Teachers union bankrolls Newsom’s redistricting push ahead of 2025 vote
California’s largest teachers union gave $3 million to a campaign backing Gov. Newsom’s redistricting law.
Critics argue that the contribution suggests the measure is designed to protect Democrats, not voters.
The California Teachers Association (CTA) has given $3 million to Gov. Gavin Newsom’s campaign for Proposition 50, a redistricting measure that will appear on the state’s Nov. 4, ballot, according to state campaign finance filings.
The CTA contribution, filed Aug. 23, went directly to “The Election Rigging Response Act, Governor Newsom’s Ballot Measure Committee,” which backs Prop 50.
The measure originated from a three-bill package in July, where Democrats used a “gut-and-amend” tactic on A.B. 604 and S.B. 280, along with A.C.A. 8, to grant the legislature temporary control of redistricting for the 2026, 2028, and 2030 election cycles. The state’s independent Citizens Redistricting Commission would resume authority in 2031.
“If this redistricting scheme goes through, voters will have no reason to trust politicians,” Assemblyman Carl DeMaio told Campus Reform. “Politicians will choose their voters; voters will not choose their politicians.”
California State Superintendent of Education candidate Sonja Shaw also criticized the union’s support. “The California Teachers Association is behind every attack on our kids, pushing confusion in classrooms, protecting only those who fit their narrative, and selling out teachers to back Newsom’s gerrymander,” Shaw wrote on X.
CTA’s Issues PAC is one of the state’s largest political spenders, previously funding school funding measures and union protections. The union has not released a formal statement on its Prop 50 contribution.
Progressive groups including Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California have also pledged to support the measure. “You take away our freedoms, we’ll take away your seats,” President and CEO Jodi Hicks said at a rally, promising her group would “go all in.”
Opposition is mounting. Republican lawmakers challenged the law in court, but the California Supreme Court rejected their emergency petition Aug. 21, clearing the way for the campaign. Outside groups have also mobilized: billionaire Charles Munger Jr. has given $10 million to the “Protect Voters First” campaign opposing Prop 50, and former Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has spoken out against the measure.
Campus Reform reached out to the California Teachers Association, Gov. Newsom’s office, and Planned Parenthood for comment. This article will be updated with any response.
