California Farm Town Caught Up in Prop 50 Redistricting

Here are the morning’s top stories on Friday, March 6, 2026

• Proposition 50 is now in effect in California. The law redrew political boundaries for congressional districts. And one of the communities soon to have new congressional representation in Washington DC is Coalinga. This small, agricultural town on Fresno County’s west side is now going to be part of a district that stretches more than 100 miles to the north. 
• Former state assemblymember Ian Calderon is dropping out of the governor’s race and throwing his support behind Democratic Congressmember Eric Swalwell.

A tiny California farm town will join a House district that touches Silicon Valley

A new law, Proposition 50, is reshaping California’s political boundaries, and one rural town in the Central Valley is feeling the impact. Prop 50, which was overwhelmingly approved by California voters last fall, redrew congressional district lines across the state. The move came as Democratic leaders sought to counter political efforts in Texas to redraw congressional maps in favor of Republicans.

In California’s rural San Joaquin Valley, one of the communities that has landed in a newly configured district is Coalinga. This agricultural town of 17,000 in western Fresno County will now be part of Congressional District 18. The district covers a region that stretches over 100 miles northwest to Gilroy, Salinas, and even San Jose.

The town, which is tucked in the western hills of the Valley, is surrounded by oil fields and farmland. It’s the kind of place where people grow up, leave, and then return. It’s also a place where everybody knows everybody. Robert Pimentel, the chancellor of the West Hills Community College District, has lived that life. He calls Coalinga, “a little jewel out here on the west side.” He says Coalinga used to be powered by prisons, a state hospital, and oil fields. Slowly, that’s been changing – just as political representation has. Before Prop 50, Coalinga belonged to Congressional District 13 and was represented by Democratic Congressman Adam Gray. Now under District 18, the town will be represented by Democratic Congresswoman Zoe Lofgren if she is reelected.

In this politically conservative town, that shift has sparked mixed reactions. In 2024, most voters here supported President Donald Trump. Theresa Dancses says she sees the change as being part of a “tit-for-tat” over redistricting going on nationally, and she worries about losing Republican representation in the process. Her biggest concern? Agriculture. “I think that’ll be overlooked big time, because we already don’t get enough water,” Dancses says.

Debbie Hill, a Coalinga resident and lifelong Republican, says Democratic leaders don’t reflect her values. “I’m a Republican all my life,” Hill says. “I vote Republican, and so I want a Republican, not a Democrat woman, because I don’t even like having a Democrat governor.” She worries that lawmakers may not fully understand communities like Coalinga, or even know where the town is located.

Congresswoman Lofgren says she recognizes that the Valley is different, which presents its challenges but also some opportunities. Her current district already blends agriculture with Silicon Valley tech, giving her experience navigating both the ag world and the tech world. “That’s been fun,” Lofgren told KVPR. “But what I’ve learned is you don’t go in and tell people what to think. You go in and listen to what they have, to tell you what they need and how you can help them.”

Calderon drops out of gubernatorial race

Former State Assemblymember Ian Calderon has dropped out of the California gubernatorial race. He’s throwing his support behind Democratic Congressmember Eric Swalwell.

“Ultimately, every candidate has to make a clear-eyed assessment about whether they can assemble the resources necessary to run a competitive statewide campaign,” Calderon said in a statement. “In a race of this scale, a message only matters if you have the resources to ensure Californians can actually see and hear it.” This comes after California Democratic Party Chair Rusty Hicks wrote an open letter this week, calling on Democratic candidates who were not polling well to drop out of the race, to avoid the possibility that two Republicans could advance to a runoff in the fall.

Calderon has been polling in the low-single digits and said he doesn’t have the resources to make his case to Californians. The 40-year-old father of four said he’s backing Swalwell because he, too represents a new generation of leadership focused on making the state more affordable.