OAN Staff Abril Elfi
6:14 PM – Thursday, August 28, 2025
The head of the Republican caucus in the California State Assembly has proposed splitting California into two states in protest of congressional redistricting efforts by Governor Gavin Newsom and state Democrats.
On Tuesday, Assemblymember James Gallagher (R-Calif.), who represents East Nicolaus in Sutter County, announced that he will introduce Joint Resolution 23 at the Capitol on Wednesday, alongside other GOP lawmakers.
“I have come to see that the only way we can obtain proper attention is by pursuing our own statehood. With this measure, we will begin the first step of that process,” Gallagher said in an announcement on the social media platform X.
The proposal calls for the creation of a new state made up of 35 inland counties, the majority of which lean Republican.
This new state would include more than 10 million residents, stretching from California’s northern border all the way down to Mexico.
If adopted, the resolution would only state the Legislature’s support for the split, while recognizing that the ultimate authority rests with the federal government. The measure would then be submitted to Congress for consideration.
In order to advance, the resolution would need approval from both chambers of the California Legislature, the Assembly and the State Senate. Democrats, however, hold supermajorities in both chambers. Congress would also have to vote in favor of admitting any new state to the union.
The last time a U.S. state was successfully divided was in 1863, when West Virginia separated from Virginia amid the Civil War.
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