Barack Obama has entered California’s redistricting fight, and he’s using one of Donald Trump’s favorite talking points to blast the president.
In a new ad backing Gov. Gavin Newsom’s Proposition 50 campaign, the former president warns voters that Republicans are “trying to steal enough seats in Congress to rig the next election.” As he delivers the line, images of Trump flash across the screen.
“California, the whole nation is counting on you,” Obama says in the spot, which began airing Tuesday across broadcast, cable, and digital platforms. “Democracy is on the ballot November 4th.”
Obama never mentions Trump by name, but his remarks directly echo one of the current president’s favorite complaints—election-rigging—turning the rhetoric back on Republicans as Democrats work to boost turnout ahead of next month’s special election.
“Listen to @barackobama,” Newsom wrote on X, sharing the video.
The ad marks Obama’s most visible move yet in support of Proposition 50, Newsom’s redistricting initiative aimed at countering GOP-led mapmaking efforts in states like Texas. He previously praised Newsom’s push at an August fundraiser and on social media but had not appeared on camera until now.
Newsom, widely seen as a potential 2028 presidential contender, has recruited a roster of prominent Democrats to rally the base, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-MA), and Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA).
By contrast, the measure’s opponents have steered clear of major Republican surrogates. Their most recognizable supporter is former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, whose long-running feud with Trump makes him an awkward fit for the MAGA-aligned “no” campaign.
Proposition 50 has become a proxy for broader national battles over political power and gerrymandering, with Democrats arguing it’s a safeguard for fair representation and Republicans calling it a partisan power grab.
A spokesperson for the pro-Prop. 50 campaign declined to disclose how much was spent on the Obama ad buy.
Election-rigging, meanwhile, has long been a favorite talking point of Trump’s. This is despite his ramblings having been debunked. His go-tos are fraud via mail-in voting, fraud by noncitizen voting, fraud by a vast interstate conspiracy and, of course, fraud orchestrated by the Democratic Party.
The president has spent the past few months working his favorite grievance back into regular rotation. In an August fundraising blast, he warned supporters that his 2025 victory needed to be “TOO BIG TO RIG” by Democrats.
At a rally in Atlanta on Aug. 3, he said, “We have to vote and we have to make sure that we stop them from cheating, because they cheat like dogs.”
Speaking to the Fraternal Order of Police on Sept. 6, he repeated the line: “Watch for the voter fraud, because we win without voter fraud, we win so easily.”
Later that month, he told Dr Phil McGraw, “Anytime you have a mail-in ballot, there is going to be massive fraud.”
At a Las Vegas rally on Sept. 13, Trump promised “long-term prison sentences” for election “cheaters,” adding, “We have a good lead, but we’ve got to be careful because remember, they cheat like hell.”
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