[ad_1]
A potential redrawing of the California Legislature district line could overturn the balance of power in Washington, D.C. in next year’s midterm legislative elections. The unusual and unexpected constituency could take place in the coming months due to sparring between President Trump, Texas Gov. Greg Abbott and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Redrawing these maps, known as rezoning, is an esoteric practice that many voters tune, but has a major impact on American political power and policy.
Here’s a breakdown of why the process that occurs once every decade is currently attracting so much attention, as well as the potential impact.
What is your constituency?
The U.S. House of Representatives has 435 members, each to represent roughly the same number of members. Every decade, the allocation of congressional representatives in each state could change after the US census counts the population across the country. For example, after the 2020 census, California’s Congressional District share fell by one for the first time in state history.
After the 10th Census, we will redraw districts in Congress and legislative districts based on population changes, protection of minority voters required by the Federal Voting Rights Act, and other factors. For much of the country’s history, such maps were created by state legislators and benefited in a smoke-filled back room.
Many districts have become badly gerrymandered to benefit political parties and incumbents such as California’s infamous “Ribbon of Shame,” a congressional district that stretched to a thin line along the California coast 200 miles from the Oxnard to the Monterey County Line.
But in recent decades, political reform organisations and some elected officials, particularly former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, have sought independent drawings of the district. In 2010, state voters overwhelmingly approved a voting measure that required a bipartisan committee in 2011 and 2021 to draw a congressional map of California.
Why are we talking about this?
President Trump recently urged Texas lawmakers to redraw Congressional districts to increase the number of GOP members in the House of Representatives in next year’s midterm elections. Congress is closely divided, and parties that do not control the White House traditionally lose their body seat two years after the presidential election.
Trump was able to enact his agenda — from deporting undocumented immigrants to extensions that primarily benefit wealthy people from closing several planned parent-child clinics — as the GOP manages the White House, Senate and House of Representatives. But if Democrats turn Congress over, Trump’s agenda is likely to be hampered, and he faces the prospect of becoming a lame duck during his last two years of tenure.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom, who was on display with a Texas Democrat, will speak at a press conference in Sacramento on Friday.
(Justin Sullivan/Getty Images)
What does Texas do?
Texas Gov. Greg Abbott called on his state legislature for a special session last week to discuss the tragic flood that killed more than 130 people, as well as the district change before the 2026 election.
Trump and his administration urged Abbott to redraw the boundaries of his state’s legislative line, hoping to pick up five seats.
Abbott said his decision to include district changes in special sessions was prompted by a court ruling last year that said the state no longer needed to attract “coalized districts” made up of multiple minority communities. The governor said in an interview that the new district boundaries would give the Texans the opportunity to vote for the politicians who represent them best.
Lone Star State Congressional Democrats met with Newsom in Sacramento on Friday to discuss the impact of Demecado’s rezoning and accused Trump of trying to equip him for next year’s midterm elections.
“We play with another set of rules. We can sit down and act as if we have moral authority and see this 249-year-old experiment washed away,” Newsmom said of the country’s history. “We don’t allow that to happen.”
Texas Democrats have fled the state to prevent Congress from having a quorum, as in 2021 during the fight over voting rights. But it’s a fatal flood, and this is an unlikely prospect this year.
Why is California in the mix?
The Golden State council district is drawn by an independent committee focusing on logical geography, shared interests, representation from minority communities, and other facets.
If the state returns to partisan map drawings, experts on rezoning on both sides of the aisle agree that some GOP incumbents in the 52-member delegation are vulnerable. According to political statisticians, the delegation currently has nine Republicans.
Strange bed fellow
These eye-opening developments have created consensus among rivals, splitting up former allies.
Sarah Sadwani, a 2021 Constituency Commission member and a longtime supporter of independent map drawing, said she supports democratic efforts to change California’s congressional districts before the mid-term elections.
“I, of course, support the work of the committee. We have drawn a fair and competitive map that fully adheres to federal laws on the Voting Rights Act and ensures that communities of color have equal opportunities in the ballot box,” said Sadwani, a professor of politics at Pomona College. “That’s because California plays fairs, especially when it comes to Congress, putting Democrats at a national disadvantage.”
She said it is for all 50 states to accept independent constituencies. In the meantime, however, she will support democratic efforts in California and temporarily redraw the district in view of its interests.
“I think fighting what appears to be our democracy is patriotic to fight what appears to be an authoritarian rule,” Sadwani said.
Charles Munger Jr., the son of a late billionaire who was the right-hand man at Warren Buffet, spent more than $12 million to support voting measures invested in creating an independent commission on changing districts and ensuring it doesn’t undermine.
“He is very committed to making sure the committee is preserved,” said someone near Munger, who requested to speak openly anonymously. Munger believes that “this is ultimately political quicksand, and the rezoning war at the end of the day is a loss for American voters.”
Munger, the state’s biggest donor, at one point, is actively involved in the battle in California and is studying other efforts to combat gerrymandering across the country, the person said.
Democrats and Republican parties in states who disagreed with nothing agreed in 2010 when they opposed the voting measure. Democrats who are currently likely to win seats if districts are redrawn by state lawmakers support medium-term constituencies, but say the state should continue to have the line drawn by the Independence Commission every ten years.
“It’s a shame that the militants left behind in Sacramento are willing to spend $200 million on special elections across the state to silence our state’s opposition,” the GOP Congressional delegation said in a statement Friday. “As a delegation, we will fight attempts to disenfranchise voters in California in the manner necessary to ensure that the will of the people continue to be reflected in elections and elections.”
What happens next?
If California Democrats move forward with their proposals relying on what Texas legislators do at a special legislative meeting launched last week, they have two options:
State lawmakers were able to vote to take action before voters in a special election likely to take place in November. The last statewide special election – a failed effort to remind Newsom in 2021 will cost more than $200 million, according to the Secretary of State’s office. Congress could also vote to redraw the map, but this option is more vulnerable to legal challenges.
Both scenarios are expected to be voted as emergency items. This requires 2/3 votes, but insulates the lawsuit from the subject of a referendum placed before voters who delay enactment.
The council will be out of session until mid-August.
Sacramento staff writer Talyn Luna contributed to this report.
[ad_2]Source link
