Newsom event as he reveals gerrymander gambit, while deep-pocketed foes take aim at plan

[lostincalifornia]

This is far from a sure thing, and according to the article the opponents, mostly extremely wealthy republican mega donors will most take this to the courts. Time is running short to get this on the ballot.

"Gov. Gavin Newsom on Thursday officially revealed his controversial gerrymandering plan to grab five or six U.S. House of Representatives seats now held by California Republicans and deliver them to Democrats in a bid to counter a similar move by Republicans in Texas that President Donald Trump pushed.

..............

“These maps will completely neuter or neutralize what is happening in Texas,” Newsom said. Although similar bids to Texas’ gerrymandering are underway in other Republican dominated states, he said his initiative would only go ahead if Texas or another state carried out such plans.

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Former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, who led the creation of California’s independent redistricting commission, has expressed opposition to Newsom’s plan.

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Newsom’s plan appears headed into a costly battle. Schwarzenegger and prominent Republican donor Charles Munger, Jr., both billionaires, are credited with the initiatives that took the mapping of district boundaries away from state legislators in 2008 for the California Legislature and in 2010 for the U.S. Congress.

.......

California voters like having an independent commission draw electoral boundaries for the House, a recent poll by UC Berkeley and Politico found. Almost two-thirds of respondents said they wanted to keep the panel, which is made up of five Republicans, five Democrats, and four people unaffiliated with either party.

Newsom’s office on Thursday dismissed the survey’s significance, saying the commission would stay in place.

Results of a second poll, released last week by Emerson College, showed just a third of voters supported the gerrymandering proposal.

https://www.mercurynews.com/2025/08/14/armed-border-patrol-newsom-gerrymander-deep-pocketed-foes-take-aim/

Turnout will be critical, and once it becomes obvious that this is actually going to happen, I would hope to see those poll numbers change in our favor. The stakes couldn't be higher.

[bucolic_frolic]

1. Poll numbers like that reveal great political risk

Newsom could stumble out of the starting gate if this initiative fails

[comradebillyboy]

2. Go Gavin, kick some Republican ass!

[lostincalifornia]

3. Newsom has done his job, it will be up to the voters to get off their butts and vote for this initiative. The biggest

problem I see is the mega republican donors throwing money against this, and not only with constant political advertising, but also taking it to the courts to try and stop it or slow it down.

[comradebillyboy]

4. Of course there will be opposition, but Dems need to

try. Newsom is a fighter. I'm OK with that. Unilateral disarmament is the worst possible strategy.