Assembly Republican leader James Gallagher speaks in opposition to Democrats' plan to advance a partisan effort to redraw California congressional map at a press conference on Monday, Aug. 18, 2025, in Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Tran Nguyen)
In Austin, Texas, the GOP-dominated state House of Representatives on Wednesday resumed meeting amid a second straight special session called by conservative Republican Gov. Greg Abbott.
As they return to work, they're expected to pass a GOP-crafted redistricting map that would create up to five Republican-leaning congressional districts at the expense of currently Democrat-controlled seats in the red state.
REDISTRICTING BATTLE: FLEEING TEXAS DEMOCRATS RETURN HOME
"Please pass this Map, ASAP. THANK YOU TEXAS," President Donald Trump wrote in a social media post on Monday.
The Republican push in Texas, which comes at Trump's urging, is part of a broader effort by the GOP across the country to pad their razor-thin House majority to keep control of the chamber in the 2026 midterms, when the party in power traditionally faces political headwinds and loses seats.
Supporters of the returning Texas Democrats chant as members enter the house at the Texas Capitol in Austin, Texas, Monday, Aug. 18, 2025. (AP Photo/Stephen Spillman)
While the Republican push in Texas to upend the current congressional maps doesn't face constitutional constraints, the path for Newsom and Democrats in California is much more complicated.
The governor is moving to hold a special election this year, to obtain voter approval to undo the constitutional amendments that created the non-partisan redistricting commission.
A two-thirds majority vote in the Democrat-dominated California legislature would be needed to hold the referendum, and Democrats in Sacramento on Monday unveiled a bill to move forward with the referendum.
But the emergency petition filed on Tuesday by the state Republican lawmakers argues that the California Constitution prevents the legislature from acting on redistricting bills until next month, because a 30-day review period is needed for new legislation.
The lawsuit was filed as the California Assembly Elections Committee held a hearing Tuesday on the push for the referendum. GOP lawmakers on the committee and Republicans who submitted comments to the panel heavily criticized the Democrats' redistricting effort.
The California Republican Party on Tuesday called the move by the Democrats an "unconstitutional redistricting power grab" and argued that "Republicans, Democrats, and Independents know what Gavin Newsom and the Democrats are doing is wrong."
Hollywood movie star and former Republican Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger of California opposes the push to temporarily replace the Golden State's non-partisan redistricting commission. (Tristar Media/WireImage)
"I’m getting ready for the gerrymandering battle," Schwarzenegger wrote in a social media post Friday, which included a photo of the former professional bodybuilding champion lifting weights.
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Schwarzenegger, who rose to worldwide fame as the star of the film "The Terminator" four decades ago, wore a T-shirt in the photo that said "terminate gerrymandering."
Schwarzenegger, during his tenure as governor, had a starring role in the passage of constitutional amendments in California in 2008 and 2010 that took the power to draw state legislative and congressional districts away from politicians and placed them in the hands of an independent commission.
Paul Steinhauser is a politics reporter based in the swing state of New Hampshire. He covers the campaign trail from coast to coast."
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/california-republicans-file-lawsuit-stop-newsom-democrats-from-pushing-redistricting-plan