California rarely changes its congressional district maps beyond the usual independent, nonpartisan redistricting process. However, Proposition 50 broke that tradition. After Texas recently redrew its districts to have more Republican seats in Congress, California responded with Prop 50, nicknamed the “Election Rigging Response Act.”
The measure passed on Tuesday, Nov. 4, 2025. Out of around 10.3 million voters, 64.1 percent voted YES and 35.9 percent voted NO. Prop 50 will temporarily change California’s congressional district maps until 2030, raising questions on how it will affect the state and Berkeley’s district, and what redistricting really means.
District maps separate the state into specific areas to elect representatives for Congress. Each district is drawn to roughly have the same number of people to guarantee equal voting power. According to the official voter guide, a YES vote means the state would use new maps drawn by state lawmakers starting in 2026, lasting until new maps are drawn in the 2030 U.S. Census. A NO vote means the current maps drawn by the California Citizens Redistricting Commission would stay in effect until new maps are drawn in the 2030 U.S. Census.
Currently, 43 Democrats fill 52 total seats in California’s House of Representatives. Based on Prop 50’s new map, it’s estimated that Democrats will take five more seats.
Kelly Boylan, a Berkeley High School history teacher, said, “I’ve heard a lot of the things in the news … that this is the ballot measure to redraw the congressional districts in our state with the goal of making them more favorable to Democrats.”
She acknowledged that Prop 50 reflects similar strategies that Republican-led states use. “Democrats are trying to do the same thing on the other side,” Boylan said.
Boylan pointed out most NO voters think Prop 50 undoes the fair districting system, explaining, “California has an Independent Redistricting Committee that makes the districts, in a way, so that they’re not gerrymandered, you know, more favorable to one party or another. And this measure basically undid the work of that committee.”
For Berkeley citizens, Boylan didn’t predict any significant changes. “We already live in a very solidly Democratic district, and it’s going to stay that way. It’ll be a change that impacts people who live in rural parts of the state,” Boylan said.
District 12, where Berkeley is in, was not redrawn and will most likely continue being represented by House Representative Lateefah Simon.
Marco Bloom, a BHS Freshman Seminar teacher, noticed that some students see it as a positive change. “I had a few students bring it up. I think the general sense is that it feels optimistic, like a good thing in the face of some of the president’s policies,” he said.
Delilah Hornby, a BHS freshman, commented, “I feel like it’s kind of sneaky of Texas to change their boundaries. So I think it’s fair that we’re allowed to do the same thing.”
Arya Jawalikar, a BHS senior, learned about Prop 50 in her Politics and Power class. Jawalikar said, similarly to Boylan, “Prop 50 is kind of like California trying to get back at them and being like, ‘well, if you guys want to be gerrymandering, then we can do the same,’ is what I understand.” She added, “But I kind of feel like it’s undemocratic, and I think it would be nice to know what the long term plan is.”
Boylan recommended that students should look at fact-based reporting if they want to learn about propositions. “A great resource for election news in California is this website called CalMatters. They do nonpartisan info sheets about each thing on the ballot,” Boylan said.
Many voters use proposition ads as a source of information to decide what to vote for. Boylan explained that these ads don’t give a clear picture of these issues, and advised to, “Ignore the ads. They are useless in informing yourself, because, just in general, they are often very misleading and have an agenda.”
Bloom noted that many major federal level changes come from the local level, so young people taking an interest in local politics could be good for the country’s future.
Boylan elaborated, sharing her thoughts on thoughtful youth civic participation in the future. “I think it’s really good for students to start learning about and paying attention to propositions so that when they can vote, they’re sort of aware of how it works,” Boylan said.