Political Science student Kevin Hatfield received his ballot in the mail for the 2025 special election and noticed it had only one issue to consider, Prop 50.
The single issue was proposed by California Governor Gavin Newsom as the Election Rigging Response Act in response to the Texas legislature’s passage of H.B. 4, which creates a new congressional redistricting map potentially adding five seats in the U.S. House of Representatives for the Lone Star State.
“Prop 50 is very important to level the playing field,” Hatfield said. “Texas is not giving voters an opportunity like the way California is. California is doing it correctly.”
Similar to the proposed Texas law, Prop 50 would gerrymander districts by changing the California constitution to allow a congressional map drawn by the legislature, but unlike the Republican led states Prop 50 will expire in 2030 and return to the current California Citizens Redistricting Commission.
In contrast to Texas and most recently Missouri, California has put the question of congressional maps to voters to decide in a special election on Nov 4.
Each state hopes to add more seats ahead of the 2026 election cycle with California potentially adding five democratic seats in the U.S. House of Representatives.
“Gerrymandering is a bad thing, but it is done everywhere,” Hatfield said. “If the voters decide it’s a better solution.”
Republican opponents of Prop 50 have poured in millions of dollars fighting the proposition.
The most vocal critic, former Republican Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, has been an advocate of the citizen-led independent redistricting commission, which would be replaced (temporarily) by a map drawn by the Democratic-leaning California legislature if Prop 50 passes.
Get out the vote
In an attempt to educate and register students at City College, Student Affairs Coordinator Lori Oldham held the second Community Awareness and Education event, with outreach representatives from the San Diego Registrar of Voters, the League of Women’s Voters and the San Diego LGBTQ community.
“It’s important,” Oldham said. “It’s a special election on Prop 50. It’s consequential.”
After last year’s successful voting fair where 94 students were registered to vote, the event fell short of this year’s expectations with a number of invited groups noticeably absent.
Oldham noted that it has been difficult to get students involved in the election process and according to the California Ballot Bowl campus progress page, part of the Secretary of State California Student Vote Project, San Diego City College had only registered a single student.
Registered students should have received a ballot in the mail. For those who missed the registration date, or need to update their voter information, completing a “same day” ballot in person at a polling location is an option.
Traditionally, primary elections statewide tend to have lower voter turnout than general elections, as was the case for the 2024 election cycle, when just 36.45% of registered voters cast a ballot in the primary election, opposed to the 75.77% cast for the general election one year ago, according to the County of San Diego Register of voters.
Turnout for the special election recalling Governor Gavin Newsom in 2023 was even lower when just 22.75% of eligible voters in San Diego county cast a vote.
City College will have its own polling place in the P-building, next to the Harry West gym. The polling place will be open for early voting on Nov. 1 thru Nov. 3, from 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. and on Election Day, Nov. 4 from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m.
Ballots can be dropped at an official drop-box, the county election center or sent through the mail. Mailed ballots must be postmarked by Nov. 4 and received by Nov. 12 to be counted.
For more information on a polling place near you or questions about registration status and to track your ballot visit the San Diego Registrar at sdvote.com.
Oldham will continue to strive to get students at City College involved in local and state elections saying, “You never know what your vote can change.”
This story was edited by Nadia Lavin and Samira Hassan.
