Good morning, it’s Friday, August 15, 2025. In today’s edition, California unveils redistricting plans; tech giants sue over Colorado social media law; Minnesota Gov. Walz wavers on re-election plans:
Top Stories
REDISTRICTING: California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) will call a Nov. 4 special election to ask voters to approve new congressional district maps, the first major blue state response to President Trump’s efforts to get red states to conduct mid-decade redistricting. Legislators return to Sacramento on Monday, and they plan to vote on what they’ve dubbed the Election Rigging Response Act. (Pluribus News)
Asking voters to proactively vote for gerrymandering will be a hard sell for Newsom, who’s wagering a significant amount of political capital.
MORE: The California plan targets U.S. Reps. Doug LaMalfa (R), Kevin Kiley (R), Ken Calvert (R), Darrell Issa (R) and David Valadao (R), according to a briefing document shown to state legislators. The new map also adds more Democratic voters to competitive districts held by Reps. Josh Harder (D), Adam Gray (D), George Whitesides (D), Derek Tran (D) and David Min (D). (Politico)
EVEN MORE: Texas House Democrats signaled they will return to the state for a second special session as Republicans aim to advance their own redistricting plan. Democrats said they would return on condition that the first special session ends today, and that California releases its own redistricting plan, both of which will happen. (Associated Press)
The Missouri Senate spent $46,000 on six redistricting software licenses and training for up to ten staff members, a sign they plan to pursue redistricting as well. (Associated Press)
SOCIAL MEDIA: A coalition of tech companies has sued Colorado in federal court over a law that requires social media companies to display warning labels to young users over the impacts of use on brain development and physical and mental health. The companies allege the law requires them to speak in an unconstitutional manner. (Denver Post)
PUBLIC HEALTH: Louisiana has sued the online gaming platform Roblox for creating an unsafe environment for children. The suit alleges the company has failed to implement effective safety measures to protect children from adult predators. (Associated Press)
GAMING: Attorneys general from 50 states and territories have asked the U.S. Justice Department to crack down on offshore online gaming platforms. The bipartisan letter to Attorney General Pam Bondi estimated those illegal sites result in billions of lost tax revenue for state government. (State Affairs)
In Politics & Business
OREGON: House Minority Leader Christine Drazan (R) paid polling firm Public Opinion Strategies $55,000 to conduct a survey recently, a new sign that she’s considering another challenge to Gov. Tina Kotek (D). Kotek beat Drazan by just a three-point margin in 2022. (Willamette Week)
MINNESOTA: Gov. Tim Walz (D) is wavering in his decision to run for a third term, setting off a scramble among state Democrats who want his job. Walz pushed his decision on whether to run back from the summer to after Labor Day, a delay Democrats take as indecision. (Minneapolis Star Tribune)
ILLINOIS: Ted Dabrowski (R), president of the conservative research group Wirepoints, says he will launch a campaign for governor in the coming weeks. Dabrowski will face DuPage County Sheriff James Mendrick (R) in the GOP primary. (Capitol News Illinois)
OHIO: The League of Women Voters and other civil rights groups are planning for a potential ballot measure to redraw state congressional district maps if Republicans approve a new map of which they disapprove. State law requires redistricting ahead of next year’s midterms after a Republican-approved plan failed to earn bipartisan support. (State Affairs)
PEOPLE: Former Delaware Gov. Mike Castle (R) has died at 86. Castle served two terms as governor and nine terms in the House of Representatives. State and federal lawmakers remembered Castle for his commitment to “the Delaware way” of working across the aisle. (Delaware Public Media)
By The Numbers
8%: The share of voters who cast ballots in a Rhode Island special election to replace the late Senate President Dominick Ruggerio (D). Democrat Stefano Famiglietti won the seat with 83% of the vote. (Rhode Island Current)
1 in 2,326: The share of housing units in Nevada that received a foreclosure notice in July, the highest rate in the nation. Florida, Maryland, South Carolina and Illinois ranked second through fifth-highest in foreclosure notices. (Nevada Current)
$572 million: The size of Virginia’s budget surplus, along with a $4.7 billion rainy day fund, according to Gov. Glenn Youngkin (R). In a budget address, Youngkin said the state’s economic output grew 1% higher than initially forecast. (Associated Press)
Off The Wall
The Utah Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games Coordinating Committee held its first meeting ahead of the 2034 Winter Games, which are 3,102 days away. The CEO of the non-profit organizing committee estimated the state will get up to 100,000 applications to be volunteers at the games. (Deseret News)
New Mexicans will soon be able to play tennis and pickle ball at the governor’s mansion, after a $280,000 renovation project was completed last week. Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham (D) held a grand opening for the courts last weekend, after she raised private money to refurbish the dilapidated courts. (Santa Fe New Mexican)
Quote of the Day
“We are not bystanders in this world. We can shape the future.”
— California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D), announcing plans to redraw state congressional district maps. (Associated Press)