CHICO, Calif. — California Rep. Doug LaMalfa made a last-ditch plea Wednesday for Republicans to vote \u2018no\u2019 on a ballot measure aimed at pushing him out of office.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s really a blatant power grab,\u201d he said at a news conference in Chico, a city at the southern end of his district that covers a vast, rural swath of Northern California.<\/p>\n
Voting ends Tuesday on Proposition 50<\/a>, which would create partisan U.S. House maps outside of normal once-a-decade redistricting handled by an independent commission. It\u2019s an effort by Democratic Gov. Gavin Newsom to counter a Trump-backed plan in Texas<\/a> to gain five more Republican seats. The new California map aims to dilute Republican voting power by redrawing districts that help Democrats win five more seats.<\/p>\n Newsom says it\u2019s a necessary step to defend democracy, but California Republicans call it a power grab that will disenfranchise voters. Republicans currently hold nine of the state\u2019s 52 congressional seats.<\/p>\n If the measure passes, the new maps would be in place for the 2026, 2028 and 2030 midterm elections.<\/p>\n After the 2030 Census, the measure promises to give map-drawing power back to the independent commission that typically handles redistricting. But LaMalfa warned it’s just the first step toward a permanent, partisan process.<\/p>\n \u201cIf Sacramento is emboldened by this passing, what will stop them?\u201d he said, noting Democrats hold supermajorities in both chambers in the Legislature.<\/p>\n LaMalfa appeared alongside local elected officials and farmers in his district, which is known for farms that grow rice, olive and other tree nuts, as well as ranching. The new map would split his district, which includes counties that went strongly for President Donald Trump in the last three presidential elections. Parts of his district would the merge with more liberal districts near the coast. <\/p>\n LaMalfa\u2019s new district would have many more Democratic voters, making his reelection bid increasingly challenging. But he said Wednesday he plans to seek reelection no matter what. He was first elected to Congress in 2013.<\/p>\n LaMalfa, as well as a handful of other Republican congressmen who could see their districts dramatically reshaped, have mostly stayed away from the campaign spotlight. Voters in Redding, another city in LaMalfa’s district, said they have heard little from him<\/a> leading up to the election.<\/p>\n