Some of the Texas Democratic elected officials who’ve left their state in hopes of thwarting Trump’s redistricting plans are now in California, talking strategy with Gavin Newsom and Nancy Pelosi.
You may have heard about the saga where Texas statehouse Republicans are trying to gerrymander the state’s congressional districts to give Republicans five extra seats in Congress. Redistricting normally happens right after the US Census, but this year they’re trying to pull this in the middle of 2025. The goal, of course, is to try and preserve the Republican majority in the US House of Representatives, which they might lose next year in the midterm elections, because continuing inflation, tariffs, and Epstein have Trump’s approval ratings in the toilet.
Hoping to prevent this gerrymandering, many state-level Texas Democrats have fled the state in a (so-far successful) attempt to prevent the statehouse from being able to meet quorum and hold a vote on the gerrymandering. They’ve apparently run off to several different states, but KTVU reports that several of them are in Sacramento today, meeting with none other than Governor Gavin Newsom and Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi to discuss strategy.
Newsom has taken a particularly active role in the fight. He’s proposing we redistrict California to add more Democrat seats, which could offset the seats that Republicans gain. California redistricting is usually handled by an independent committee, Newsom’s gambit would eliminate that committee and put the whole process in the hands of the statehouse, which is exactly what Texas is doing.
But doing that would require voter approval, via a special election this coming November. For what it’s worth, illegitimate son-fathering former California governor Arnold Schwarzenegger said he would campaign against Newsom’s measure.
It’s still a mystery what Pelosi, Newsom, and Texas Democrats discussed. They were scheduled to have a 2 pm PT press, which started late, but The Hill is covering it with live video.
This is a developing story and may be updated.
Related: Gavin Newsom Sues Fox News For Saying He Lied About Phone Call With Trump [SFist]
Image: Tobias Haase via Wikimedia Commons
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