1973 et seq.), or to comply with the FAIR MAP Act.
Sec. 4. Exclusion of aliens without lawful status under the immigration laws from number of persons used to determine apportionment of representatives and number of electoral votes
(a) Immigration status on decennial census
Section 141 of title 13, United States Code, is amended—
(1)
by redesignating subsection (g) as subsection (h); and
(2)
by inserting after subsection (f) the following:
(g)
In conducting the 2030 decennial census and each decennial census thereafter, the Secretary shall include in any questionnaire distributed or otherwise used for the purpose of determining the total population by States a checkbox or other similar option for the respondent to indicate, for the respondent and for each of the members of the household of the respondent, whether that individual is a citizen of the United States or an alien with lawful status under the immigration laws (as such term is defined in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101)).
(b) Exclusion
(1) In general
Section 22(a) of the Act entitled An Act to provide for the fifteenth and subsequent decennial censuses and to provide for apportionment of Representatives in Congress
, approved June 18, 1929 (2 U.S.C. 2a(a)), is amended by inserting after not taxed
the following: and aliens without lawful status under the immigration laws (as such term is defined in section 101 of the Immigration and Nationality Act (8 U.S.C. 1101))
.
(2) Effective date
The amendment made by paragraph (1) shall apply with respect to the apportionment of Representatives carried out pursuant to the decennial census conducted during 2030 and any succeeding decennial census.
Sec. 5. Congressional redistricting challenges
(a) Jurisdiction of Federal courts
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, any challenge to the congressional districts established by a State shall be brought in a district court of the United States.
(b) Effective date
Subsection (a) shall apply with respect to congressional districts established on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.
Sec. 6. Prohibiting States from using ranked choice voting in Federal elections
(a) Requirement
Subtitle A of title III of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21081 et seq.) is amended—
(1)
by redesignating sections 305 and 306 as sections 306 and 307, respectively; and
(2)
by inserting after section 304 the following new section:
305. Prohibiting States from the use of ranked choice voting with respect to an election for Federal office
A State may not carry out an election for Federal office in the State using a system of ranked choice voting under which each voter shall rank the candidates for the office in the order of the voter’s preference.
(b) Conforming amendment relating to enforcement
Section 401 of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21111) is amended by striking 303, and 304
and inserting 303, 304, and 305
.
(c) Clerical amendment
The table of contents of such Act is amended—
(1)
by redesignating the items relating to sections 305 and 306 as relating to sections 306 and 307, respectively; and
(2)
by inserting after the item relating to section 304 the following new item:
(d) Effective date
The amendments made by this section shall apply with respect to elections held on or after the date of the enactment of this Act.
Sec. 7. Photo identification or signature verification required
(a) Individuals voting in person
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no State or local election official may provide a ballot for an election for Federal office to an individual voting in person unless the individual presents to the official a valid photo identification card issued by a Federal, State, or Tribal government that identifies the individual.
(b) Individuals voting other than in person
(1) In general
Notwithstanding any other provision of law, no State or local election official may accept a ballot for an election for Federal office provided by an individual voting other than in person unless—
(A)
the individual submits with the ballot a card or envelope signed by the individual; and
(B)
such signature matches the signature associated with the individual in the computerized statewide voter registration list described in section 303(a) of the Help America Vote Act of 2002 (52 U.S.C. 21083(a)).
(2) Effective date
This subsection shall apply with respect to elections for Federal office held after the election for Federal office held on November 3, 2026.
Sec. 8. Same-day registration prohibited
A State may not permit an individual to vote in an election for Federal office unless the individual is duly registered to vote prior to the date of such election.
Sec. 9. No effect on elections for State and local office
Nothing in this Act or in any amendment made by this Act may be construed to affect the manner in which a State carries out elections for State or local office, including the process by which a State establishes the districts used in such elections.