The California Teachers Association (CTA) has announced its support for a statewide ballot initiative on redistricting, scheduled for the upcoming November election. The move comes in response to what the union describes as significant threats to both democracy and public education.
In a statement released Wednesday, CTA President David B. Goldberg addressed recent actions by the federal government and several states that he says jeopardize educational funding and civil rights protections.
“Over the past several months, we have seen the Trump administration freeze funds for critical education programs, cut healthcare for millions of our students and their families, attempt to dismantle the Department of Education, and pass a new voucher program designed to destroy public education entirely. There have also been unprecedented attacks on our immigrant communities and our LGBTQIA+ students and families,” Goldberg said.
Goldberg further criticized efforts by Texas and other states to influence congressional representation through redistricting ahead of the 2026 election. “It is clear that we are also now facing an unprecedented power grab by Texas and other states to steal congressional seats and rig the 2026 election in favor of the current federal administration. This is a direct and urgent attack on our democracy,” he stated.
He warned that if these actions continue without opposition, they could result in deeper cuts to essential services such as public education and healthcare, as well as diminish civil rights in affected communities. “If this power grab goes unchecked, we will only see more drastic cuts to public education, healthcare, and other critical services and a further erosion of basic civil and human rights in our communities. Given these extreme threats, our union is supporting a statewide ballot initiative on redistricting in California planned for this November. This initiative is designed to counter the redistricting plan being led by Texas and other states and stop this blatant consolidation of power,” Goldberg explained.
The CTA’s statement also criticized certain members of Congress from California who would be affected by potential changes in district boundaries. According to Goldberg, these lawmakers have consistently prioritized corporate interests over those of students and local communities: “Every member of Congress who would be impacted by redistricting in our state has repeatedly sided with corporations and billionaires over our students and communities. Several of them lied directly to our members when we visited their offices this Spring to demand they vote against draconian cuts to our schools. They’ve made their priorities clear. California union educators will fight back against any and all attacks on our democracy and public education.”
The proposed ballot initiative aims to address concerns about fair representation in Congress amid ongoing debates over redistricting practices nationwide.
