Overview
- The justices denied an emergency bid by California Republicans to block the Proposition 50 map approved by voters in November 2025, issuing a brief order with no noted dissents.
- Analysts say the map could net Democrats up to five additional seats, reshaping the state’s 52-seat delegation and boosting their chances to reclaim the House.
- A three-judge federal panel previously refused to halt the plan in a 2–1 ruling, finding evidence of racial motivation “exceptionally weak” and concluding the effort was a partisan gerrymander.
- The Trump administration joined GOP plaintiffs alleging an unconstitutional racial gerrymander, while California countered that Latino-majority districts did not increase under the new lines.
- The court similarly allowed Texas to use a Republican-friendly map in December; candidate filing in California begins Feb. 9 as other states pursue or stall mid-decade redraws, including a Maryland plan facing resistance in the state Senate.