Map: How Prop 50 could reshape California congressional voting districts
What to Know
- Prop 50 is the only question before voters in Tuesday’s California special election.
- The measure asks the state’s 23 million registered voters whether they authorize temporary changes to congressional district maps approved by state lawmakers.
- Congressional district maps are usually redrawn once a decade after each census and by an independent voter-approved redistricting commission in California.
- Prop 50 is a response led by Gov. Gavin Newsom and Democrats to redistricting in Texas that came at the urging of President Trump in an effort to gain Republican seats in the U.S. House.
- If approved, Prop 50 could open a pathway to flip up to five of 435 U.S. House seats in favor of Democrats.
- Vote centers in California will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday for casting ballots, conditional voter registration and vote-by-mail ballot drop-off.
California voters are deciding whether to change the political landscape in the nation’s most populous state.
Prop 50, the only question on Tuesday’s statewide ballot, could flip some House seats from Republican to Democratic control. The measure was placed before the California’s 23 million registered voters in response to redistricting in Texas at the urging of President Trump that gives more seats to Republicans.
The California measure, placed on the ballot by Gov. Gavin Newsom and the California Legislature, is a yes-or-no question that asks voters whether they authorize temporary changes to congressional district maps already approved by state lawmakers.
The changes, if approved, could flip as many as five of 435 U.S. House seats in favor of Democrats.
The new congressional district maps approved by lawmakers in August would be used for the next three election cycles. After the 2030 U.S. Census, California’s independent redistricting commission would resume drawing the maps.
The next election for all U.S. House seats is 2026. Republicans have a slim 219-213 margin with three vacancies.
Vote centers in California will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Tuesday. Check here for updated results Tuesday night as they become available.