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Going into 2025, there were few people who expected a statewide ballot measure election in California to become the sixth most expensive in state history in a year with no other statewide race on the ballot – but here we are with Prop 50, which asks voters to approve a legislative gerrymander.

California is calling it a milestone for fairness, dignity, and labor rights. When Governor Gavin Newsom signed a package of bills last week raising pay for incarcerated firefighters, the announcement made headlines across the state and drew praise as a historic step toward justice reform.

The Texas GOP made two significant moves in the last few months to enhance their chances in the 2026 midterms. The first made national headlines and provoked a Democratic Party response. The second has flown under the radar.

From California, where independent redistricting commissioner J. Ray Kennedy, a Democrat, describes how state leaders effectively sidelined the nonpartisan commission, to Texas, where the Republican Party is suing to close one of the nation’s oldest open primary systems, the hosts trace a pattern of partisan agenda-setting that transcends geography and time.

A new statewide poll finds near-unanimous agreement among both Democratic and independent voters that Florida’s primaries should be opened to the state’s 3.4 million “No Party Affiliation” (NPA) voters who are currently shut out of taxpayer-funded elections.

In this episode, Chad Peace and Cara McCormick unpack the viral exchange between CBS’s Julie Watts and gubernatorial candidate Katie Porter - a clip that sparked headlines but also exposes how California’s limiting election rules shape campaign incentives. What did the interview actually show, and why did it touch such a nerve?

The fate of California’s independently drawn congressional districts will be decided on November 4, when voters weigh in on a legislative gerrymander and the suspension of congressional maps from the state's independent Citizens Redistricting Commission (CRC) under Proposition 50.

As early voting for the November 4 special election in California begins, a new poll shows a majority of voters may end up supporting Prop 50, which suspends the state's independent redistricting commission in favor of a legislative gerrymander.

With deep frustration, Vote Nevada PAC announced it is withdrawing its ballot initiative to create an independent redistricting commission -- a proposal meant to bring openness, accountability, and fairness to how Nevada’s political maps are drawn.

The race to be California’s next governor entered a new chapter this week. Toni Atkins, a veteran lawmaker with decades of influence in Sacramento, has stepped aside. In her place, Ian Calderon, bringing the restless energy of a 39-year-old millennial eager to reimagine the state’s future, has jumped into the contest. The shakeup reflects both the end of one political era and the beginning of another, setting the stage for what promises to be one of the most exciting primaries in recent California history.