California Governor Gavin Newsom announced that the state will create new election maps after President Donald Trump missed a key deadline in a heated redistricting fight between Democratic and Republican states.
On social media, Newsom mocked Trump by calling him “Taco” — short for “Trump Always Chickens Out” — and claimed the new maps would help Democrats take back control of the U.S. House of Representatives. His post, written in an exaggerated style meant to imitate Trump’s online messages, promised a “big press conference” later this week with top Democrats.
This comes after several states entered into a political battle over redistricting, the process of redrawing voting districts. Newsom and other Democratic leaders had warned they would create their own maps if Texas continued with its Republican-led redistricting plan.
Texas Democrats tried to block the plan by leaving the state so Republicans couldn’t pass it. While the Texas Senate approved the new map on Tuesday, it won’t become law yet because the House lacked enough members to vote. Texas Governor Greg Abbott has said he will call another special legislative session right after lawmakers finish their current one.
On Monday, Newsom sent a letter to Trump saying he would prefer to leave redistricting to independent commissions instead of partisan lawmakers. He said California would back down if other states stopped their redistricting plans. But if they didn’t, he warned, California would act to protect its political influence.
At a press event with Texas lawmakers and California leaders, Newsom explained his plan: ask voters in November to approve a new map that would create five more Democratic-leaning seats. He said he was confident voters would agree.
Trump has defended the Texas redistricting plan, claiming he deserves five extra congressional seats because he won the state’s popular vote in the 2024 presidential election. However, winning the state’s popular vote does not automatically give a party more congressional seats.
Meanwhile, the White House is encouraging more Republican-led states to join the redistricting fight. Vice President JD Vance recently traveled to Indiana to promote the plan, and Republicans are also targeting Ohio and Missouri.
