Majority of Dems say gerrymandering ‘never acceptable’ — but support it in California

Democratic voters overwhelmingly say partisan gerrymandering is wrong, except when it benefits California Democrats, a new poll shows.

A new Politico–UC Berkeley Citrin Center poll shows that 70% of Democrats believe it is “never acceptable” for politicians to draw congressional districts to help their own party win more seats. However, the same poll found that the majority of Democrats support the tactic if Texas Republicans make similar moves.

Democratic California Gov. Gavin Newsom and state Democrats have proposed a new congressional map to counter a GOP-led redistricting effort in Texas that could give Republicans five additional seats in the House of Representatives. The plan in California requires voters to approve transferring redistricting authority from the state’s constitutionally mandated independent commission to the state Legislature, through a statewide referendum in November.

Just 18% of Democrats believe that California should retain its current independent redistricting commission, even if it means winning fewer seats, according to the survey conducted between Tuesday and Wednesday among 1,177 registered voters nationwide. In contrast, 63% of Democrats polled said their party should “fight back” against Republicans by redrawing their own districts.

California’s Democratic-controlled Legislature is expected to pass a trio of bills that will allow for a November special election to establish new congressional districts. The California Supreme Court on Wednesday dismissed a lawsuit brought by several Republican state legislators challenging what they describe as Democrats’ “unconstitutional” plan to rush through the redistricting process.

Newsom and national Democratic figures, including Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin and former President Barack Obama, have actively promoted the initiative as a way to defend Democratic power nationwide.

“I believe that Gov. Newsom’s approach is a responsible approach,” Obama said on Tuesday. “I think that approach is a smart, measured approach, designed to address a very particular problem in a very particular moment in time.”

Multiple advisory board members of California Common Cause — a government watchdog group historically opposed to partisan gerrymandering — resigned after the organization declined to condemn redistricting efforts in Democratic-run states.

Though Democrats have characterized their redistricting push as a retaliation against Republicans, blue states, such as Illinois, already feature some of the most gerrymandered districts in the nation.

Some, including Vice President JD Vance, have suggested that California’s current congressional maps may not be as nonpartisan as state Democrats assert. Republicans currently hold only 17% of the state’s congressional seats despite President Donald Trump winning 38.3% of the vote in the 2024 presidential election.

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