"California usually uses an independent commission to draw its political boundaries. But after President Donald Trump and Republicans in state legislatures across the country initiated a mid-census scheme to gerrymander their congressional districts (with hopes that doing so would help them retain control of the House of Representatives following the 2026 midterms), California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) endorsed the ballot initiative asking voters to temporarily suspend the independent commission's maps and to produce a new one,"
"On Thursday, the Department of Justice (DOJ) submitted a filing in a California federal district court, announcing that the federal government seeks to join a lawsuit submitted by the state Republican Party challenging recently enacted congressional maps that were passed as part of a voter-endorsed ballot initiative earlier this month. California usually uses an independent commission to draw its political boundaries."
The Department of Justice filed to join a Republican-led lawsuit challenging California's newly enacted congressional maps produced by a voter-approved ballot initiative. California typically uses an independent redistricting commission, but the initiative temporarily suspended that process to redraw maps aimed at flipping five Republican seats. The DOJ alleges the Proposition 50 map constitutes a racial gerrymander by overrepresenting Latinx voters and diminishing white voting power. The DOJ requests that courts enjoin the use of the Proposition 50 map in the 2026 election and in future elections. State officials and legal representatives have issued public statements about the filing and its implications.
Read at Truthout
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]