Proposition 50 rewrites California's congressional map for 2026. Here’s a look at the biggest shifts.
Flyers supporting Prop. 50 at the Kern County Democratic Party booth during the Kern County Fair in Bakersfield on Sept. 26.With our free press under threat and federal funding for public media gone, your support matters more than ever.
Help keep the LAist newsroom strong,, the Democratic-backed ballot measure to temporarily redraw the state’s congressional maps, has scrambled California’s congressional playing field in more ways than you might think. Yes, it’s given Democrats the opportunity to flip up to five Republican-held seats, said Erin Covey, House editor at the Cook Political Report. But it’s also made a handful of blue districts even safer. That, Covey said, puts Democrats in a position to beat Republicans — who set off the mid-decade redistricting fight — at their own game nationally. “In terms of the national redistricting outlook, I think that California is basically putting Democrats in a position where they may be able to fight this to a draw or at least limit Republicans to only picking up maybe three or four seats through redistricting alone,” Covey said. That’s despite the fact that far more GOP-led states have moved to redraw their maps ahead of 2026 than blue states. Texas, the first to redraw its maps at the behest of President Donald Trump, just saw its new districtsEarlier mergers, like Disney's 2019 acquisition of Fox, cut the number of films studios released theatrically — a troubling trend for theater owners already coping with consolidation and streaming.City chooses safer, people-focused redesign for Huntington Drive in El Sereno The project runs on an approximately four-mile stretch of the street between North Mission Road near LAC+USC Medical Center and Alhambra/South Pasadena. “Seats are going to flip as a result of these new maps a lot of these maps cancel each other out. And so we’re in kind of an interesting situation where it may not be quite as good for Republicans as they anticipated going into this,” she said. “Without California, that would not have been possible because of the sheer number of seats that the California map affects. It really was a significant achievement on the part of Democrats and could potentially make the difference in the majority next year.” Here’s a look at the biggest shifts under Proposition 50 — with thanks to Covey and the number crunchers over at the Cook Political Report for many of the data points below.The new North State district is seen as an easy pickup opportunities for Democrats. District 1, currently held by Republican Doug LaMalfa, shifted west and now includes both Chico and Santa Rosa. Under the old map, Trump won the district by 25 points; under the new boundaries, he would have lost by 12. LaMalfa said he will run, but it’s going to be tough: State Senate President Mike McGuire, who has represented Sonoma County in the Legislature for 12 years,District 3, represented by Republican Rep. Kevin Kiley, now includes more of Sacramento County and shifts from a Trump +3 to a district former Vice President Kamala Harris would have won by double digits.Two Democrats have announced their intention to run: Rep. Ami Bera and Nevada County Supervisor Heidi Hall. The big question, Covey said, is what Kiley does. “He could choose to stay in the Third, which of course would be very tough,” she said. “He could move to the Sixth District, which is also a seat that Harris would’ve won by eight points in 2024. … And then the third option for Kiley outside of retiring or running for something else entirely would be to run in the Fifth District, which is Tom McClintock’s seat.”Aside from 2018, when Central Valley GOP Rep. David Valadao fell victim to a blue tidal wave that swept Democrats into control of Congress, the 22nd District has been a thorn in the side of Democrats. Valadao has defied political gravity, winning over working-class Latino voters to hang on to a seat even when party registration favored Democrats. In 2024, he won by seven points to Trump’s six. But with the new Proposition 50 lines, the current 22nd would have favored Trump by less than two points. Health care could be central here: six out of 10 residents are enrolled in Medi-Cal, the state’s Medicaid program.“His biggest vulnerability going into this election is the impact that the Big Beautiful Bill has on health care, in particular Medicaid cuts,” Covey said. “The district has shifted to the right in recent years as a lot of the Hispanics in the Central Valley have become more and more open to voting for Trump.” This Southern California seat has the distinction of being the only California district made more Republican by Proposition 50. Orange County Republican Rep. Young Kim currently holds it. But longtime Inland Empire Republican Rep. Ken Calvert plans to run there, setting up a potential clash between two strong GOP contenders. While Kim is well-liked in her district, the redrawn 40th District actually has more of Calvert’s current turf than Kim’s.“I believe Kim’s portion is about a third and Calvert’s portion is about half the district, so it makes sense that they would both want to run in this seat,” Covey said. “I think this will be a really competitive race.”“She has put up a really strong electoral performance in Orange County for the past couple of years for a Republican and has typically done better than Trump and won over Democratic voters,” Covey said. But Calvert is also a “heavyweight,” she added, who will likely run to Kim’s right — and could perform well among the conservative voters in the district’s eastern swath. “He’s chairman of the Appropriations Committee. He’s been around forever,” Covey said. “He was also someone who I was wondering if he was maybe going to retire. And I guess he feels like he’s in a position where still has a very good shot at winning this district, even against Young Kim.”Speaking of retirements: All eyes are on longtime San Diego-area GOP Rep. Darrell Issa to see whether he stays in the newly drawn 48th District, which now slightly favors Democrats. Issa could jump into the Kim-Calvert race in District 40 or lean on his immense personal wealth to compete in the new District 48, which now includes more of San Diego and liberal Palm Springs.include San Diego City Councilwoman Marni von Wilpert and former Obama administration official Ammar Campa-Najjar, who previously ran unsuccessfully twice for Congress.If you're enjoying this article, you'll love our daily newsletter, The LA Report. Each weekday, catch up on the 5 most pressing stories to start your morning in 3 minutes or less.At LAist, we believe in journalism without censorship and the right of a free press to speak truth to those in power. Our hard-hitting watchdog reporting on local government, climate, and the ongoing housing and homelessness crisis is trustworthy, independent and freely accessible to everyone thanks to the support of readers like you.Congress voted to eliminate funding for public media across the country. Here at LAist that means a loss of $1.7 million in our budget every year. We want to assure you that despite growing threats to free press and free speech, LAist will remain a voice you know and trust. Speaking frankly, the amount of reader support we receive will help determine how strong of a newsroom we are going forward to cover the important news in our community.With more individuals like you supporting this public service, we can continue to provide essential coverage for Southern Californians that you can’t find anywhere else.Explore LA
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