California Governor Gavin Newsom and the state’s Democratic congressional delegation are examining ways to redraw the state’s U.S. House map before the 2026 elections in an effort to capture five to seven additional seats. The talks follow a closed-door meeting this week between House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries and California Democrats, who argue the move is needed to offset Republican gerrymandering efforts under way in Texas. Newsom told reporters he is consulting lawyers on two paths that could bypass or sideline California’s 14-member Independent Citizens Redistricting Commission, which voters established in 2008 and strengthened in 2010. One option is to ask the Legislature to place a measure on a special-election ballot that would temporarily suspend the commission; the other is for lawmakers to act on the premise that the state constitution is silent on mid-decade redistricting and pass a new map directly. The first route would need a two-thirds vote in Sacramento and voter approval, while the second would almost certainly trigger immediate litigation. Democrats believe an aggressive redraw could cut the Republican delegation in the nation’s most populous state to as few as two or three districts, tightening the GOP’s fragile House majority. The proposal has drawn criticism from Republicans and some Democrats who say it would undermine voter-approved reforms and invite legal challenges under the Voting Rights Act. Newsom, who once backed the independent mapping process, said he will not be “passive at this moment” given what he called a nationwide Republican push to entrench power.