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California voters on Tuesday passed a ballot measure to redraw the state’s congressional map to favor Democrats, a major victory for the party in a high-stakes national redistricting fight that could determine who controls the House of Representatives next year.
The Associated Press called the race shortly after polls closed at 8 p.m. Early returns showed the measure leading with nearly 58% of the vote.
In Butte County, however, unofficial results from the Clerk Recorder’s Office were showing 53.71 percent of voters opposing Proposition 50 and only slightly more than 46% in favor.
The maps voters approved with Proposition 50 make it likely that five of California’s GOP-held congressional seats could be won by Democrats in next year’s midterm elections. They also bolster the re-election chances of three Democrats currently holding office in now-competitive districts.