Trump Admin Asks SCOTUS to Block California’s Redrawn Congressional Map
The Department of Justice has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to step in and block California’s newly approved congressional map, arguing it was drawn using unconstitutional racial criteria and should not be implemented for the 2026 midterm elections — a decision that could also ripple into the 2028 presidential race.
In an emergency filing to the high court, Solicitor General D. John Sauer urged the justices to halt the use of the map approved by California voters last year, contending that at least one district was improperly constructed on racial grounds in violation of the Constitution and the Voting Rights Act. The DOJ is backing a legal challenge brought by California Republicans, who are seeking immediate relief ahead of the candidate filing deadline.
According to Sauer, the redistricting process crossed a constitutional line by prioritizing race over legitimate political considerations.
The petition asserts that one district in particular was “tainted by an unconstitutional racial gerrymander,” prompting the Justice Department to ask the Court to prevent the map from taking effect while litigation proceeds.
California officials, however, have forcefully rejected those claims. In court filings, attorneys for the state accused Republicans of advancing what they described as a “flimsy veneer of racial gerrymandering” only after failing to convince voters to reject the map at the ballot box. The legal effort, they argued, amounts to a post-election attempt to undo a voter-approved outcome through judicial intervention, Fox News reported.
State attorneys further maintained that Republicans failed to meet the “especially stringent” legal standard required to prove racial gerrymandering, insisting the districts were redrawn using lawful criteria consistent with constitutional requirements.
The map, approved under Proposition 50 in November, is expected to shift several congressional seats in Democrats’ favor. A federal appeals court previously upheld the plan, and California officials have defended it as both valid and lawful.
The Supreme Court has given California officials until later this month to respond to the DOJ-backed challenge. Any ruling could have significant implications for control of the U.S. House as the 2026 midterms approach.
The dispute is part of a broader wave of mid-decade redistricting battles unfolding nationwide. Last year, after receiving a warning from the Department of Justice’s Civil Rights Division, the Texas Legislature approved a new congressional map that Republicans said complied with federal law. Democrats countered that the Texas plan amounted to unconstitutional racial gerrymandering.
In December, the Supreme Court allowed Texas’ map to stand through an unsigned order, with three liberal justices dissenting.
Following that decision, California Gov. Gavin Newsom announced plans to redraw his state’s map, openly framing the move as a way to offset Republican gains in Texas. Voters later approved a ballot measure authorizing the new lines.
Democrats have acknowledged that California’s map was drawn for political advantage and could hand the party a five-seat boost in the 2026 midterms. Sauer, however, argued that race — not politics — drove the design of at least one district.
“Unlike Texas’s map, the Prop 50 map suffers from a fatal constitutional flaw: one of the districts (District 13) was clearly drawn ‘on the basis of race,’” Sauer wrote.
The solicitor general further noted that the map’s designer, Paul Mitchell, has acknowledged the district was crafted to increase Latino voting strength, particularly in California’s Central Valley.
Republicans have requested expedited Supreme Court action, warning that candidates will begin filing for the 2026 elections under the new map on February 9.
Several other states have also added GOP-leaning districts through recent redistricting, including Missouri (1), Ohio (2), and North Carolina (1). Indiana Republican leaders declined to redraw their map despite pressure from the White House, expressing frustration with President Donald J. Trump’s urging on the issue during his second term.
CNN, which has been tracking nationwide redistricting outcomes, currently shows Republicans holding a net +3-seat advantage from the recent map battles.