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Latest connected Texas, California redistricting
California Democrats are poised to walk a contentious redistricting effort connected Thursday successful the latest escalation to a nationalist backmost and distant that could beryllium captious successful which enactment is capable to triumph the U.S. House successful adjacent year's midterm elections.
The new map would displacement 5 of California's Republican U.S. House seats to beryllium much favorable to Democrats successful the 2026 midterm elections. The connection volition beryllium brought to the level for a ballot pursuing days of hearings, and if it passes, Californians would past ballot connected a law amendment for the new boundaries during a peculiar predetermination connected Nov. 4.
That predetermination is apt to beryllium costly and unpredictable fixed however rapidly the effort has travel unneurotic and however small clip determination is betwixt the legislature's actions and voters starting to person their say.
California's legislative votes are expected to hap conscionable 1 time aft Texas authorities representatives passed a GOP-backed legislature representation connected Wednesday astatine the petition of President Trump, pursuing a weekslong standoff successful which Democratic lawmakers near Texas to hold a vote. These caller Texas maps could assistance unafraid 5 further GOP-leaning seats during the upcoming midterm elections. Republicans successful the authorities person been adamant the Texas changes are fair, portion Texas Democrats person already signaled the maps volition beryllium challenged successful court.
Shortly aft the Texas House passed the maps, Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom posted "It's on" connected societal media. When Texas archetypal launched its redistricting effort, Newsom had vowed to redraw the Golden State's legislature districts to antagonistic the Lone Star State's program and neutralize immoderate imaginable GOP gains.
Newsom — who is wide seen arsenic a imaginable 2028 statesmanlike contender — sarcastically congratulated Texas GOP Gov. Greg Abbott on X, saying, "you volition present spell down successful past arsenic 1 of Donald Trump's astir loyal lapdogs. Shredding our nation's founding principles. What a legacy."
President Trump precocious Wednesday congratulated Texas Republicans for passing the caller maps, penning connected societal media that "Everything Passed, connected our mode to FIVE much Congressional seats and redeeming your Rights, your Freedoms, and your Country, itself." He besides encouraged GOP-led Indiana and Florida to instrumentality connected redistricting.
The comparatively uncommon mid-decade redistricting gambit comes arsenic some parties hole to look disconnected successful 2026 and has large implications nationwide. Republicans person a constrictive bulk astatine the moment, and Democrats winning backmost 3 seats successful the 2026 midterms could beryllium capable to flip power of the enclosure if the lines utilized successful the 2024 predetermination were inactive successful place. Redistricting successful reddish states could alteration that dynamic importantly however, and with it the interaction of the last 2 years connected Mr. Trump's 2nd word successful office.
Texas and California are the 2 biggest redistricting battlegrounds, but Mr. Trump has pushed similar efforts successful GOP-led Indiana and Florida, and New York Democrats person floated redrawing their House map. The Republican-led authorities of Missouri could besides effort and redraw a Democratic territory successful the coming weeks, and caller maps are besides expected successful Ohio wherever a redraw brought astir by authorities instrumentality could interaction immoderate of the reddish state's Democratic members of Congress.
Earlier this week, erstwhile President Barack Obama acknowledged that helium was not a instrumentality of partisan gerrymandering but helium backed Newsom's redistricting program anyhow astatine a fundraiser successful Martha's Vineyard and connected societal media, calling it a "smart, measured approach."
Less than 24 hours before California's scheduled vote, Newsom joined a property telephone with Democratic enactment leaders, urging enactment for his state's redistricting effort.
"This is astir taking backmost our country," Newsom told reporters. "This is astir the Democratic Party present punching backmost forcefully and precise intentionally.
A draught congressional map unveiled by California Democrats precocious past week would heavy interaction 5 of the state's 9 Republican U.S. House members. It would redraw Reps. Doug LaMalfa and Kevin Kiley's Northern California districts, tweak Rep. David Valadao's territory successful the Central Valley and rearrange parts of densely populated Southern California, impacting Reps. Ken Calvert and Darrell Issa. And immoderate much competitory Democrat-held districts could beryllium tilted further from the GOP.
There's nary warrant that Democrats volition triumph successful each 5 recently recast districts.
Democrats clasp ample majorities successful some chambers of California's authorities legislature. But immoderate ineligible hurdles inactive prevarication ahead, and Republicans successful the authorities person pushed backmost against the redistricting plans.
Unlike Texas, California has an autarkic redistricting committee that was created by voters earlier this century. To overhaul the existent legislature map, a law amendment would request to beryllium passed by a two-thirds ballot successful California's Assembly and Senate and beryllium approved by voters successful the fast-moving autumn election.
On Wednesday, the California Supreme Court denied a GOP effort to halt the mid-cycle redistricting. California Republicans had legally challenged Democrats' efforts, claiming the state's constitution gives Californians the close to reappraisal caller authorities for 30 days. But Chief Justice Patricia Guerrero said they "failed to conscionable their load of establishing a ground for alleviation astatine this time."
The GOP legislators who filed the ineligible situation told CBS News the ruling is "not the extremity of this fight," vowing to support warring the redistricting program successful the courts.
In a telephone interrogation with CBS News connected Wednesday, California Senate Minority Leader Brian Jones, a Republican, condemned Newsom's redistricting efforts.
"This full process is amerciable from the opening and violates the existent California Constitution," Jones said. "The voters spoke with a large dependable successful 2008 and 2010 that they were taking this process retired of the politicians' hands and putting the work into an autarkic commission."
Democrats faced a flurry of questions from Republican lawmakers during hearings this week connected the alleged deficiency of transparency successful the drafting of these maps and the fiscal implications of the Nov. 4 peculiar election.
"If we're talking astir the outgo of a peculiar predetermination versus the outgo of our ideology oregon the outgo that Californians are already paying to subsidize this corrupt administration, those costs look good worthy paying astatine this moment," said Democratic authorities Assemblyman Isaac G. Bryan.
Democratic lawmakers and Newsom person repeatedly emphasized that these redistricting efforts would not get escaped of the autarkic committee and that the caller maps he's hoping to enactment successful spot volition beryllium the lines utilized done the 2030 election. The committee would spell backmost to drafting the state's legislature maps aft the 2030 census, according to Newsom, who says this is lone being done arsenic a effect to Mr. Trump and Texas' redistricting.
That conception was rejected by Jones, who said: "Growing up, I was taught 2 wrongs don't marque a right, truthful no, it is not justified."
Nidia Cavazos is simply a 2024 run newsman for CBS News.
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