California voters pass congressional redistricting proposition

Alan Riquelmy

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (CN) — California’s Proposition 50, a ballot measure to create new congressional district maps, has drawn a map to success.

As of 9:15 p.m. Tuesday, with almost 50% of precincts partially reporting, 4.5 million voters supported Proposition 50, with 2.4 million opposed, or 65% to 35%.

The proposition will redraw current congressional maps to favor Democrats.

California for years has used a citizens commission to draw its political maps, which its supporters have said removes politics from the equation. Proposition 50 essentially puts the commission on pause, substituting the new maps until after the 2030 census, when the power to draw district lines returns to the commission.

California Governor Gavin Newsom, who spearheaded the special election, said it was in response to President Donald Trump contacting Texas Governor Greg Abbott and asking him to redraw that state’s districts to get Republicans five more seats in the U.S. House of Representatives.

“Tonight, California sent a powerful message to Donald Trump,” Newsom posted on X. “We will fight for our democracy. And we will win.”

California’s Democratic-controlled Legislature quickly passed legislation this past summer to put the measure on Tuesday’s ballot.

Trump and Newsom have feuded publicly for months, with their back-and-forth spilling into social media on Election Day.

“The Unconstitutional Redistricting Vote in California is a GIANT SCAM in that the entire process, in particular the Voting itself, is RIGGED,” Trump posted on Truth Social. “All ‘Mail-In’ Ballots, where the Republicans in that State are ‘Shut Out,’ is under very serious legal and criminal review. STAY TUNED!”

California Secretary of State Shirley Weber responded in a statement to Trump’s accusations. She questioned why those making the allegations haven’t provided specifics and identified supposed fraud.

“Ramblings don’t equate with fact,” Weber said. “The bottom line is California elections have been validated by the courts. California voters will not be deceived by someone who consistently makes desperate, unsubstantiated attempts to dissuade Americans from participating in our democracy.”

As of Oct. 20, California had just over 23 million registered voters. Of those, some 10.3 million were Democrats, 5.8 million were Republicans, and 5.2 million no party preference. The remaining 1.6 million registered voters were registered with other parties, like the Libertarian and Green parties.

Those voters over the past few weeks have completed vote-by-mail ballots, sending them to elections officials by post or dropping them off at designated sites. On Tuesday, many went to the polls to vote in person.

One of those vote centers was at Oak Hills Church in Folsom.

Maya Alexandria, of Folsom, was the first voter through the vote center’s doors Tuesday morning.

“This regime [is] exactly why,” she said when asked why she chose to vote in this election.

Set to graduate from the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law this semester, Alexandria said she’s watched what she called the “egregiousness” of President Donald Trump’s administration. A vote for Proposition 50 is gerrymandering, she said, but noted the times warrant it.

“It’s time to get up and not take things lying down anymore,” Alexandria said.

Moments later, another voter referring to herself as Shon said she votes in all elections. However, she wanted to cast her ballot in Tuesday’s election because she considered its goal to redistrict the congressional lines unconstitutional.

“I think the media is lying [about] why they’re doing it,” Shon said, pointing to claims that Texas’ redistricting led to California’s vote on Proposition 50.

“But it’s not true,” she added. “They’re just trying to rig the election.”

Republicans have largely opposed the redistricting effort. U.S. Representative Kevin Kiley, whose own seat could be in jeopardy under the new maps, has strongly pushed back against the effort.

“California politicians like Gavin Newsom have been looking for any pretext to get rid of our Independent Redistricting Commission and bring back gerrymandering,” Kiley posted on X last week. “They love gerrymandering because it gives them more power and you less power.”

Karla Jones, a Folsom voter who cast her ballot early, said Texas forced California’s hand.

“We need to be fair and Texas is messing us up,” she said. “It’s just a tiny sliver of what we can do. If we can get five more [congressmembers], it’s five more than we have now."

Rebekah Bornemisza of Folsom also pointed to Texas’ redistricting move as the reason California acted. She sees no conspiracy, instead saying California’s vote would neutralize Texas’ redistricting.

Some have argued that California shouldn’t act only because Texas took action, Bornemisza said. She disagrees with that notion.

“This is the sticking point for me — this is temporary,” she said, noting the return of the citizens redistricting commission after the next census.

For Bornemisza, who voted early and has served as a poll worker, public trust in elections is crucial. She said that trust has eroded over the years, especially since the ascent of Trump.

When serving at a polling spot, Bornemisza said she never saw anything that would raise doubt in the process. Instead, she said she worked alongside professionals who followed procedure and wanted fair elections.

A poll issued last week by the Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies found 60% of likely voters supported the measure, with 38% opposed. Of those who already had voted, 67% supported the proposition, with 33% opposed.