Republican state legislators in California filed a lawsuit on Tuesday seeking to block Governor Gavin Newsom’s redistricting plan, aimed at countering Texas’s recently proposed congressional map.
The petition alleges that the legislative process being used violates state law, which requires a minimum 30-day period between the introduction of a bill and a vote on it.
“Instead of a months-long transparent and participatory process overseen by an independent citizens redistricting commission for such a sensitive matter, the public would be presented instead with an up or down vote on maps unilaterally prepared in secret by the Legislature,” the filing reads.
The suit was filed on behalf of senators Tony Strickland and Suzette Martinez Valladares, and assembly members Tri Ta and Kathryn Sanchez.
CALIFORNIA LAUNCHES REDISTRICTING EFFORT
Governor Newsom announced the state’s redistricting plan last week, using social media posts that mocked President Donald Trump’s flamboyant style.
The plan seeks to use California voters’ influence to push back against Texas’s new congressional map, which could give Republicans an advantage of five seats in the 2026 elections.
Speaking on Monday, Newsom defended the plan as a necessary response to Republican-led efforts elsewhere. “We are not going to sit idle while they command Texas and other states to rig the next election to keep power,” he said.
He added that the proposal gives Californians “a choice to fight back.”
To have the plan ready for a special election in November, the state assembly needs to pass it this year. Following a common end-of-session practice, lawmakers replaced the text of an existing bill with legislation that would bypass the state’s independent redistricting commission, sending new maps straight to voters.
LEGAL BATTLE OVER FAST-TRACK MAPS
On Tuesday, Newsom’s office dismissed the legal challenge. “Republicans are filing a deeply unserious (and truly laughable) lawsuit to stop Americans from voting?” said Brandon Richards, a governor’s spokesperson. “We’re neither surprised, nor worried.”
The suit was filed by the Mandeep Dhillon law firm, previously owned by Harmeet Dhillon, now assistant attorney general overseeing the Department of Justice civil rights division.
The lawsuit does not challenge the “gut and amend” legislative tactic itself but seeks to enforce what it calls “an external constitutional constraint against the Legislature to protect the people’s rights.”
Internal polling cited by local television station KCRA suggested that 52% of voters supported the measure, while 41% opposed it and 7% remained undecided.
House Republicans hold a slim three-seat majority in the US House and President Trump has pushed for redrawing district lines ahead of next year’s midterms, when his party typically loses ground.
Alongside California and Texas, Republican-controlled states like Ohio, Missouri, Florida, and possibly Indiana are also moving forward with redistricting plans.
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With inputs from agencies
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