Judges hear arguments over lawsuit concerning passage of Proposition 50

LOS ANGELES (KESQ) - A three-judge panel in downtown Los Angeles today began hearing arguments in a lawsuit challenging California's new congressional district maps, which were drawn to help more Democrats win future elections.

The suit asks the panel to grant a temporary restraining order blocking the newly drawn district lines by Friday -- the day candidates can take the first official steps to run in the 2026 election.

Assemblyman David Tangipa, R-Fresno, the California Republican Party, and 18 district voters brought the lawsuit in Los Angeles federal court last month against Gov. Gavin Newsom and Secretary of State Shirley Weber, seeking to have California's original map stay in effect for the 2026 midterm elections. The Justice Department later joined the suit.   

Plaintiffs argue the new Proposition 50 maps are unconstitutional because they improperly use voters' race as a factor in drawing districts by favoring Latino voters in violation of civil rights law.

"Proposition 50 represents a mid-decade redistricting, precisely the kind of legislative interference that the California Constitution was designed to prevent,'' the 26-page complaint contends. "It attempts to substitute a legislative map for the one lawfully adopted by the (state redistricting) commission, without any intervening census or constitutional authorization. It attempts to create a third option way for legislators to interpose themselves on a process in which they otherwise were barred from participating in.''   

The plaintiffs are represented by the Dhillon Law Group, founded by Harmeet Dhillon, who is now the assistant Attorney General for Civil Rights at the U.S. Department of Justice under President Donald Trump.   

``I'm appalled by what has happened -- what the Legislature really pushed through, what the governor has done to violate and break the Constitution,'' Tangipa said at a news conference announcing the lawsuit. ``And when I said that the fight for California has just begun, I hope everybody knows I meant that.''   

Voters on Nov. 4 overwhelmingly approved Proposition 50, which supporters dubbed ``The Election Rigging Response Act.''   

Newsom, who conceived of what would become Proposition 50 after Texas adopted a mid-decade congressional redistricting plan favorable to Republicans, called its passage ``not just a victory tonight for the Democratic Party, it was a victory for the United States of America, for the people of this country and the principles that our Founding Fathers lived and died for.''   

Proposition 50 establishes new congressional district maps for the 2026 midterm elections that will also be used for the 2028 and 2030 elections. An analysis by the election news website Ballotpedia said it would shift five Republican-held congressional districts toward Democrats.

Democrats hold a 43-9 advantage in the state's House delegation.   

The measure came in response to an effort in Texas for a mid-decade congressional redistricting that analysts said would give Republicans five additional seats. Other Republican-controlled states such as Florida, Ohio, Indiana, Missouri, New Hampshire, Nebraska and South Carolina are also considering efforts to approve mid-decade redistricting.   

Backers of Prop 50 said it ``draws fair maps that represent California's diverse communities and ensure our voices aren't silenced by Republican gerrymandering in other states.''

Republican Party of Orange County Chairman Will O'Neill said when the proposition passed, ``Millions of Californians will go to bed tonight knowing that their voices have been silenced by backroom deals, Gov. Newsom's thirst for power, and a cynical campaign funded by George Soros, government unions, and national Democrats.   

"Over $130 million was spent to convince Californians that a campaign to steal voters' power was worth the $300 million price tag for this special election.

"Gavin has kick-started a redistricting effort in other states to counter his avarice. He signed the redistricting legislation before Texas did. And while the blue states fail to find more seats because they already gerrymandered out Republican voices, red states have begun pushing back against this Gavin-mandering.   

"His reckless, self-serving actions set off a national fight that ultimately Democrats will lose.''

Mike Columbo, a plaintiffs' attorney in the federal lawsuit, said the proposition will be found unconstitutional, because the Legislature had no legal basis to move forward with a redistricting effort.

"The record we have establishes that ... before the maps were voted upon and after, analyses were conducted that concluded that there was no voting rights problem in California's prior maps for the Legislature to remedy,'' he said. ``Further, there is no evidence whatsoever that the California Legislature in fact circulated any such analysis to the legislators for them to consider when they cast their votes to launch Proposition 50.''   

Added Attorney General Pamela Bondi: ``California's redistricting scheme is a brazen power grab that tramples on civil rights and mocks the democratic process. Governor Newsom's attempt to entrench one party rule and silence millions of Californians will not stand.''

Brandon Richards, a spokesman for Newsom, said in a statement after the suit was filed that the Republican effort was doomed to failure.   

``Good luck, losers,'' he said.  

The hearing resumes on Tuesday morning.