California voters pass congressional redistricting proposition, in victory for Newsom, Democrats
'Fox News @ Night' panelists discuss California voters passing the congressional redistricting proposition.
California voters gave the green light to Proposition 50, which allows the state to redraw its congressional map to counteract a redistricting plan in the state of Texas. It will be in effect for the next three congressional election cycles and is expected to add Democratic seats to California’s 52-seat delegation, only nine of which are currently held by Republicans.
It is a big win for California’s Democratic governor, Gavin Newsom, and for the state’s Democratic Party.
Not all the news is good, though, when it comes to specific issues facing the state or even whether Californians want to see their governor run for president.
According to preliminary results from the Fox News Voter Poll, on the redistricting question itself, Golden State voters who backed redrawing the maps overwhelmingly said they did so to counteract changes made by Republicans in other states, rather than because they think it is the best way to draw congressional districts.
Most voters said their reason to vote yes on Prop. 50 was to counter GOP map changes taking place across the country. (Fox News)
In contrast, the much smaller number who voted "No" said they did so because they do not think it is the best way to draw congressional districts, as opposed to being motivated to stop Democrats from gaining more seats in Congress.
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Over half of California voters said that Prop. 50 is not the best way to draw district lines. (Fox News)
Meanwhile, the vast majority of voters generally think a nonpartisan commission should draw the districts, as opposed to the party in power – which is ironic in that such a commission is exactly what is being preempted by today’s vote.
Voters overwhelmingly agreed that congressional district lines should be drawn by a nonpartisan commission. (Fox News)
When asked how they generally feel about states redrawing their congressional districts in response to how other states have drawn theirs, most California voters oppose the idea – again, unusual seeing as that is exactly what they voted for with Proposition 50.
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Over half of voters said they oppose redrawing congressional district lines in response to other states that are redrawing their congressional maps. (Fox News)
More than half of Golden Staters approve of the job Newsom is doing as governor.
California voters were split on how they viewed Democrat Governor Gavin Newsom's job performance. (Fox News)
Yet as to whether Newsom should run for president in 2028, more than half said it’s not a good idea.
Voters were split on if they wanted to see Governor Gavin Newsom run for president, despite roughly half approving of his job performance as governor. (Fox News)
Even so, he outperforms former Vice President Kamala Harris on this measure, as these California special election voters would prefer she sticks to the sidelines – by more than two to one.
Just over a quarter of voters said they would like to see former Vice President Kamala Harris run for president again. (Fox News)
Was President Donald Trump a factor in Prop 50’s success? The president remains deeply unpopular in the state, with close to two-thirds disapproving of the job he is doing.
Just over half of California voters say they disapprove of President Trump's job performance. (Fox News)
Half of those casting a ballot said they did so specifically to show their opposition to him.
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Roughly half of California voters said that opposition to President Donald Trump was the reason they voted on Prop 50. (Fox News)
Meanwhile, California voters reject Trump's immigration enforcement policies, with more than six in 10 saying they've gone too far.
The Fox News Voter Poll measured California's opinion of the Trump administration's immigration enforcement. (Fox News)
A similar number opposes sending the National Guard into U.S. cities.
Just over half of voters said they oppose the federal government's move to send National Guard troops to major cities in California. (Fox News)
And these voters who oppose Trump and his policies also overwhelmingly supported Prop 50 – in some instances by more than nine to one. It might be pointed out, however, that Trump lost California by more than 20 points in 2024, and his disapproval ratings could be exaggerated among voters in this special electorate.
Despite all their negative feelings toward Trump, all is not candy and rainbows for how Californians see things at home.
The economy was by far their top issue, yet the view of the Golden State economy is not so golden, as more than six in 10 said the state economy is in "not good" or poor shape.
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Over half of voters said they hold a negative view of California's economy. (Fox News)
The vast majority – close to nine in 10 – also say their family financial situation is either holding steady or falling behind. Only about one in 10 feel they are getting ahead.
Just over half of voters said that their family is holding steady financially. (Fox News)
Plus, more than eight in 10 lamented California’s cost of living as unaffordable.
Most voters polled said that the cost of living in their area is unaffordable. (Fox News)
Another eight in 10 said crime is a problem.
Voters overwhelmingly said that crime in their area is a problem. (Fox News)
However, worried Californians are, they are equally perturbed by the state of the nation.
More than seven in 10 said they are unhappy about how things are going in the U.S., with close to half angry about the direction the country is heading.
Almost half of California voters said they were angry about how things are going in the U.S. today. (Fox News)
More than nine in 10 said they are concerned about political violence in the U.S.
An overwhelming number of voters are concerned with the levels of political violence seen in the U.S. (Fox News)
These concerns appear to play out in the vote to redraw the congressional map, with more than nine in 10 who said it is important to them which party controls Congress.
An overwhelming number of voters said that it's important which party controls congress. (Fox News)
Black voters, young voters, Hispanics and college graduates were among those most inclined to back Prop 50, while those most likely to oppose it included voters with no college degree, voters ages 65 and over, and independents.
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Methodology
The Fox News Voter Poll is based on a survey conducted by SSRS with California registered voters. This survey was conducted Oct. 22 to Nov. 4, 2025, concluding at the end of voting on Election Day. Once votes are counted, the survey results are also weighted to match the overall results in each state. Results among all more than 4,000 California voters interviewed have an estimated margin of sampling error of plus or minus 2.1 percentage points, including the design effects. The error margin is larger among subgroups.
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