Federal Court Says Prop 50 Gerrymander Is Good to Go, Cites Supreme Court Ruling on Texas Maps

"A baldly hypocritical effort by the Republican Party to challenge Democrats' tit-for-tat gerrymander measure, Prop 50, has been shot down by a federal court, paving the way for California to redraw its congressional district maps as it sees fit. Governor Gavin Newsom was celebrating Wednesday after news came of a federal court ruling on the challenge to Prop 50. The court found that California Democrats' effort at a partisan gerrymander of the state's congressional district maps was, just like Texas Republicans' similar effort last year, constitutional and not racially biased."

"In a 2-1 decision, the judges said that Prop 50 could move forward, with US District Judge Josephine Staton writing for the majority that "the evidence presented reflects that Proposition 50 was exactly what it was billed as: a political gerrymander designed to flip five Republican-held seats to the Democrats." The judges cited the December ruling by the Supreme Court on the Texas matter, in which conservative justice Samuel Alito concluded, "the impetus for the adoption of the Texas map (like the map subsequently adopted in California) was partisan advantage pure and simple.""

"In dissent on the three-judge panel was a Ninth Circuit judge appointed by Trump, Kenneth Lee, who argued that at least one SoCal district had been remapped "to prevent Latino voters from drifting away from the [Democratic] party." In a statement, Governor Gavin Newsom said, "Republicans' weak attempt to silence voters failed. California voters overwhelmingly supported Prop 50 to respond to Trump's rigging in Texas and that is exactly what this court concluded.""

California’s Prop 50, a Democratic-backed measure to redraw congressional districts, received federal court approval in a 2-1 decision, clearing the way for new maps. US District Judge Josephine Staton wrote that evidence showed Proposition 50 was a political gerrymander intended to flip five Republican-held seats. The judges referenced the Supreme Court’s December ruling on a Texas map, which described a similar partisan impetus. A dissenting judge argued at least one Southern California district was remapped to influence Latino voter behavior. Governor Gavin Newsom celebrated the ruling and cited voter support for Prop 50.

Read at sfist.com