SAN DIEGO — California voters overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure Tuesday that allows the state to temporarily redraw its congressional districts to favor Democrats ahead of the midterm elections.
The Associated Press determined the ballot measure passed at 11 p.m., when polls closed in California. The passage of Proposition 50 marks a major political victory for Gov. Gavin Newsom (D-CA), the frontrunner for the 2028 Democratic presidential nomination. Newsom framed the Proposition 50 fight as one between California and President Donald Trump. It has allowed him to expand his national profile and draw donations from more than 107,000 individual donors.
California voters were acutely aware of the role the state is playing in the national redistricting war, which began after Trump demanded Texas Republicans redraw their maps earlier this summer to give the GOP five more seats. In response, Newsom and state Democrats passed new maps in the legislature.
California’s constitution requires that an independent redistricting commission draw the map and that voters approve any changes. That means even though the state legislature passed the map, voters had to choose to use them for the 2026, 2028, and 2030 elections.
The new map put three Republican-held seats into safe Democratic hands and turned two others into those that lean Democratic. Specifically, the map changes districts held by Reps. Doug LaMalfa (R-CA) and Kevin Kiley (R-CA) in Northern California. In Southern California, Reps. Darrell Issa (R-CA) and Ken Calvert (R-CA) would be at risk, and in the Central Valley, Rep. David Valadao (R-CA) will now have a much harder time getting reelected.
All five Republican lawmakers at risk of losing their seats told the Washington Examiner that the process and speed by which the maps were created and passed undermined democratic values.
This is a developing story. Check back for updates.