A majorityâÂÂminority congressional district is a United States congressional district in which racial or ethnic minorities together make up more than half of the population. Some of these districts have been drawn to comply with Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act of 1965, which prohibits districting plans that dilute the ability of racial or language minorities to elect candidates of their choice. However, not all majorityâÂÂminority districts are mandated by the Act; many result from demographic patterns or partisan considerations.
As of the 119th Congress (2025), there are 120 majorityâÂÂminority congressional districts. Only a fraction of these districts are mandated by the Voting Rights Act â about 30 to 40 nationwide â while the remainder are partisanâÂÂconstructed or demographic outcomes.
The adoption of majorityâÂÂminority districts is contested both within and outside minority communities. Critics argue that such districts can dilute minority political power by âÂÂpackingâ voters into fewer districts, or that they resemble racial segregation. Supporters contend that they are necessary to ensure minorities can elect representatives and achieve descriptive representation in the House of Representatives.
MajorityâÂÂminority districts have been the subject of significant constitutional litigation, including Shaw v. Reno (1993), Miller v. Johnson (1995), and Bush v. Vera (1996), which examined the balance between Voting Rights Act compliance and constitutional limits on racial gerrymandering.
Notes:
Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act requires minority-opportunity districts in geographical areas in which minority voters would otherwise have "less opportunity than other members of the electorate ... to elect representatives of their choice." In Thornburg v. Gingles (1986), the Supreme Court held that Section 2 may necessitate the creation of a majority-minority district when (a) the minority population is "sufficiently large and geographically compact" to form a district and (b) both the majority and minority populations are sufficiently politically polarized that the majority can vote "usually to defeat the minority's preferred candidate."
Bartlett v. Strickland (2009) clarified the Gingles interpretation of Section 2 by holding that the minority group must constitute "more than 50 percent of the voting-age population in the relevant geographic area." Plaintiffs challenging a districting plan under Section 2 typically provide remedial maps in which the minority group composes a majority in the relevant district, such as in Allen v. Milligan (2023) where plaintiffs included "illustrative districting maps... which contained two majority-black districts that comported with traditional districting criteria."
The Supreme Court has left unsettled the question of whether minority groups can be aggregated under Section 2 if they vote in coalition with one another, and federal circuit courts remain divided on the issue.
Because of this jurisprudence on Section 2, federal law requires the existence of many of the current majority-minority congressional districts.
The following tables identify districts that are either required under Section 2 of the Voting Rights Act or are otherwise drawn to be majority minority in accordance with traditional districting criteria or to gerrymander for partisan advantage. Voting-age population data in the tables below reflect 2020 census estimates for the 119th Congress. Members are accurate as of September 1, 2025.
Currently, there are 15 congressional districts where African Americans make up a majority of voting-age constituents and 14 other congressional districts where they make up a plurality. Most of these districts are located in the South and are represented by an African American member of congress. Democrats represent each of these districts.
Currently, there are two congressional districts where Asian Americans make up a majority of voting-age constituents and six other congressional districts where they make up a plurality. Most of these districts are located in California and are represented by an Asian American member of congress. Democrats represent each of these districts.
Currently, there are 38 congressional districts where Hispanic or Latino Americans make up a majority of voting-age constituents and 9 other congressional districts where they make up a plurality. Most of these districts are represented by a Hispanic or Latino Democratic member of congress.