3 weeks ago
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FRESNO, Calif. (KSEE/KGPE) - In conscionable 75 days, California voters volition get to determine if they privation the caller Congressional maps, drawn by Democrats successful an effort to prime up antiauthoritarian Congressional seats, countering the actions by the GOP-controlled Texas legislature.
Voters volition spot this prime connected their ballots connected Nov. 4 as Proposition 50.
Thursday afternoon, with the changeable of Governor Gavin Newsom's pen, the redistricting combat is officially retired of the hands of authorities lawmakers and headed onto the ballots of California's voters.
Democratic Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria represents overmuch of Merced and Madera counties. She said she's typically successful favour of autarkic drawings of districts and is adjacent sponsoring a measure to found a citizen's redistricting committee for Merced County's section elections, Assembly Bill 1441.
"This ballot was astir warring for the aboriginal of California and the aboriginal of our country. And the voters of California volition yet beryllium the deciders of what absorption we privation to spell to," Soria said.
However, she said the stakes present were conscionable excessively high.
"The migrant assemblage being impacted, people's wellness attraction being successful jeopardy," she added.
In the South Valley, Republican Assemblymember Alexandra Macedo represents overmuch of Kings and Tulare counties. She presently serves arsenic the vice seat of the elections committee, after she was removed from her erstwhile legislative committee abruptly earlier this year.
She's present speaking retired astir Thursday's vote.
"I felt decidedly that we were silenced," she said.
She said this determination volition lone disenfranchise Republican and autarkic voters and wants voters to get educated connected the caller maps.
"Two wrongs bash not marque a right, and destroying ideology is not perpetuating it for aboriginal generations. As acold arsenic I'm concerned, the golden modular of districting should beryllium autarkic redistricting commissions, and I privation that each 50 states had the quality and would enforce that upon themselves," she added.
Meanwhile, Thursday's measure signing means predetermination clerks similar Fresno County Registrar of Voters James Kus are hard astatine enactment preparing for the Nov. 4 peculiar election. He said adjacent earlier Newsom signed the bills, helium had ordered materials similar envelopes conscionable successful case.
"We're starting this late, but that doesn't alteration the mode that the Fresno County clerk's registry committee is going to beryllium delivering these services. We are going to present these services arsenic legally required," Kus said.
Still, UC Merced authorities prof Nate Monroe with the Center for Analytic and Political Engagement said if passed, the redistricting could instrumentality the nationalist spotlight distant from immoderate of the Valley's hottest legislature contests.
"There's conscionable a clump of races determination that person been truly hotly contested, ever a tossup, I think, successful the legislature broadside wherever they're going to redraw these lines. It's going to quiescent that a lot," Monroe said.
This is each unfolding conscionable 1 time aft the Texas House passed its measure connected redistricting. It present has to spell earlier their legislature and get signed by their politician for their caller maps, aimed astatine picking up much Republican seats, to spell into effect.
An interactive mentation of the projected Congressional representation tin beryllium viewed here.
