Both Sides In Prop 50 Argument Rely On Familiar Messaging In Lead-Up To Election

Here are the morning’s top stories on Monday, October 20, 2025…

• As Democrats in California attempt to convince voters to approve new maps next month to give them more seats in Congress, and Republicans fight back against Proposition 50, the redistricting measure, both sides are relying on familiar political playbooks. 
• Hundreds of thousands of people across California took part in No Kings rallies over the weekend, part of nationwide protests against the Trump administration.  That includes in the conservative stronghold of far Northern California.

In Battle Over Redistricting, Campaigns Use Familiar Messages To Target Undecided Voters

In 2021, Governor Gavin Newsom faced a recall campaign, which was focused largely on his aggressive response to the pandemic. The governor handily defeated the effort.

Now, Newsom and fellow Democrats are asking voters in California, a largely blue state, to throw away the maps created by an independent redistricting commission just a few years ago, and approve districts aimed at giving Democrats five more seats in Congress. Proposition 50 was placed before voters after President Trump urged Texas and other Republican-led states to redraw their maps to give the GOP an advantage in the 2026 midterms.

And just like the recall, the Yes on 50 campaign is making sure to tie their measure to national Republicans, the president and the MAGA movement. “There’s a lot of similarities to the recall,” said Jim DeBoo, a senior strategist for the Yes on 50 campaign. He served as Newsom’s chief of staff during the recall. “The difference is, Democrats in the recall begrudgingly voted no. They were like, why are we doing this? This is a waste of my time. I’m not energized about this at all.” DeBoo said this time around, field polls show a very different feeling among Democrats and independent voters, who are unhappy with the Trump administration, and looking at ways of pushing back.

The Yes side is largely trying to make the campaign a referendum on the president, whose popularity in California generally hovers around 30% in independent polls. But Jessica Millan Patterson, who is chairing the No campaign and previously ran the state Republican Party, said that strategy is tired. “They don’t have a playbook. They have one play and they play that every single time,” she said.

Rob Stutzman is a GOP strategist who is not involved in either campaign. “The Republican motivation on this is Newsom. So as much as you’re getting Democrats to turn out to vote against Trump, the Republican turnout mechanism is Newsom. Newsom isn’t just unpopular with Republicans, he actually triggers them,” he said. So while the ballot measure is focused on redistricting, it may actually feel more like a choice between Governor Newsom and President Trump.

Thousands Protest Trump Administration At No Kings Rallies

Thousands of people took to the streets on Saturday, in cities across California, as part of the nationwide No Kings rallies, protesting policies of the Trump administration.

Many of the biggest marches were in large, Democratic-majority cities, like Los Angeles and San Francisco. But in the northern part of California, which is often a conservative stronghold, there were plenty of community members who came together as well on Saturday.

In downtown Chico, organizers estimate 3,000 people took part in the peaceful protest. Among them was Leanne Jenswolt with the local activist group, Re-Sisters. She said it’s time for Americans to wake up and confront what she sees as a dangerous threat to democracy. “We are seeing America rise up. America was pretty sleepy for several months now, but the energy around this particular protest is the highest I’ve ever seen. And not just here, but globally,” she said. Across the state, the rallies were for the most part, peaceful in nature.