SACRAMENTO, California — Texas Democrats appearing alongside California Gov. Gavin Newsom here Friday vowed to press forward with their quorum-breaking effort to counter a Republican-led redistricting in Texas, as the war over redistricting escalates.
“We are running from nothing,” said Texas state Rep. Ann Johnson, one of a group of state Democrats who fled Texas to deny Republicans quorum. “We see the danger that is coming and we are running straight for it.”
The tableau of Johnson and several other Texans at the California governor’s mansion, for the second time in as many weeks, illustrated how quickly the struggle over Texas districts has transformed into a national battle over the Trump agenda, with Newsom leading California’s to retaliate with a redistricting of its own. State legislators in single-party states around the country are being enlisted to either counter Texas, as in California and New York, or to build on it, as in Indiana.
“This is not just about Texas,” Johnson said.
The national redistricting standoff has intensified since Newsom, a likely presidential contender, last hosted dissident Texas lawmakers at the governor’s mansion. Texas Democrats left the state to block the Republican majority from approving new GOP-friendly districts, with many decamping to the safer ground of Illinois. Sen. John Cornyn retaliated by asking the FBI to track down the lawmakers, a request that he said on Thursday the FBI agreed to.
As Texas moves closer to approving new maps and the Trump administration reaches out to other red states, Newsom and top California Democrats in Congress have ramped up their campaign to draw California Republicans out of office.
“If they’re trying to destroy our democracy,” state Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas said at a news conference with Newsom and the Texas Democrats, “you’re going to have to come through California.”
Said Newsom: “We will nullify what happens in Texas.”
Newsom is pushing the Democratic-controlled Legislature to trigger a November special election, laying the groundwork for a campaign by circulating polling, as mapmakers hammer out a blueprint to eliminate a half-dozen of California’s remaining House Republicans. Rep. Zoe Lofgren said on Friday that every California House Democrat supports the plan.
The Legislature will need to vote to put a new map to voters just days after returning from recess on Aug. 18 (Rivas said the map will become publicly available next week). Democratic leaders said they expect they’ll have the votes to place a measure on the ballot, and they projected confidence that California voters will also be on their side.
“I believe the people of the Golden State will do the right thing,” said Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire. “I trust the voters of California more than I would ever trust Trump and his lackeys in Texas.”
