Rep. Kevin Kiley, representing California’s 4th congressional district, declared that the mid-decade redistricting battles now spreading from California to Virginia should be called off entirely. Kiley proposed a bipartisan solution that would implement a national ban on gerrymandering alongside a voter ID requirement.
In recent remarks, Kiley criticized the accelerating trend of off-cycle map changes, stating they are upending voters’ relationships with their elected representatives without yielding significant net partisan benefits. His comments followed Virginia’s approval of a constitutional amendment enabling a new congressional map that could grant Democrats up to four additional seats in November.
Kiley noted that both Virginia and California have redrawn district lines for partisan advantage while disregarding independent commissions designed by voters to keep politicians out of the redistricting process. California recently passed Proposition 50, allowing its Democrat-led legislature to bypass the state’s Citizens Redistricting Commission.
“This is a new phenomenon,” Kiley stated. “We’ve traditionally dealt with gerrymandering every ten years after the census. But now it’s happening mid-decade—what will become of it? It’s suddenly becoming something that happens every two years when one side or the other senses an advantage?”
National data shows such map changes have produced minimal net partisan gains across states. Republicans gained up to nine new seats in Texas, Missouri, North Carolina, and Ohio through redrawn maps, while Democrats could gain as many as ten seats in California, Utah, and Virginia.
Kiley introduced legislation H.R. 4889 earlier this year to prohibit mid-decade redistricting nationwide and nullify any maps adopted after the November 2024 election. The bill has not yet received a floor vote.
The congressman also proposed pairing the gerrymandering ban with a national voter ID requirement as a comprehensive approach to ensuring fair elections. He highlighted that Florida Republicans are preparing for a special legislative session aimed at creating two to five new districts favorable to their party, which could shift the electoral balance further.
Kiley warned that the current cycle of rapid redistricting is disrupting voters’ connections with their representatives, stating the changes “are being upended for really no purpose at all.”
