California Gov. Gavin Newsom speaks during a quality league with Texas lawmakers astatine the Governor’s Mansion connected July 25, 2025 successful Sacramento, California.
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California Gov. Gavin Newsom warned President Donald Trump connected Monday that helium volition propulsion to redraw his state's legislature territory maps if Trump does not telephone connected Texas and different Republican-led states to extremity efforts to redraw their ain districts.
"You are playing with fire, risking the destabilization of our democracy, portion knowing that California tin neutralize immoderate gains you anticipation to make," the Democrat Newsom wrote successful a letter to Trump.
Newsom said that the GOP-led states are seeking to redesign their legislature maps to "rig the upcoming midterm elections" to payment Republican candidates.
If the Republican bulk successful the Texas legislature is palmy successful redrawing territory maps, it is expected to springiness their enactment an further 5 seats successful the House of Representatives.
Democrats presently request to flip 3 House seats to triumph backmost power of that legislature enclosure successful the 2026 midterms.
Trump, successful an interrogation past week with CNBC, said that his chap Republicans are "entitled to 5 much seats" successful the House. Trump accused California and Illinois, which person Democratic-controlled House caucuses, of gerrymandering their legislature districts to support that edge.
Newsom, successful his missive to Trump, wrote, "This effort to rig legislature maps to clasp onto powerfulness earlier a azygous ballot is formed successful the 2026 predetermination is an affront to American democracy."
"This is not what the Founders envisioned, and California cannot basal idly by arsenic this powerfulness drawback unfolds," Newsom wrote.
"If you volition not basal down, I volition beryllium forced to pb an effort to redraw the maps successful California to offset the rigging of maps successful reddish states," Newsom wrote.
The politician added that if the different states "call disconnected their redistricting efforts, we volition happily bash the same."
Newsom's informing is among the starkest examples of Democrats vowing to counter the effort successful Texas to redraw legislature maps.
That effort has reached a fever transportation successful caller days arsenic Democratic authorities lawmakers person fled Texas to contradict Republicans a quorum needed to beforehand authorities successful the authorities House.
A fig of Democratic lawmakers connected Sunday suggested that the enactment has to "fight back" against the redistricting effort.
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Texas Gov. Greg Abbott on Sunday reiterated his informing that the Democratic lawmakers volition beryllium arrested upon their return.
"If they privation to evade that arrest, they're going to enactment extracurricular of the authorities of Texas for virtually years," helium said on Fox News.
The propulsion to redraw legislature maps up of the 2026 elections has besides dispersed to different states, including Indiana.
The White House did not instantly respond to CNBC's petition for remark connected Newsom's letter.
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