The California GOP’s legal team estimates that they have roughly 18 different areas for potential lawsuits challenging Newsom’s move.
California Governor Gavin Newsom is plotting to overturn the Golden State’s independent redistricting commission as part of his plan to “neutralize” Texas Republicans’ mid-decade gerrymander. The California GOP has a strategy to fight back.
Unlike in Texas, where the state legislature has the power to draw congressional maps, California has an independent redistricting commission. In recent weeks, Newsom has put pressure on the Democratic-controlled state legislature to hold a special election this fall on a constitutional amendment that would temporarily strip power away from the California Citizens Redistricting Commission so that the legislature can approve a temporary map that’s even more favorable to congressional Democrats for the 2026, 2028, and 2030 cycles. Following the 2030 census, the state legislature would return map-drawing power to the independent commission, which California voters approved in 2010.
With just a few months until the soon-to-be scheduled November 4 special election, Republicans are in crunch mode. On a private Zoom call with hundreds of California Republican delegates Monday evening, the state Republican Party’s leaders detailed their plans to fight that constitutional amendment through social media, grassroots organizing, and the courts, National Review has exclusively learned.
“We’re actively monitoring every step of the way, honing our arguments, and preparing for multiple stages of litigation,” Mike Columbo, an attorney with Dhillon Law Group, said. “I wouldn’t be surprised if in the coming days, you would see at least one, if not two or three or more, pieces of litigation that we’ll be filing,” he added.
On Tuesday, the legal team announced in a news conference with GOP state legislators that they filed an emergency petition for writ of mandate with the state supreme court. In doing so, Republicans are hoping to block Democrats’ plan to move forward with their redistricting effort later this week by challenging the party’s efforts to circumvent the state constitution’s 30-day review period for new legislation.
“Instead of a monthslong transparent and participatory process overseen by an independent citizens redistricting commission for such a sensitive matter, the public would be presented instead with an up-or-down vote on maps unilaterally prepared in secret by the Legislature,” the lawsuit reads.
California Republicans’ latest emergency petition marks the start of what political observers expect will be a litigious fall in the state’s electoral politics. In Monday evening’s Zoom call, the California GOP’s legal team estimated that they have looked at roughly 18 different areas for potential lawsuits, and that the state legislature’s moves will determine which lawsuits end up getting filed. And the party’s lawyers signaled that Republicans in Washington, D.C., are keeping a close eye on their legal efforts.
“We are not alone here. There is a very vested interest from D.C. to help give the support that we need on handling this,” added Mark Meuser, another attorney for the Dhillon Law Group. “We anticipate that there’s probably three lawsuits that will be filed in the next ten days.”
And the California GOP’s litigation will continue if the constitutional amendment passes, Meuser continued: “There are some other legal issues that can be raised after the vote that we think have the ability to maybe stop and overturn this. So, rest assured, legal is being handled right now.”
Meantime, the party’s leaders are urging Republican delegates and grassroots organizers to engage in the fight against what some are calling Newsom’s “Gavinmander” through social media and grassroots organizing efforts.
On the Monday evening call, California GOP spokesman Matt Shupe showed a PowerPoint presentation that included a long list of talking points for Republicans looking to persuade Californians to oppose Newsom’s constitutional amendment this fall, including: “The independent commission was created to stop this exact situation, politicians rigging maps for power”; “Newsom calls this temporary, but politicians never surrender power once they’ve stolen it”; and “Every dollar wasted on this political stunt is stolen from schools, roads, and public safety.”
He insisted that public opinion is on Republicans’ side in California, where a recent poll conducted by Politico and the Citrin Center-Possibility Lab showed that two-thirds of the state’s voters prefer preserving the independent redistricting commission over returning gerrymandering power to state legislators.
Republicans estimate that this special election will cost more than $200 million in taxpayer funds that should, in their view, be allocated toward more important issues such as public safety, homelessness, K–12 education, and wildfire recovery and prevention efforts. “No price tag for democracy,” Newsom told reporters last week. California officials estimate that Republicans’ failed effort to recall Newsom in 2021 cost taxpayers more than $200 million.
“We cannot be on the defense. We can’t be explaining away. We can’t be trying to talk about Texas or other states or President Trump or anything about that,” Shupe said. “We are on the offense.” Instead, he urged Republican delegates to remind their friends and neighbors that 2028 presidential aspirant “Gavin Newsom and California Democrats” are “rigging the election.”
The party’s grassroots organizing team said that the GOP plans to roll out a website later this week that will post regular updates and talking points for Republicans on redistricting. And they characterized the constitutional amendment in existential terms.
“We’ve got a battle ahead of us. Actually, probably the biggest war we’ve had in years,” Republican political operative Scott Winn said on the Monday-night call. “This effort is fundamental in ensuring that we have congressional districts that Republicans can run in in the future.”
The challenge is convincing California Republicans to turn out in high numbers in an off-year special election to defeat what’s expected to be a very well-funded Democratic constitutional-amendment campaign.
Beyond the costs associated with the mechanics of the special election, California’s Republican National Committeeman Shawn Steel estimated on Monday’s call that there could be hundreds of millions of dollars spent on advertising in the state this fall.
“Newsom has promised going to get at least $100 million with his face on every single commercial because he’s running for president,” Steel said. “He’s running for president, and to make himself the great challenge to Washington, D.C., We’re not falling for that.”