Polling Shows Californians Back Newsom on Gerrymandering

Governor Gavin Newsom’s effort to redraw California’s congressional maps in order to shift five Republican districts more closely to the Democratic column has broad support among Golden State voters, according to new polling. Mr. Newsom’s battle with President Trump is winning the hearts of liberal voters ahead of 2028, though it’s unclear how his record as governor might play into that equation. Mr. Newsom launched his gerrymandering effort last week, after Governor Greg Abbott and Texas Republicans advanced a congressional map meant to draw five House Democrats out of their seats. At a rally alongside fellow Democrats last Thursday, the California governor said he would not “unilaterally disarm” or “let this democracy disappear district-by-district all across this country.”According to a poll from an advisor to Mr. Newsom, David Binder — which was first reported by Axios — the Democrats’ redistricting effort in California has an early lead ahead of the November election. The survey finds that 57 percent of voters would back a ballot measure allowing the supermajority Democratic legislature to redraw the maps to more heavily favor their party, while 35 percent would oppose the ballot question; 8 percent said they do not have an opinion. Another poll from Emerson College finds that 33 percent of Californians support a mid-decade redistricting, while 25 percent are opposed. That poll found 42 percent of respondents were undecided. At his rally alongside fellow California Democrats last week, Mr. Newsom leaned into his attempts to troll Mr. Trump ahead of the 2026 midterms and the 2028 presidential election — a contest in which Mr. Newsom is almost surely going to participate. “He’s going to lose the midterms. He knows, de facto, his presidency ends in 17 months, when Speaker Jeffries is in office,” Mr. Newsom said at the rally, referring to the House minority leader, Congressman Hakeem Jeffries. “He knows it. Why else would he try to rig the system?”“He’s a failed president,” Mr. Newsom said of Mr. Trump, calling him “someone who’s weak, someone who’s broken, someone whose weakness is masquerading as strength.”As Mr. Newsom plots out his path to the White House as the chief anti-Trump resistor, Californians seem to be going along. A poll from Politico finds that Mr. Newsom is now more highly favored than Vice President Kamala Harris — a fellow California native — in the 2028 presidential primary. The survey finds Mr. Newsom winning 25 percent of the primary vote, while Ms. Harris takes 19 percent, after having locked up the California delegation unanimously last year in her last-minute bid for the presidency. Even online bettors are guessing that Mr. Newsom could be a favorite just three years from now, when the Republican and Democratic conventions for president will be held. The betting platform Polymarket currently has Mr. Newsom in first place, with a 28 percent chance of winning the nomination, while Congresswoman Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez comes in second with a 14 percent chance. How his governance of California translates into a successful national campaign is a question Mr. Newsom himself is already trying to tackle. He has been appearing on Republican-friendly podcasts in recent weeks, including “The Shawn Ryan Show,” where he said he does not support biological males competing in women’s or girls’ sports. He has also made efforts to crack down on homeless encampments, and has proposed limited non-citizen migrants’ ability to access publicly funded healthcare programs.

Polling Shows Californians Back Newsom on Gerrymandering

Polling Shows Californians Back Newsom on Gerrymandering

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