Overview

• On August 5, Gov. Gavin Newsom confirmed plans to seek a two-thirds vote in the California Legislature to place his mid-decade redistricting proposal before voters this November.
• The proposed referendum would temporarily shift authority from the independent commission back to lawmakers for the next three midterm elections before returning mapmaking power to the commission.
• Arnold Schwarzenegger announced a campaign against the measure and is mobilizing the League of Women Voters and California Common Cause to defend the 2008 voter-approved commission.
• GOP gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton pledged to sue Gov. Newsom and Attorney General Rob Bonta if lawmakers advance the special-election plan.
• Newsom frames the remap as a response to Republican redistricting in Texas and aims to reshape five GOP-held districts ahead of the 2026 midterms.