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Gov. Gavin Newsom kicks off California’s redistricting efforts

California Governor Gavin Newsom Officially Launches Statewide Redistricting Process to Shape Future Political Maps

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Governor Gavin Newsom officially launched his redistricting campaign in California, aimed at strengthening the state’s Democrats to counter similar Republican-led initiatives elsewhere in the country, at a rally focused primarily on immigration.

Flavoured by California Democratic Party leaders at the National Center for the Preservation of Democracy at the Japanese American Museum in downtown Los Angeles, Newsom said California voters would be tasked with approving the new congressional map for next year’s midterm elections, with a special election scheduled for November.

Standing behind a podium adorned with a red and white “Voting Fraud Response Act” flag, Newsom warned President Donald Trump that the nation’s most populous state would not stand idly by while Republicans in Texas, and possibly elsewhere, attempted to “rig” the 2026 House elections in favor of the Republican Party. About 150 guests, including students, union members, and lawmakers, held blue and white signs reading “Defend Democracy.”

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Newsom said California’s redistricting efforts were a “response” to Trump’s request to Texas and other Republican states. He added that these efforts “are also part of our commitment to leading by example,” and challenged other Democratic-led states to consider taking on Republican states as well.

“I know they say, ‘Don’t touch Texas.’ Well, don’t touch the big golden states,” Newsom said.

Currently, Democrats hold 43 of the 52 seats in the California House of Representatives, while Republicans hold the remaining nine. But with the proposed redistricting, Democrats could pick up five additional seats, equal to the five seats Texas Republicans hope to gain through their own redistricting process.

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Newsom added that the California Legislature will vote on the redistricting when Congress returns next week. The Senate Elections Committee has scheduled a hearing for Tuesday, August 19, to discuss the redistricting bill.

With Democrats controlling the state House of Representatives, Newsom and state Democratic Party leaders have expressed confidence they can secure enough votes to approve the maps.

If this happens, Newsom will call a by-election, and the proposed maps will be put to a vote by Californians on November 4. These maps will then be used for the 2026, 2028, and 2030 elections, but only for Congress.

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California will then commission an independent commission to redraw its congressional maps after the next U.S. census.

Several speakers at Thursday’s rally, including the governor, discussed the Trump administration’s tightening of immigration enforcement, contextualizing the impact that the ruling party in Congress could have on these efforts.

“People are scared,” Newsom said. “People are scared.”

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The Democracy Center, where Newsom held his rally, bills itself as a place to explore “the rights, freedoms, and fragility of democracy through art and other public programs, helping to build bridges and find common ground among people of diverse backgrounds and orientations.” According to its website, the center “brings together people of all ages and backgrounds to explore issues of race, identity, and social justice, with the goal of shifting minds, celebrating culture, and fostering civic engagement.”

“This is a harbinger for democracy in the United States,” Newsom said in a campaign statement on redistricting released ahead of Thursday’s rally.

The ad points to a new website supporting redistricting efforts and warns, amid images of Trump, Vice President J.D. Vance, and Texas Governor Greg Abbott, that “if Californians don’t act now, Donald Trump will rig the 2026 election and take control of Congress.” The website also calls on supporters to “contribute to the Fight Voter Fraud Act.”

The White House did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

California Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff, as well as several Democratic representatives: Judy Chu, Laura Friedman, Sidney Kamlager-Duff, Luz Rivas, Brad Sherman, and Maxine Waters, were present at the meeting.

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The governor’s office announced Newsom’s intentions earlier this week, issuing a series of posts that appeared to mock the president by mimicking his style: the use of all caps, quotation marks, and exclamation points, and language consistent with Trump’s social media posts. On Wednesday afternoon, a message from the governor’s press office announced a “big rally” on Thursday with Newsom and other Democrats.

“Democrats will destroy Greg Abbott’s totally rigged electoral maps,” the message stated, referring to the Texas governor. Addressing Trump, it declared: “Get ready for the greatest revenge you’ve ever seen! This could be the worst day of your life, as your presidency ends (Democrats take back Congress!). America will be free—’Liberation Day,’ as many are calling it!”

Although Newsom’s call for California to redraw its electoral map in the midterm elections to counter the GOP’s attempt in Texas initially received mixed support, even from members of his own party, more Democratic leaders have appeared to support him in recent weeks.

An election integrity advocacy group has toned down its criticism of California’s redistricting efforts.

Common Cause, a nonpartisan group that advocates for the integrity of electoral maps and elections, has previously criticized leaders in Texas and California for considering new electoral maps based on partisan redistricting.

While Common Cause remains opposed to partisan redistricting, it said this week that Trump and Republican leaders are attempting to “consolidate unaccountable power.”

The organization emphasized its understanding that some states are considering “balancing measures” and will not condemn new electoral maps that meet its standards for fairness.

“We will not support partisan redistricting, even if it is driven by more extreme redistricting by another party,” the organization said in a statement. “But blanket condemnation at this time constitutes a call for unilateral political disarmament in the face of authoritarian attempts to undermine fair representation and grassroots democracy.”

Meanwhile, Republicans continued to condemn Newsom’s plans.

On Wednesday night, Assembly Republicans accused Democrats of “rigging” next year’s midterm elections by redrawing the maps behind closed doors and forcing them to a legislative vote “without meaningful public comment.”

The consequences of overturning California’s independent, voter-approved redistricting are clear: it undoes a process that required 196 public meetings, 3,870 oral submissions, and 32,410 written submissions from Californians before finalizing the current maps,” Assembly Republicans said in a statement.

“If Sacramento’s elected officials can overturn the maps drawn by your independent commission, they can overturn all voter-approved reforms.”

The 2026 midterm primaries are less than ten months away.

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