‘Voters already said no’: Former California GOP chair leading fight against Prop 50

(INSIDE CALIFORNIA POLITICS) — Former California GOP chair Jessica Millan Patterson joined Inside California Politics this week as political advertising on Governor Gavin Newsom’s redistricting campaign begins to bombard airwaves and mailboxes across the state.

Patterson is teaming up with former House Speaker and Bakersfield Congressman Kevin McCarthy to lead the fight against Proposition 50. The controversial ballot measure will be decided by voters in a special election on November 4.

“California voters have already said no to Prop 50,” Patterson told host Nikki Laurenzo. “They did that when they put the Citizens Redistricting Commission on the ballot back in 2010 and passed it overwhelmingly. California voters believe that the power to draw district lines should reside with the people. It should not be given to politicians in Sacramento where they get to choose who their constituents are. Constituents should be choosing their representatives.”

Governor Newsom has argued the redistricting campaign is a direct response to President Donald Trump, who successfully pressured Texas lawmakers to redraw maps in the Lone Star State to pick up five additional GOP House seats ahead of the 2026 midterms. Patterson argued voters will not be tricked by a “California versus Trump” framing of the redistricting fight, adding it is not uncommon for Californians to push back against the Democratic Party on ballot initiatives.

“California voters know that every single time we give power to Sacramento, not only do they take it a step further, but they fail us on every single topic,” Patterson said. “Whether it’s homelessness, whether it’s cost of living, our students’ education, crime — California Democrats and Sacramento politicians have failed us every single time. We saw back in 2024, California voters were actually with the California Republican Party’s position 89% of the time when it came to ballot initiatives. When it comes to the ideas, California voters are with us.”

Patterson said California’s new congressional maps disenfranchise minority voters and referred to Modoc County, which is one of the poorest counties in the state. If voters approve Prop 50, Modoc’s new district would wrap all the way from the northeast corner of the state to the Bay Area’s Marin County.

“The voices in the rural part of our state are not going to be heard with these new maps that are drawn,” Patterson said. “So we want to make sure that we protect that and we do that by making sure that the power of drawing these lines remains with the people and not politicians.”

Patterson also weighed in on what she’s calling a “broad-based coalition” of Prop 50 opponents, which includes McCarthy, Republican Party donor Charles Munger Jr. and former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

“We’re all going to be delivering our own messages to our own constituency,” Patterson said. “At the end of the day, we’re all going to come together to make sure that Sacramento politicians are not drawing lines in back rooms.”

While President Trump’s role in the ‘No on Prop 50’ movement remains unclear, Patterson said she welcomes his involvement.

“I love when President Trump gets involved,” Patterson said “There are people that show up just because President Trump told them to.”

Inside California Politics airs this weekend during the following times:

KTLA: Sunday, September 7 at 5:30 a.m.
KRON: Saturday, September 6 at 6:30 p.m.
KSEE: Saturday, September 6 at 6:30 p.m. and Sunday, September 7 at 8:30 a.m.
KSWB: Sunday, September 7 at 5:30 a.m. and 11:00 p.m.
KGET: Sunday, September 7 at 8:30 a.m.
KTXL: Saturday, September 6 at 11:00 p.m. and Sunday, September 7 at 7:30 a.m.