‘California will not sit back’: Immigrant advocates encourage people to vote Yes on Prop. 50

Calling it “the easiest election of our lifetime” since there is only one question on the ballot, advocates are encouraging voters to say yes to Prop. 50 on Nov. 4.

Prop 50, on the Nov. 4 statewide ballot, is a response to Texas Gov. Greg Abbott announcing his state would be redrawing its congressional district maps, effectively eliminating five Democrat-held seats. Abbott’s decision came after pressure from President Donald Trump to ensure Republicans keep their majority in Congress come 2026. 

The Coalition for Humane Rights in Los Angeles (CHIRLA) Action Fund and other allies held a press conference on Tuesday morning to highlight the fact that the Trump administration is changing the way people live in normal times. 

Advocates said Republicans keep bulldozing measures against immigrants, unions, workers, women and the LGBTQ+ communities.

“The Trump administration has indiscriminately gone after Latino neighborhoods and targeted our neighbors and loved ones just because of how they look, the language they speak, the way we dress and where we work or shop,” said Fatima Flores-Lagunas, political director with CHIRLA Action Fund. “Prop 50 will help us slow down the Trump power grab in the upcoming 2026 elections,” 

Flores-Lagunas said this election cannot be taken lightly, as it will have serious consequences – as we have seen in the past.

People can vote now

Election season has started, and ballots were mailed on Oct. 4. At this point, most voters should have their ballot, and there are several counties where people can vote early in person.  

Mynor Godoy, member of MVP Action Fund, said that by voting yes on 50, Californians will push back against Trump's extremist election rigging agenda. Many families are struggling to put food on the table, including federal employees, as the country enters the third week of the government shutdown.

Additionally, several communities are being torn apart due to the massive raids. 

“People are scared to go to work. Kids are suffering in schools. Elders are skipping their health appointments and parents are worried not just about their children's future, but about their own, said Godoy. “This isn't just about politics. It's about fighting for a basic right to live peacefully, freely and with dignity.”

The Get Out the Vote campaign has done outreach in communities most impacted by the Trump administration. Godoy said they have knocked thousands of doors, canvassing in neighborhoods, dialed millions of voters’ numbers, not just in English but also in Spanish, Korean, Chinese, Vietnamese, Hmong and Tagalog. 

“We're here to say, ‘vote yes on Prop 50,’” said Godoy. “Voting yes on Prop 50 is California's chance to fight back against the Trump administration's abuse of power.”

Continue the movement

Angelica Salsa, CHIRLA’s Action Fund president, said this is one of the most important elections of our lifetime, and one of the simplest elections because there is only one question.

She said Californians across the state have seen or experienced attacks from violent enforcement actions. 

Salas said that every single day, racial profiling, kidnapping, harassment and unlawful detentions are happening to people regardless of their immigration status.

“This President has made a decision that he's going to use the Marines, the National Guard, every single federal agency and supercharge the enforcement apparatus against our people, and so for us as Californians, we cannot sit back and just let things happen,” she said. 

“We're not sitting idly by while Trump and the Republicans manipulate the congressional maps and in their favor in the 2026 election.”

Salas said it is important to continue advocating for states like California that have decided to be pro-immigrant and progressive. 

And she said that California is so progressive and inclusive that, unlike in Texas where redistricting is imposed, in California, redistricting has led to a vote and the will of the people. 

“We cannot allow Trump and his Republicans to amass more power and use this against our families and our communities,” she said. “And so our state will defend our community. California will not sit back.”