California Gov. Gavin Newsom made a pretty major announcement yesterday, taking his latest stance to fight back against Republican’s mid-decade redistricting plans in Texas and beyond, The Hill reported.
This move comes as Republicans in Texas – with President Donald Trump’s backing – are pursuing a new congressional map that would give them as many as five more House seats. And Newsom’s response? He’s leaning into some signature California swag: “I know they say ‘Don’t mess with Texas.” Well, don’t mess with the great Golden State.”
He’s calling it the “Election Rigging Response Act,” a proposal that would let California Democrats bypass the state’s independent redistricting commission and redraw maps more favorable to their own party. Newsom says it a direct response to Republican moves.
“I’m grateful to all of the remarkable leaders who have stepped up this unifying effort, and we’ll be asking for the people on the November 4th special election, coinciding with a lot of local municipal elections, to provide a temporary pathway for congressional maps. We will affirm our commitment to the state independent redistricting after the 2030 census, but we’re asking the voters for their consent to do midterm redistricting.”
In an ideal world, Texas would wait until the next census to adopt independent redistricting committees — and California would resist the temptation to “fight fire with fire.” Because in this case, the “fire” is actually a direct hit to one of democracy’s core values: voting equality. And if you burn that down, you’re doing the work of democracy’s enemies for them.
When both political parties started disenfranchising voters to push their policies without actually earning our votes, the only winners are people rich enough to buy politicians’ loyalty.
NBC News reported: Governor Gavin Newsom on Thursday called on California lawmakers to approve a November ballot measure that would allow them to redraw the state’s congressional map to fight back against Republican’s mid-decade redistricting plans in Texas and elsewhere.
Newsom’s proposal, called the “Election Rigging Response Act,” would pave the way for California Democrats to circumvent the independent commission that controls the map-drawing process in the state and to pass new congressional lines that would be more favorable to their party.
Republicans in Texas, with President Donald Trump’ backing, are pursuing a new congressional map that would allow them to gain up to five more House seats.
“It’s not complicated. We’re doing this in reaction to a president of the Unite States that called the sitting governor of the state of Texas and said, “Find me five seats,” Newsom said. “We’re doing it in reaction to that act. Were doing it mindful of our higher angels and better angel. We’re doing it mindful that we want to model better behavior, as we’ve been doing for 15 years in the state of California with our independent redistricting commission. But we cannot unilaterally disarm.”
California Democrats need approval from others to sidestep the state’s independent redistricting commission, and the clock is ticking for lawmakers to approve a ballot initiative for this year’s Nov. 4 election. If the measure passes, it would allow new maps to be enacted in time for the 2026 midterm elections.
Several other Democratic leaders in California appeared alongside Newsom at an event Thursday in Los Angeles, framing their mid-decade redistricting effort as a broader rebuke of Trump and the actions of his administration.
Newsom told reporters after the rally that the California Legislature would formally launch the effort Monday through a series of bills.
“We anticipate the Legislature will move quickly and by the end of the next week, they will complete that work,” he said.
He added that the proposed new maps would appear of the next few days and that he expected they would “neuter and neutralize” efforts in Texas. Democrats currently represent 43 of California’s 52 House districts.