Northeast San Diego County is becoming a battleground in the nationwide fight over congressional districts and control of the House of Representatives. Ballots are out now for a special election that could change several districts in California to give Democrats the advantage.
Gov. Newsom said this special election is a response to Texas Republicans redrawing their congressional map to target Democratic held seats.
In San Diego County, four out of five congressional seats are held by Democrats. But in the more rural northeast part of the county, Republicans have a winning streak that has lasted more than two decades.
Republican Darrell Issa holds California’s 48th district seat, and has represented the area through multiple redistricting cycles.
If Proposition 50 passes in November, Issa’s district would change. A lot. It would shift from a double digit advantage for Republicans to a 10-point lead for Democrats.
But Democratic party activists say the district already has more liberal-leaning voters than even the residents in the area might think.
“When people find out that they actually have Democrats or like-minded people as their neighbors, they’re surprised,” said Andi McNew, who is canvassing the area for Prop 50. “Because while the MAGA people are loud with their flags and stuff, it kind of keeps Democrats afraid and scared. And they shouldn't be scared.”
McNew said this perception leads people and the Democratic Party to write these areas off as “red,” and not invest in getting out the vote. But because Prop 50 is a statewide referendum, every vote counts.
“That’s why it’s so sad to see Democrats give up on these areas and not run … for these local seats, because we can win them,” McNew said. “And I know we can win them because I’ve done it.”
For Prop 50, the San Diego County Democratic Party is investing countywide. New chair Will Rodriguez-Kennedy said this is part of an effort to reach “everyone, everywhere, all at once.”
“The focus of the push is to make sure that we get a county-wide dispatch,” Rodriguez-Kennedy said. “So, from Fallbrook all the way down to the South Bay, we are getting deep into the community.”
And Rodriguez-Kennedy said that the party is expanding efforts to reach voters who speak different languages. He said activists on the ground have asked for Spanish language material and they are delivering for Prop 50.
Julie Martinez is one of those activists. She volunteers with the Fallbrook Democratic Club
“Fifty percent of our Democratic base here (in Fallbrook) is of Hispanic and or indigenous (heritage),” Martinez said. “So, maybe in the past … their needs and their wants and their voices have not been addressed. But, Fallbrook Democratic Club is working to change that.”
At a get-out-the-vote event in Fallbrook, Rodriguez-Kennedy spoke on the importance of providing material in different languages for different communities.
“It shows those voters that we're actually thinking about them,” Rodriguez-Kennedy said. “So … it's not just … we come in with our English lit and they just happen to be there. We're actually intentionally reaching out to them.”
Martinez said it makes a big difference.
“We do get a lot of thank yous,” Martinez said. “We get people telling us that in the entire 20 years or so that they've lived in this community, no one has ever given them any voter information in their native language of Spanish. So I see that as a huge success.”
When Prop 50 is decided, it could give Democrats an upper hand in places that have historically been Republican strongholds. But right now, in San Diego County, it’s changing the game for local activists and party leaders who are finding support in unexpected places.
And it’s showing that nowhere is quite as red and blue as one might think.
