Early voting has begun in California for a special election that could significantly influence the balance of power in the U.S. House next year.
Voters are being asked to decide on a ballot proposition that would reshape the state’s congressional districts, positioning California at the center of a national political battle over redistricting—one that pits President Donald Trump and Republicans against Democrats.
The measure, placed on the November ballot by state lawmakers earlier this year, seeks voter approval to temporarily suspend the state’s independent redistricting commission and return control of congressional map-drawing to the Democratic-led legislature. Mail-in ballots began going out to voters on Monday, Fox News reported.
The California proposal, which could add as many as five Democratic-leaning congressional districts, is seen as a direct response to Texas’s newly approved map that is expected to create up to five Republican-leaning House seats.
Supporters say the measure is intended to balance the national political landscape ahead of next year’s elections, while opponents argue it undermines California’s independent redistricting process.
If voters reject the measure, known as Proposition 50, it would mark a significant setback for Democrats seeking to expand their advantage in the U.S. House.
Two-term Governor Gavin Newsom, widely regarded as a potential 2028 Democratic presidential contender, is leading the effort to pass the proposition.
“If we lose here, we are going to have total Republican control in the House, the Senate and the White House for at least two more years,” Newsom noted in a recent fundraising appeal. “If we win here, we can put a check on Trump for his final two years.”
The push by Trump and Republican leaders for mid-decade redistricting is part of a broader strategy to bolster the party’s narrow House majority ahead of the 2026 midterm elections. Historically, the party controlling the White House has struggled to retain congressional seats during midterms, and GOP strategists are seeking to avoid that trend.
Trump and his political team are working to prevent a repeat of 2018, when Democrats regained control of the House midway through his first term. The current redistricting effort is designed to secure a stronger electoral map and solidify Republican control of the chamber heading into the next election cycle.
Missouri last month became the second Republican-led state, after Texas, to approve new congressional district maps ahead of next year’s elections. The revised map is expected to create at least one additional GOP-leaning seat, further strengthening the party’s position in the U.S. House.
Unlike Texas and Missouri, where Republican lawmakers approved new congressional maps directly, California’s process requires voter approval because of the voter-passed independent redistricting committee.
“Heaven help us if we lose,” Newsom said in his fundraising pitch. “This is an all-hands-on-deck moment for Democrats.”
Campaign finance filings show that supporters and opponents of Proposition 50 have raised more than $215 million as of Oct. 2, fueling a flood of television, digital, and mail advertisements across California.
One of the main groups opposing Governor Gavin Newsom and Democratic leaders has branded its campaign “Stop Sacramento’s Power Grab,” arguing that the measure would erode voter-approved redistricting reforms.
Former Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, California’s last Republican governor, has also entered the debate. During his tenure, Schwarzenegger championed the 2008 and 2010 constitutional amendments that stripped politicians of redistricting authority and established the state’s independent commission to draw legislative and congressional districts.
“That’s what they want to do is take us backwards — this is why it is important for you to vote no on Prop 50,” Schwarzenegger said in an ad against Proposition 50. “Democracy — we’ve got to protect it, and we’ve got to go and fight for it.”
As mail-in ballots begin arriving in homes across California, a panel of federal judges in Texas is holding hearings in a lawsuit challenging that state’s newly approved congressional maps.
If the Texas redistricting plan is ultimately struck down, it remains uncertain what effect, if any, the ruling would have on California’s own redistricting efforts, Fox reported.
This article may contain commentary which reflects the author's opinion.
