Latinos in California have fought for decades to be heard in the political process. From the Garza lawsuit that created the first Latino-majority seat on the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors, to the voter-led movement for independent redistricting, our community has struggled to ensure that our votes actually matter. Proposition 50 would turn back the clock of progress, cutting up our neighborhoods for political gain and silencing the very voices that fought hardest for fairness.
We’ve seen what happens when politicians control the lines. In 2022, in Los Angeles, political leaders were exposed for plotting to carve up districts in backroom deals. That scandal showed how easily our communities become bargaining chips when power, not people, drives the process. Investigations by the California Department of Justice followed, but the damage was done: trust was broken. Now Sacramento wants to repeat those same tactics statewide.
That is why Californians changed the system in 2010. Political reform organizations, civil rights advocates, and Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger called for an independent commission to end gerrymandering once and for all. Voters agreed, passing Proposition 20 with 61% support. From then on, congressional maps would be drawn in the open, by a bipartisan citizens’ commission, not by politicians protecting their own jobs. The reform was so strong that both major parties opposed it — Democrats and Republicans, who rarely agree on anything, both wanted to keep redistricting in Sacramento. But the people said otherwise.
That choice has paid dividends. In 2011 and again in 2021, California’s Citizens Redistricting Commission produced maps that gave every community, including Latinos, a fairer shot at representation. Independent redistricting is not perfect, but it has earned a reputation as the “gold standard.” It put voters first and ended the ugly practice of politicians choosing their own voters.
So what does Sacramento want to do with this “gold standard?” Change it.
Proposition 50 would shred that achievement. It suspends the commission in the middle of the decade and hands the power back to the Legislature, allowing Sacramento insiders to redraw congressional districts for their own benefit. The justification? To tilt the balance of power in Congress. Let’s be honest: this isn’t about voters, it’s about politicians.
The hypocrisy is staggering. In 2010, Democrats insisted independent redistricting was dangerous because it limited their ability to draw safe seats. Republicans opposed it for the same reason. Now, because the partisan math has shifted, Democrats are trying to dismantle the very reform that voters put in place. And Republicans, who would lose under a legislative map, suddenly insist the independent commission must be preserved. The parties have flipped, but the principle remains the same: politicians will always protect themselves first.
Meanwhile, families across California are facing a cost-of-living crisis. Rent, food, and gas prices keep climbing. Homelessness is at record highs. Our schools struggle. Yet Prop 50 forces a special election costing taxpayers more than $200 million just so politicians can guarantee their future political careers. That money could fund healthcare, housing, or fire recovery, but Sacramento would rather spend it protecting incumbents.
For Latinos, the stakes are even higher. Our communities have already been sliced apart too many times. We know what it means to be told our neighborhoods don’t count, that our votes can be diluted, divided, or ignored. Independent redistricting was a safeguard against those abuses. Prop 50 threatens to rip that safeguard away.
This fight is not about partisan advantage. It is about whether California will honor the reforms voters overwhelmingly approved, or whether insiders can erase them whenever it suits their interests. It is about whether Latinos, independents, and every other community will have a genuine voice, or whether we will once again be pawns in a game played behind closed doors.
California set an example for the nation by creating fair maps through a citizens’ commission. We cannot let Sacramento destroy that progress
On November 4, the answer must be clear: Vote No on Proposition 50. Protect our democracy. Protect nuestra voz.
Bernadette Suarez serves as a councilmember for the city of Lawndale and is President of a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting youth from working-class communities.
