Republicans are spending millions and still may not win districts drawn to favor them

Republicans redrew Congressional district lines to try to tilt the midterms in their favor. But now they are facing expensive and competitive races they had hoped to outmaneuver.

<img src='https://npr.brightspotcdn.com/dims3/default/strip/false/crop/5135x3423+0+0/resize/5135x3423!/quality/85/format/webp/?url=http%3A%2F%2Fnpr-brightspot.s3.amazonaws.com%2F06%2F6a%2F46ec36764e5db11da70604db9122%2Fgettyimages-2301229190.jpg' alt='North Carolina Republican congressional candidates state Rep. Jennifer Balkcom and Laurie Buckhout (right) are embraced by President Trump during an election rally on Oct. 20, 2026, in Greenville, N.C. Buckhout is running in North Carolina's 1st District, which was redrawn to heavily favor Republicans and is now a toss-up.'/><p>Republicans redrew Congressional district lines to try to tilt the midterms in their favor. But now they are facing expensive and competitive races they had hoped to outmaneuver.</p><p>(Image credit: Anna Moneymaker)</p><img src='https://media.npr.org/include/images/tracking/npr-rss-pixel.png?story=nx-s1-6008167' />