GOP congressman urges ‘no’ vote on California measure to redraw US House maps

CHICO Calif AP California Rep Doug LaMalfa made a last-ditch plea Wednesday for Republicans to vote no on a ballot measure aimed at pushing him out of office It s really a blatant power grab he explained at a news conference in Chico a city at the southern end of his district that covers a vast rural swath of Northern California Voting ends Tuesday on Proposition which would create partisan U S House maps outside of normal once-a-decade redistricting handled by an independent commission It s an effort by Democratic Gov Gavin Newsom to counter a Trump-backed plan in Texas to gain five more Republican seats The new California map aims to dilute Republican voting power by redrawing districts that help Democrats win five more seats Newsom says it s a necessary step to defend democracy but California Republicans call it a power grab that will disenfranchise voters Republicans currently hold nine of the state s congressional seats If the measure passes the new maps would be in place for the and midterm elections After the Census the measure promises to give map-drawing power back to the independent commission that typically handles redistricting But LaMalfa warned it s just the first step toward a permanent partisan process If Sacramento is emboldened by this passing what will stop them he disclosed noting Democrats hold supermajorities in both chambers in the Legislature LaMalfa appeared alongside local elected representatives and farmers in his district which is known for farms that grow rice olive and other tree nuts as well as ranching The new map would split his district which includes counties that went strongly for President Donald Trump in the last three presidential elections Parts of his district would the merge with more liberal districts near the coast LaMalfa s new district would have various more Democratic voters making his reelection bid increasingly challenging But he disclosed Wednesday he plans to seek reelection no matter what He was first elected to Congress in LaMalfa as well as a handful of other Republican congressmen who could see their districts dramatically reshaped have mostly stayed away from the campaign spotlight Voters in Redding another city in LaMalfa s district mentioned they have heard little from him leading up to the referendum The fight for U S House control in California has become lopsided in contemporary weeks as opponents ran low on campaign ads and options TV advertisements opposing the measure a key resources in the sprawling state have largely dried up Newsom reported Prop supporters this week they can stop donating to the campaign Registered Democrats in California who outnumber Republicans by nearly -to- are also returning nearly twice as a great number of ballots Even if the conservative strongholds in the Northern part of the state come out strong against the measure it s unlikely they ll be able to compete with millions of Democratic voters in Los Angeles and the Bay Area The optimist in me wants to believe we could defeat it explained Geri Byrne a Modoc county supervisor and chair of the Rural County Representatives of California who appeared with LaMalfa A Society Strategy Institute of California statewide poll distributed Wednesday located that of likely voters would promotion the proposition if the balloting was held the present day The poll from the nonpartisan institute noted were opposed LaMalfa declared there s still a fighting chance for Republican voters and his campaign will continue reaching voters through text messages and social media campaigns All Californians are mailed a ballot and he urged people to turn their ballots in now That s despite Trump urging people not to vote early or by mail in a latest post on his social media site Truth Social No mail-in or Early Voting Yes to Voter ID Watch how totally dishonest the California Prop Vote is he posted Sunday LaMalfa disclosed voters should get their ballot in whenever they can Why would you want to wait till then I don t know why LaMalfa explained in an interview But that s part of our messaging Just get it in Source