This week, Sacramento chose politics over people.
The Legislature voted to undo something Californians already decided in 2010 — that an independent citizens’ commission, not politicians, should draw legislative district lines. To make matters worse, this reckless scheme could cost taxpayers as much as $230 million.
As I cast my vote against this measure, I thought about the people I represent in Imperial, Riverside, and San Bernardino Counties. Families in my district don’t want politicians drawing their own maps. They don’t want backroom deals. They want solutions to the urgent problems they face every single day.
And yet, those problems continue to be ignored. While my colleagues are busy drawing lines, constituents in my district are facing real issues and they tell me all the time they feel ignored by Sacramento. They’re right.
In Blythe, Palo Verde Hospital is on the brink of closure. I requested $4 million in emergency funding to keep its doors open. That request was not fulfilled. Soon, families may be forced to drive 100 miles to reach emergency care. That’s not just a healthcare issue, it’s a public safety crisis.
In Imperial County, the last sugar beet plant, Spreckles, shut down, eliminating more than 700 jobs in a county already suffering from a 20% unemployment rate.
At Ironwood State Prison in Blythe, rehabilitation programs are helping incarcerated men turn their lives around, yet they struggle for resources.
And across mountain communities from Winchester to Anza, families live under the constant threat of wildfires. We should be filling reservoirs and investing in forest management, but we aren’t.
As a Marine Corps veteran, it sickens me to know men and women who I once fought alongside are sleeping on our streets.
These are the issues we should be solving. Instead, the Legislature has decided that its priority is gerrymandering.
I heard all week that Texas is doing this, that Washington is holding back money, that democracy is at risk. But two wrongs don’t make a right. If democracy is on the line, then California should be strengthening it — not rigging it for political gain.
Imagine what $230 million could do to fight food insecurity. Organizations in my district like FIND Food Bank and the Imperial Valley Food Bank make sure children don’t go to bed hungry and seniors don’t have to choose between food and medicine. They are doing God’s work every single day, and yet Sacramento chose to funnel hundreds of millions into partisan politics instead of supporting them.
When I was at war, at least I could see the threats coming at me. In Sacramento, the threats to our democracy come cloaked in procedure and backroom deals. And we can’t get a clear answer as to who drew the lines Californians will now be forced to vote on this November.
This is not a partisan issue. It’s about integrity. It’s about whether we honor the will of the people or betray it. In 2010, Californians made it clear: they wanted an independent commission to draw district lines — not politicians.
California doesn’t need more political theater. We need hospitals that stay open, jobs that sustain families, affordable housing, safer communities, and stronger schools.
Californians deserve representatives who put people over politics. And I will keep fighting to make sure their voices are heard.
Jeff Gonzalez represents California’s 36th Assembly District.