Federal Judges Uphold California's New Congressional Maps
Source: New York Times
A federal court on Wednesday rejected Republicans’ claim that California’s new congressional maps were unconstitutional, upholding a voter-approved plan intended to benefit Democrats in this year’s midterm elections.
Two judges in a three-judge panel in Los Angeles sided with Gov. Gavin Newsom and fellow Democrats in Congress, who argued that the maps were drawn purely to give their party an advantage, in reaction to a similar gerrymander by Texas Republicans. The ruling shot down arguments by the California Republican Party and the Trump administration that the maps approved in a November ballot measure, Proposition 50, amounted to a racial gerrymander that focused on favoring Latinos over other groups of voters.
“The evidence presented reflects that Proposition 50 was exactly what it was billed as: a political gerrymander designed to flip five Republican-held seats to the Democrats,” District Judge Josephine Staton wrote in the majority opinion.
Judge Staton, an appointee of President Barack Obama, said that the Republicans had pointed to multiple statements showing that the mapmaker and some lawmakers were cognizant of the racial composition of districts. But she said that was not enough to show that race was the predominant factor in creating the maps.
Read more: https://www.nytimes.com/2026/01/14/us/politics/federal-court-california-redistricting-decision.html?unlocked_article_code=1.ElA.eQ5i.m-GanzUMMci_&smid=url-share