Overview
- A three-judge panel in Los Angeles denied preliminary injunctions sought by the Justice Department and California Republicans, allowing the map to be used in 2026, 2028 and 2030.
- U.S. District Judges Josephine Staton and Wesley Hsu found Prop 50 to be a partisan gerrymander, not a racial one, citing the Supreme Court’s recent decision permitting Texas’ mid-decade map.
- Judge Kenneth Lee dissented, asserting at least one Southern California district was crafted to keep Latino voters from drifting away from Democrats.
- Proposition 50 passed in November with about 64% support and is designed to give Democrats a chance to flip up to five U.S. House seats.
- Plaintiffs leaned on public statements by mapmaker Paul Mitchell about boosting Latino voters, but he did not testify, and an appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court is expected.