Gov. Newsom Signs Shady Mid-Decade Redistricting Legislation

California Governor Gavin Newsom signed the 3-measure package on mid-decade Congressional redistricting: Senate Bill 280, Assembly Constitutional Amendment 8, and Assembly Bill 604. ACA 8 will put a measure on the Nov. 4 ballot that would redraw the state’s congressional map to favor Democrats, ostensibly in response to Texas redistricting efforts.

As the Globe noted Thursday during Assembly floor debate on ACA 8, Trump Derangement Syndrome is on full display today in the California Assembly. Accusations of “Trump is a fascist,” to “Trump is an authoritarian,” to Trump is a threat to Democracy,” “Trump is destroying the health care system,” to “Trump is the reason my golf game sucks,” were expressed by nearly all Democrats who spoke on the bills.

The vote to pass ACA 8 was entirely along partisan lines, Democrats 57, Republicans 20. The Senate passed it in a 30–8 vote. Gov. Newsom signed ACA 8 into law shortly after.

But the floor discussion/debate became tedious. Worse than tedious. Pabulum. The “Trump is to blame for everything” exposes that Democrats have nothing to offer the people, and must blame someone for their own failure to read the room, and their complete disconnect with 40 million Californians.

“Assembly passes ACA 8, 57-20 to place redistricting on the November ballot. Remember these votes,” I posted on X.

The session was fraught with partisan antics from the Democrat supermajority.

“Assemblyman Carl DeMaio (R-San Diego) called SB 280 a political stunt to prop up Gavin Newsom’s presidential campaign. Says Dems can’t win on the truth. He has a point. SB 280 calls a statewide special election November 4, 2025 for ACA 8, which allows a mid-decade redistricting, setting aside the voter approved California Redistricting Commission.”

“Assembly Minority Leader James Gallagher is telling Democrats to stop claiming Democracy is over. And he’s exposing their actions. ‘in order to save Democracy we must dismantle it’ he says they are doing, “which always led to despotism and authoritarianism – you are giving away power that belongs to the people.’ Of course, Democrats cut his mic. Then lectured him on proper decorum in the Assembly.”

“In order to save Democracy we must dismantle it.”

Gallagher is right.

“Assemblyman David Tangipa warns that SB 280 is a bill that no one wants, and is political gamesmanship. It does not address the cost of housing in CA, or the lack of hospital care in his district, or any of the issues important to Californians.”

Tangipa is also right.

As the Globe reported:

Elections Committee Chairwoman Assemblywoman Gail Pellerin (D-Santa Cruz), a former elections official, who yesterday said Democrats are “building the most transparent process in the country,” cut the microphone of the Vice Chairwoman Assemblywoman Alexandra Macedo (R-Tulare) when she asked who drew the proposed gerrymandered Congressional maps.

Assemblyman Tangipa asked about all of the co-authors on the bill who may have a vested interest in the newly drawn maps. He then proposed amendments to ACA 8 stating that any member of the legislature who votes for the ACA cannot run for Congress in any of the newly proposed congressional districts.

Vice Chairwoman Macedo expressed untold frustration to Chairwoman Pellerin that she was given only a few minutes to ask her questions of the bill presenter Assemblyman Marc Berman, standing in for the bill’s author, Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas. Chairwoman Pellerin cut off Macedo’s questions as well as Tangipa’s, and repeated ad nauseam, “I have allowed you plenty of times to ask your questions,” and then screamed, “Mr. Tangipa, you are out of order” several times, and cut his mic when he insisted there were many more questions that needed answers. “We are done with questions,” Chairwoman Pellerin declared.

Tangipa posted on X:

My mic was shut off. We don’t know who drew the maps. I was told “because I say so” is acceptable. And I had <24 hrs to get answers for 40M Californians. If they won’t give transparency, we’ll find it. Sunlight is the best disinfectant—time to expose Sacramento.

“I just signed the Election Rigging Response Act to put Proposition 50 up for a vote on November 4th,” Newsom posted to X. “The people of California will have the power to push back against Texas and any other state that obeys @realDonaldTrump‘s demand to rig the next election.”

“Democrats acted to solely benefit personal political ambitions. The facade about it being about other states came down when they removed the ‘trigger mechanism’ that this scheme would only take effect in response to actions in other states,” Congressman Doug LaMalfa (R-Richvale), who is a target of Democrats for redistricting, said in a statement. “Even more, the fact that the Democrats in the legislature refuse to acknowledge who drew these maps should make clear to anyone that this is crafted for termed-out state legislators to have tailor made seats in Congress, not equal representation. No one can look at these maps—one with a district spreading from Modoc to Marin, another shaped like a giant elephant with a trunk to bring in downtown Sacramento with Tahoe, or sticking Lassen and Plumas counties way over on the Nevada border with Santa Rosa in a coastal county—and say they appear credible. Do you really think the former senior environmental lawyer for NRDC is going to protect or represent ranchers, farmers, or water users?”

Gov. Newsom and California Democrats could live to rue the day they put this on the November ballot. And because they won’t read the room, it’s all they have.