Politics

California Dems use Prop. 50 to bolster their own brands

No one has more at stake than Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks after signing legislation calling for a special election on a redrawn congressional map on Thursday, Aug. 21, 2025, in Sacramento, Calif. (AP Photo/Rich Pedroncelli)

California voters will head to the polls next month in a high-stakes election to decide whether to redraw the state’s congressional district boundaries, in a Democratic-fueled and funded effort to win as many as five extra seats in the U.S. House of Representatives.

While Proposition 50 represents a massive gamble for the Democratic Party as a whole as they seek to wrest control from Republicans in next year’s midterm elections, some in the party are using the measure to distinguish themselves and to bolster their own brands as they eye higher office in the future.

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