California's gerrymander: a game two can play

Los Angeles Times

06-08-2025

California voters have made a couple things clear over the last couple of decades: they don't like partisan manipulation of political maps. And they don't like President Trump.
Those two imperatives have collided in recent days, as it appears to Gov. Gavin Newsom and others that one of the only ways to counter a Trump-supported partisan power grab in Texas is with a partisan power grab in California. Newsom and California Democrats essentially are saying they're not going to bring a high-minded civics lecture to a partisan knife fight.
The governor and his allies are rushing to assemble a plan that could make it easier to elect as many as five more Democrats from California to the House of Representatives.
Newsom clarified on Monday that the party would only pursue the rare mid-decade redistricting plan if Texas and its Republican governor, Greg Abbott, move ahead with their own plan to gerrymander that state's political map to create five additional House districts favorable to Republicans.
The bending of political lines to favor one party is almost as old as the Republic. The new trick conjured up by Texas is to complete a remapping mid-decade, rather than waiting for the decennial redrawing of boundaries that occurs after every census. That shift could be critical in deciding which party controls the House (and rides herd on the Trump White House) after the 2026 election.
Texans have an easier road to such a power play because the rules in their state allow it. That differs from California, where voters in 2010 dictated that an independent commission draw the boundaries for the U.S. House seats. That's why Newsom and Democrats would need to get voter approval in November to launch California's redistricting sleight of hand in response to the partisan hocus-pocus proposed in Texas.
With 43 of California's 52 House seats already in Democratic hands, it's not easy to bend boundaries to make another five districts friendlier to the party. But that's the intention.
The still-emerging plan would seek to put more liberal voters in districts currently held by Republican Reps. Kevin Kiley, David Valadao, Darrell Issa, Doug LaMalfa and Ken Calvert, CNN reported. The redraw would also seek to strengthen the hold Democrat Reps. Dave Min, Mike Levin and Derek Tran have on their seats, according to the Associated Press.
The Times' political team reported that, to be ready in time for a November election, Democrats in the Legislature have less than a month to draw a new map, hold hearings and negotiate the language of a special election bill.
Among those who will fight the move: former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. The Republican action star campaigned for the ballot measure that created the independent redistricting commission. And he's made non-partisanship a focus of his political institute at USC.
'His take on all of this is [that] everyone learned in preschool or kindergarten that two wrongs don't make a right,' said Daniel Ketchell, a spokesperson for Schwarzenegger. 'It takes power from the people and gives it to politicians. He thinks it's evil, no matter where they do it.'
Democrats need to remember that, when it comes to redistricting power in the rest of the U.S., Republicans have a distinct advantage. They hold a 'trifecta' — controlling both legislative bodies and the governor's office – in 23 states. Democrats have such single-party control in 15 states.
So if the game of tit-for-tat spreads across the country, the balance of power in the House could shift even more in favor of the GOP.
Other must reads
Email us at [e-mail], and your response might appear in the newsletter this week.
Today's great photo is from Times contributor Annie Noelker, who captured 23-year-old actor Tavis Kordell. Kordell, who is nonbinary, flips the script as Jerry and Daphne in 'Some Like it Hot' at the Pantages.
Jim Rainey, staff writerDiamy Wang, homepage internIzzy Nunes, audience internKevinisha Walker, multiplatform editorAndrew Campa, Sunday writerKarim Doumar, head of newsletters
How can we make this newsletter more useful? Send comments to [e-mail]. Check our top stories, topics and the latest articles on latimes.com.