GOP congressman urges 'no' vote on California measure to redraw US House maps

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CHICO, Calif. (AP) — California Rep. Doug LaMalfa made a last-ditch plea Wednesday for Republicans to vote ‘no’ on a ballot measure aimed at pushing him out of office.

“It's really a blatant power grab,” he said at a news conference in Chico, a city at the southern end of his district that covers a vast, rural swath of Northern California.

Voting ends Tuesday on Proposition 50, which would create partisan U.S. House maps outside of normal once-a-decade redistricting handled by an independent commission. It’s an effort by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom to counter a Trump-backed plan in Texas to gain five more Republican seats. The new California map aims to dilute Republican voting power by redrawing districts that help Democrats win five more seats.

Newsom says it’s a necessary step to defend democracy, but California Republicans call it a power grab that will disenfranchise voters. Republicans currently hold nine of the state’s 52 congressional seats.

If the measure passes, the new maps would be in place for the 2026, 2028 and 2030 midterm elections.

After the 2030 Census, the measure promises to give map-drawing power back to the independent commission that typically handles redistricting. But LaMalfa warned it's just the first step toward a permanent, partisan process.

“If Sacramento is emboldened by this passing, what will stop them?” he said, noting Democrats hold supermajorities in both chambers in the Legislature.

LaMalfa appeared alongside local elected officials and farmers in his district, which is known for farms that grow rice, olive and other tree nuts, as well as ranching. The new map would split his district, which includes counties that went strongly for President Donald Trump in the last three presidential elections. Parts of his district would the merge with more liberal districts near the coast.

LaMalfa’s new district would have many more Democratic voters, making his reelection bid increasingly challenging. But he said Wednesday he plans to seek reelection no matter what. He was first elected to Congress in 2013.

LaMalfa, as well as a handful of other Republican congressmen who could see their districts dramatically reshaped, have mostly stayed away from the campaign spotlight. Voters in Redding, another city in LaMalfa's district, said they have heard little from him leading up to the election.

The fight for U.S. House control in California has become lopsided in recent weeks as opponents ran low on campaign ads and options. TV advertisements opposing the measure — a key investment in the sprawling state — have largely dried up. Newsom told Prop 50 supporters this week they can stop donating to the campaign.

Registered Democrats in California, who outnumber Republicans by nearly 2-to-1, are also returning nearly twice as many ballots. Even if the conservative strongholds in the Northern part of the state come out strong against the measure, it's unlikely they'll be able to compete with millions of Democratic voters in Los Angeles and the Bay Area.

“The optimist in me wants to believe we could defeat it,” said Geri Byrne, a Modoc county supervisor and chair of the Rural County Representatives of California, who appeared with LaMalfa.

A Public Policy Institute of California statewide poll, released Wednesday, found that 56% of likely voters would support the proposition if the election was held today. The poll from the nonpartisan institute said 43% were opposed.

LaMalfa said there’s still a fighting chance for Republican voters, and his campaign will continue reaching voters through text messages and social media campaigns. All Californians are mailed a ballot, and he urged people to turn their ballots in now. That's despite Trump urging people not to vote early or by mail in a recent post on his social media site Truth Social.

“No mail-in or ‘Early’ Voting, Yes to Voter ID! Watch how totally dishonest the California Prop Vote is!” he posted Sunday.

LaMalfa said voters should get their ballot in whenever they can.

“Why would you want to wait till then? I don't know why," LaMalfa said in an interview. "But that's part of our messaging: ‘Just get it in.’”