CA Republicans sue to block Newsom's Prop 50 plan to prioritize Latino voters

California Republicans have launched a federal lawsuit against Proposition 50, a measure that voters recently approved, claiming that the congressional district map established under the measure favors "one race of California voters over others" in violation of the Constitution. State Assemblyman David Tangipa is the lead plaintiff in the suit, and is joined by the California Republican Party and 18 California voters. 

Attorney Mike Columbo of the Dhillon Law Group said at a press conference, "The map is designed to favor one race of California voters over others. This violates the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection under the law, and the right under the 15th Amendment to not have one’s vote abridged on account of race."

Columbo said that "when drawing the Proposition 50 map, the chief consultant who drew the map has stated that the first thing that he did was to increase the power of Latino voters. Additionally, the state legislature has announced that the maps increase the power of Latino voters." He said the maps under Prop 50 "increased the number of districts in which Latinos are favored to … win their preference in the election, from 14 to 16 of California’s 52 congressional districts."

"When states racially gerrymander their voting districts, the Supreme Court has permitted a limited exception to the Constitution. That exception requires, among other things, that the favored voters are a minority whose preferred candidates cannot get elected because the votes of another majority race," he added. 

Columbo said that "Hispanics make up most voters in the state, there is no majority race in California more than Hispanics. Hispanics have had fantastic success in electing candidates of their choice. Accordingly, California cannot meet this exception."

Tangipa said that Prop 50’s maps "are completely diminishing the voices of other groups to benefit other groups. They have weaponized this entire process and they have lied to the Californian voters. They have lied to the people of California."

"This whole process was a sham, and with this lawsuit, we will make sure that we will expose it and we will hold those accountable."

Attorney Mark Meuser said, "We believe that the Supreme Court Gingles test cannot be satisfied by the state, as such, under the 14th and 15th Amendment, the maps drawn by Prop 50 will be considered unconstitutional, and we are asking a federal three-judge panel to find Prop 50 maps unconstitutional, and go back to the Commission map."

California Governor Gavin Newsom’s press office wrote, "We haven’t reviewed the lawsuit, but if it’s from the California Republican Party and Harmeet Dhillon’s law firm, it’s going to fail. Good luck, losers."

Dhillon responded, "DOJ ethics: if I’m living rent-free in Gavin Newsom’s head (by the way, a dude I’ve beat at SCOTUS more than once), do I need to file an ethics disclosure?"