Supreme Court Allows California’s Democrat-Friendly Congressional Map for 2024 Elections

The Supreme Court on Wednesday rejected a last-minute appeal from California Republicans and the Trump administration, allowing the state to use its new voter-approved congressional map in this year’s elections. The map, which favors Democrats, could flip up to five Republican-held seats in a critical year when control of Congress hangs in the balance.

The justices issued a brief, unsigned order denying the appeal without explanation, a common practice for the court’s emergency docket. No justices dissented from the decision.

The ruling comes in stark contrast to the court’s December decision allowing Texas to use its Republican-drawn map that a lower court had ruled likely discriminated on the basis of race. Conservative Justice Samuel Alito noted in December that both states appeared to have created maps for political advantage, which the Supreme Court has previously ruled cannot be the basis for federal lawsuits.

California’s congressional redistricting battle represents one front in a nationwide tit-for-tat redistricting struggle triggered by former President Donald Trump. Last year, at Trump’s urging, Texas Republicans redrew their state’s districts with the goal of gaining five House seats for their party.

In response, California Governor Gavin Newsom, a Democrat with potential 2028 presidential ambitions, pledged to counter Texas’ move. Unlike Texas, however, Newsom needed voter approval to implement the new congressional boundaries, which he secured through a ballot initiative.

Following the court’s decision, Newsom took to social media to celebrate, arguing that Trump had “started this redistricting war” and would face consequences in the November midterms. California Attorney General Rob Bonta, also a Democrat, called the ruling “good news not only for Californians, but for our democracy.”

Republicans had joined with the Trump administration in claiming California’s map improperly used racial considerations in its design, similar to the allegations against Texas’ map. However, a lower court rejected this argument in a 2-1 vote. The Justice Department and White House did not immediately respond to requests for comment on the Supreme Court’s decision.

The California Republican Party, which brought the case, expressed disappointment but vowed to continue fighting the map’s use in future elections. “We will continue to vigorously argue for Equal Protection under the law for all of California’s voters,” said Michael Columbo, counsel for the plaintiffs.

Jon Fleishman, a longtime party strategist and former executive director of the California Republican Party, acknowledged on social media that the decision means “this year’s elections will take place on the new lines shrinking the already very small Republican delegation from California.”

The timing is particularly significant as filing for congressional primaries in California begins on Monday, making any further challenges to this year’s electoral map effectively moot.

The Supreme Court’s contrasting treatments of Republican-drawn maps in Texas and Democratic-drawn maps in California highlight the increasing partisan divide over redistricting nationwide. With control of the House of Representatives potentially hinging on just a handful of seats, these redistricting decisions could prove decisive in determining which party controls Congress after November’s elections.