California voters weigh Prop 50 redistricting measure

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CHICO, Calif. – Voting started this week for a statewide special election that might drastically alter California’s congressional map. Proposition 50, or Prop 50, might add as many as 5 Democratic-held seats in Congress in time for the 2026 midterms.

The measure asks California voters to quickly permit the legislature to determine the state’s district maps by way of 2030, after which the ability would return to the unbiased California Residents Redistricting Fee. If Prop 50 wins, it might depart as a number of as 4 Republican-held seats throughout the state after 2026.

Latest polling exhibits Prop 50 will probably move. Gov. Gavin Newsom and California Democrats say Prop 50 is a crucial countermeasure to Republican-led redistricting efforts in Texas.

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The doorway to California State College, Chico. (Amalia Roy)

Nonetheless, UC Davis Professor Jim Adams warned a win for the Democrats within the brief time period might have unfavourable long-term consequences .

"I believe that even when Prop 50 does assist the Democrats win a handful of further seats in California, by profitable the battle in California, the Democrats might make themselves lose the conflict nationally," Adams informed Fox.

Adams, a Democrat, stated he agrees with Prop 50 supporters that he needs to see one thing executed to curb Republican redistricting efforts in different elements of the nation.

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"There's definitely a visceral satisfaction for the Democrats in feeling that Proposition 50 helps them to battle again. I don’t query the Democrats must battle again. The query is, are they preventing good with Proposition 50," he added.

Prop 50 has the potential to spark political backlash, not solely inside California Republicans or independents in 2026, however on a nationwide scale in the course of the presidential election in 2028.

If Prop 50 passes, California’s northern districts danger going from principally purple to utterly blue after the midterms.

The downtown space of Chico, California. (Amalia Roy)

Chico, California, sits in Republican-held District 1, which is represented by Rep. Doug LaMalfa. It is one of many districts focused in Prop 50. The proposed map would probably flip the district by pulling in voters from nearer to the extra Democrat-leaning Bay Space.

In 2024, President Donald Trump gained Butte County by about 3,000 votes over then-Vice President Kamala Harris. On the streets of downtown Chico, that political break up confirmed when asking voters their emotions on Prop 50.

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Don Tarman and Martin Bettencourt each stated they assist the proposition, including that it is a response to Trump's presidency.

"We agree with Gavin Newsom that Trump is making an attempt to sway the election for the Home. He picked up supposedly 5 votes in Texas. We'll see how the vote comes out after we get to the election. However yeah, we’re not Trump followers. I believe Gavin Newsom is making an attempt to battle again somewhat bit," Tarman stated.

Bettencourt stated he does not usually assist redistricting, however that is "a special time."

"I don’t like redistricting. I believe it’s imply to the voters. I believe they take away energy from them, as a result of they transfer it round and alter it," he stated. "I believe we’re in form of a special time, so we’re reacting off the highest of the ticket, which is the president, and we have now to do what we have now to do to compensate for that till we get somebody higher ready of energy."

A poll field sitting outdoors the Butte County Library, Chico department. (Amalia Roy)

Jim Henderson and Eleanor Engelbrecht are amongst those that do not agree with the proposition – each of them saying that redistricting in California will not be a perfect response to the efforts in Texas.

"When say they do it in Iowa, then do we have now to have Oregon do the identical factor and the subsequent factor you recognize every part is being gerrymandered? It’s unlucky the governor of Texas didn’t acknowledge that this wasn’t an acceptable means of coping with the elections, however he made his resolution, and I don’t assume we should always really feel compelled to say, properly, should you’re gonna do it, we’re gonna do it additionally," Henderson stated.

Engelbrecht stated the nation goes by way of sufficient change and issues want to simply "settle."

"Proper now, we’re going by way of a whole lot of change already, and I don’t assume that is the time we should be, I don’t know, dusting and cleansing actually. I believe that we actually must let issues settle. I believe the place our nation is at proper now, there’s a whole lot of divide already, and I believe actually this comes all the way down to defending honest elections," she stated.