One of the most important Election Day battles would effectively nullify five new Republican-leaning congressional districts created by Texas at President Trump’s request.
What a key victory on election night means for the Democratic Party going forward
Following wins in New York City, New Jersey and Virginia, USA TODAY’s Susan Page breaks down what this means for Democrats going forward.
California voters sent a strong anti-Donald Trump message Tuesday by passing Proposition 50. This is another big win for Democrats in the 2025 off-year election, and will help them amid a nationwide redistricting frenzy that will help determine who controls the House during the final two years of the Republican president’s second term.
Proposition 50 is a constitutional amendment pushed by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom that would allow the nation’s most populous state to temporarily suspend its use of bipartisan commissions to draw congressional district lines. Instead, California will use the lines drawn by Democratic state lawmakers to gain more seats in Congress.
After the 2030 U.S. Census, a bipartisan commission will resume drawing the lines.
California’s bill was one of the most important issues decided during election day, when Democrats also won gubernatorial races in New Jersey and Virginia. This effectively nullifies five new Republican-leaning congressional districts that Texas created earlier this year at the urging of President Trump. These boundaries are being challenged in federal court.
At least a dozen states have changed their borders or are in the process of doing so before the 2026 midterm elections. But all eyes are on what Texas and California will do, with the largest Republican and Democratic delegations, respectively.
Republicans hold a slim majority in the U.S. House of Representatives, and the party that controls the White House has historically performed poorly in midterm elections.
Republican control of the Trump-leaning U.S. House of Representatives could allow the president to continue one of the most aggressive and destructive policies in modern presidential history throughout his term. If Democrats win a majority, it opens the door to years of congressional investigations, legislative paralysis, and even a third impeachment of Trump.
Other states are underway
Republicans signed new maps in Missouri. However, voters may have the opportunity to reject Missouri’s map in a special election. Ohio approved new maps with bipartisan agreement, North Carolina redistricted its districts and is expected to narrowly edge House Democrats, and Indiana lawmakers set a date next month to consider redistricting.
Democratic leaders are also calling on blue states to draw new lines of support for the party. Democratic-controlled legislatures in Illinois, New York and Maryland are considering it.
Republican and Democratic leaders in Washington are still consulting with state lawmakers, and more states could follow suit. But time is starting to run out as the 2026 primary begins in the spring.
Signs of voter support
Mark Baldassare, director of research at the Public Policy Institute of California and a leading expert on California voter opinion, said support for the change was high during weeks of early voting, despite the state’s long-standing pride in bipartisan commissions.
In a statewide survey released Oct. 28 by the Public Policy Institute of California, 56% of likely voters said they would vote in favor of the proposal. The survey also found that regardless of their position on the proposal, nine in 10 voters think the outcome is somewhat important, and two in three say it is very important.
“Not since surveys began measuring ballot proposals more than 20 years ago have we seen such a high level of weight given to ballot proposals,” said PPIC researcher Dejah Thomas.
The survey found that President Trump’s consistently low approval ratings in California remain in place and that Californians identify political extremism and threats to democracy as the most important issues facing the country.
