California Republicans sue over new US House map approved by voters
[November 06, 2025]
By TRÂN NGUYỄN
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — California Republicans filed a federal lawsuit
Wednesday to block a new U.S. House map that California voters
decisively approved at the ballot.
Proposition 50, backed by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom, is designed to
help Democrats flip as many as five congressional House seats in the
midterm elections next year. The lawsuit claims the map-makers
improperly used race as a factor to favor Hispanic voters “without cause
or evidence to justify it,” and asks the court to block the new
boundaries ahead of the 2026 elections. The complaint, filed in the U.S.
District Court for the Central District of California, is funded by the
National Republican Congressional Committee.
The Supreme Court has ruled that "states may not, without a compelling
reason backed by evidence that was in fact considered, separate citizens
into different voting districts on the basis of race,” the lawsuit says.
There have been two analyses showing there were no voting rights
problems that warranted the redrawing of the map, it adds.
The complaint was filed by The Dhillon Law Group, the California-based
firm started by Harmeet Dhillon, who is now an assistant attorney
general for civil rights at the U.S. Department of Justice.
The lawsuit also alleges that state lawmakers and a mapmaking consultant
admitted in public statements that they intentionally redrew some
districts to have a Latino majority. In one of the press releases from
state Democrats, lawmakers said that the new map “retains and expands
Voting Rights Act districts that empower Latino voters” while making no
changes to Black majority districts in the Oakland and Los Angeles
areas, the lawsuit says.
“The map is designed to favor one race of California voters over
others,” Mike Columbo, whose plaintiffs include a state Republican
lawmaker and 18 other voters, said at a news conference Wednesday. “This
violates the 14th Amendment's guarantee of equal protection under the
law, and the right under the 15th Amendment.”
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Dhillon Law Group partner Mike Columbo, second from left, speaks to
reporters during a press conference announcing a federal lawsuit
challenging Proposition 50, Wednesday, Nov. 5, 2025, in Sacramento,
Calif. (AP Photo/Godofredo A. Vásquez)
The mapmaking consultant Paul Mitchell declined to comment, citing
ongoing litigation.
Newsom's office said on a social media post that the state hasn't
reviewed the lawsuit but is confident the challenge will fail.
“Good luck, losers,” the post reads.
Democrats said the measure is their best chance to blunt Texas
Republicans’ move to redraw their own maps to pick up five GOP seats
at Trump’s urging.
It’s unclear whether a three-judge panel convened to hear such cases
would grant a temporary restraining order before Dec. 19, the date
when candidates can start collecting voter signatures to qualify for
the ballot. It's essentially the first step in officially running in
the 2026 midterm elections. Columbo said he's hoping to get a
decision in the upcoming weeks and predicted the case to reach the
Supreme Court.
Republicans have filed multiple lawsuits in California to block
Democrats' plan with little success so far.
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