SACRAMENTO, California — Barack Obama joined Gavin Newsom to rally supporters of California Democrats’ congressional redistricting ballot measure as the Nov. 4 special election nears.
The former president during a Wednesday call with volunteers painted Proposition 50 — a bid to change California’s congressional lines mid-cycle and pick up five Democratic House seats next year — in stark terms.
“There’s a broader principle at stake that has to do with whether or not our democracy can be manipulated by those who are already in power to entrench themselves further,” he said. “Or whether we’re going to have a system that allows the people to decide who’s going to represent them.”
Newsom, the California governor and a likely 2028 presidential candidate, and fellow Democrats need voters to pause the state’s independent redistricting commission and approve the new lines. Their push came in response to Texas Republicans gerrymandering their congressional map at President Donald Trump’s request, but other states are now also in play.
North Carolina’s Legislature on Wednesday approved changes to the state’s voting boundaries in an attempt to add one more red seat. Trump is pressuring still more Republican-led states to undertake redistricting, although Indiana leaders recently told POLITICO they don’t have the votes to make it happen.
On Wednesday, the former president accused Trump and Republicans of wanting to “tinker around with [congressional districts] to see if they can give themselves an advantage” to insulate themselves from voter backlash.
“It’s brazen,” he said. “They’re not pretending that there’s some other rationale to it. They’re simply doing it because they think they can.”
Obama — who is appearing in Yes on 50 broadcast ads that the campaign is blasting across the state in the final days of the race — said Prop 50 could give Democrats “a chance, at least, to create a level playing field in the upcoming midterm elections.”
After his appearance on the call, Newsom referenced the importance of his California ads and his enduring popularity among Democrats: “We appreciate seeing you up on our screens every hour of every day as our closing messenger.”
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