The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday ruled to allow California to temporarily implement a new congressional district map. The map, pushed by California Governor Newsom and approved by voters, could help Democrats gain up to five additional seats in Congress. The ruling remains in effect during the litigation of the map. Previously, the Supreme Court had determined in December last year that a Republican-led congressional map in Texas, which was expected to add up to five seats for Republicans, was constitutional. Therefore, legal experts generally expected the California plan to be approved as well. The court made the decision through a brief order without explanation or public dissent. This ruling comes amid a rare "mid-decade redistricting" battle across the country. Both parties are considering or have already started mid-term redistricting in more than 20 states, trying to gain an advantage before the 2026 midterm elections, with the results possibly affecting the currently closely contested House majority. The California Republicans previously argued that the new map overly relied on ethnic factors in the Central Valley, attempting to increase the influence of Latino voters, violating the constitutional principle of equal protection, and requested to continue using the old map drawn by the independent citizens' redistricting commission in 2021. Under the old map, the Republicans won nine out of 52 seats in 2024, while the new plan was designed to shift the delegation structure toward a 48-4 Democratic advantage.
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Original: toutiao.com/article/1856265897784348/
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