The top Republican in California is unveiling his plan to break the Golden State in two, between the extremely liberal coastal areas and the more conservative inland parts of the state. The lawmaker says the proposal comes in response not just to political posturing, but the crisis of rising costs and overrregulation in the state. 

Assemblyman James Gallagher, who leads the Republican minority in the chamber, addressed reporters on Wednesday to detail his plan for a “two state solution.” Standing beside a map of the state, Mr. Gallagher proposed making a new state known as “Inland California.” It would be made up of all counties in California except for most of those that lie along the Pacific Coast and those that surround the liberal San Francisco Bay area.

The proposed state would be home to more than 10 million people, about a quarter of the current population of California. 

He says that Sacramento Democrats have for too long ignored the day-to-day needs of average people who are bearing the costs of high gas prices, utility bills, and government regulations. 

“I think of the blue collar worker who’s commuting to a job, maybe a refinery that’s about to get closed and has to stop at that gas station and has the pain at the pump that far too many of us feel,” he told reporters at the state capital on Wednesday. “I think of the single mom who’s trying to get by where the rent’s too high, and then gets her [utility] bill that’s once again increased.”

Mr. Gallagher argued that those same “forgotten” people are being stripped of this representation even further by Mr. Newsom, who is waging a campaign to draw congressional Republicans out of their seats next year. 

“Those forgotten people — mostly in the inland counties of this state — they have no voice, and in fact, now even worse, their representation could be completely stripped by the ‘Gavin-mander’ proposal, Prop 50, that’s been put on the ballot,” Mr. Gallagher said, using his nickname for the governor’s attempt to gerrymander the state. “They’ll have no voice.”

California’s maps are drawn by a bipartisan redistricting commission, though Mr. Newsom wants to strip that power from the panel in order to redraw maps for the 2026, 2028, and 2030 elections after Texas redrew its maps to take five seats from Democrats. After the 2030 Census, the map-drawing powers would be returned to the commission. 

“We want our own state because there’s two fundamental things — two fundamental American values,” Mr. Gallagher said. “Representation: that we should have a voice … but also, secondly, self-determination.”

“Quite frankly, we’ve had enough of it,” the Republican assembly leader said defiantly. 

Mr. Newsom’s office told KTLA that the demand for a new state was wholly unrealistic, and that Mr. Gallagher does not deserve to hold public office after proposing such a thing. 

“A person who seeks to split California does not deserve to hold office in the Golden State. This is a stunt that will go nowhere,” the governor’s office said. 

The only way for Mr. Gallagher to get his new state would be for both houses of the California legislature — both of which are dominated by Democrats — vote for the inland counties to secede. After that, both houses of the United States Congress would be required to vote on the proposal. The last time two states broke apart was in 1863, when West Virginia separated from Virginia due to opposition to secession during the Civil War.