Architect of California's Prop 50 map calls for ending partisan redistricting
Paul Mitchell, who designed the Democratic-favoring congressional map approved by California voters, now argues that gerrymandering should end nationwide and that Congress should ban mid-decade redraws.
Paul Mitchell, the consultant who drew the congressional map behind California's Proposition 50, has used a San Francisco Chronicle op-ed to call for an end to partisan gerrymandering across the United States. The appeal comes from the man who built one of the most consequential partisan redraws of the current cycle, and he openly acknowledges that the map was designed to help Democrats.
California voters approved Proposition 50 in November 2025. The measure temporarily replaces the state's independent congressional district lines through 2030. In the November midterms, Democrats flipped five House seats previously held by Republicans, a result that the party's California leaders have tied to the new boundaries. Mitchell now says the outcome shows why the process itself is broken.
In his Wednesday op-ed, Mitchell described Proposition 50 as a temporary response to redistricting carried out by Texas Republicans. He argued that Democrats tried first to stop the Texas redraw, and that California's measure was a defensive step rather than a permanent change to how maps should be drawn. He framed the California map as a stopgap meant to offset what he sees as an unfair advantage created in Texas.
Mitchell's proposed remedy is a structural one. He favors independent redistricting commissions in every state and says Congress should prohibit mid-decade redistricting. He also backed Representative Zoe Lofgren's national redistricting standards bill, which aims to set common rules for how congressional districts are drawn. Mitchell argued that Republican losses in the midterms could make the party more open to reform, and he said he wants a fairer process restored when the next round of maps is drawn in 2031.
The case for reform carries particular weight coming from Mitchell, who is a vice president at Political Data Inc. and owns Redistricting Partners. He has worked on more than 100 redistricting projects across a range of jurisdictions, giving him long experience on both sides of the mapmaking process. His shift in tone is notable because his firm's work helped produce the boundaries he now criticizes as a model that should not be repeated routinely.
California Democrats and Governor Gavin Newsom framed Proposition 50 as a response to President Donald Trump and the national Republican push to redraw House districts. That political framing sat alongside the technical work Mitchell led, and the measure's supporters presented it as necessary to counter Republican maps in other states.
The broader redistricting fight is not confined to California and Texas. Georgia Governor Brian Kemp declined to call a special session to redraw his state's maps, and some other states are reportedly considering redraws ahead of the 2028 election cycle. Mitchell's op-ed adds a voice from inside the redistricting industry to a debate that now centers on whether mid-decade map changes should become a standard part of American politics or be restricted by federal rules.
Source: foxnews.com
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