California to Mail Corrections After Voter Guide Error in Special Redistricting Election

The replacement guides are expected to add millions of dollars in costs to an already pricey November vote on redrawing congressional lines.

People cast their ballots at a mobile outdoor vote center at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles on Election Day on Nov. 5, 2024. Robyn Beck/AFP via Getty Images

California election officials plan to send out postcards fixing a labeling mistake in voter information booklets distributed for the upcoming Nov. 4 special election, in which residents will decide on redrawing boundaries for U.S. House seats.

The correction effort, revealed by the California secretary of state’s office on Sept. 29, comes with a potential price tag in the millions of dollars, further inflating expenses for a ballot contest already projected to run up a tab of about $284 million statewide.

The error appeared in the official 2025 Voter Information Guide, specifically on a broad overview map on page 11 that wrongly tagged a proposed congressional area as District 22 rather than its accurate designation of District 27. That district, encompassing portions of the San Fernando Valley and Antelope Valley regions, is presently held by Rep. George Whitesides (D-Calif.) of Agua Dulce.

More detailed regional charts within the same guide, including one on page 15, displayed the correct label, and authorities stressed that the slip-up does not alter actual ballot options, proposed boundary shifts, or the voting mechanism itself.

“Accuracy in voter information is essential to maintaining public trust in California’s elections,” Secretary of State Shirley Weber said in a statement on Sept. 29. “We are taking swift, transparent action to ensure voters receive correct information. This mislabeling does not affect proposed districts, ballots, or the election process; it is solely a labeling error. Every eligible Californian can have full confidence that their vote will be counted and their representation is secure.”

Alongside the mailed notices, the office has refreshed its online voter resource at VoterGuide.sos.ca.gov with the amended graphic.

The guides will go to households that got the flawed guides, although specifics on whether they will target every registered individual—numbering about 23 million—or just per address remain unclear. Printing and postal fees alone could push the added outlay into the millions of dollars, compounding financial strains as California grapples with a substantial budget deficit. Mail-in voting begins in early October, heightening the urgency for the fixes to reach people before they mark their choices.

This incident unfolds against the backdrop of Proposition 50, the sole item on the special election ballot, which seeks to revise California’s congressional map in a way that could tilt five currently Republican-controlled seats to a Democratic advantage. The measure emerged from an August legislative session convened at the urging of Gov. Gavin Newsom and fellow Democrats aiming to offset map-redrawing efforts in Republican-dominated states such as Texas.

Proponents argue that it is a defensive strategy to maintain balance in Congress, in which control could rest on a handful of districts amid tight national races. Critics have condemned the measure as unconstitutional, pointing to a current provision in the state’s constitution that removes redistricting powers from the Legislature and governor.

“The Prop. 50 power grab was rushed through so fast by greedy politicians that glaring mistakes were made, raising serious questions about what else was missed,” said Jessica Millan Patterson, former chair of the California Republican Party. “California taxpayers are already on the hook for a nearly $300 million special election, and now they’re paying to fix mistakes too. Californians deserve transparency, not backroom politics.”

Paul Mitchell, a consultant on Democratic mapping who helped craft the suggested boundaries, did not respond to a request for comment.

Democrats currently control 43 of California’s 52 U.S. House seats, while Republicans hold nine.

The state’s current congressional maps, drawn by the independent California Citizens Redistricting Commission after the 2020 census, came into effect in 2022. That commission, created through a 2008 voter-approved constitutional amendment, keeps the Legislature and governor largely out of the process of redistricting.

Prop 50 would adjust the maps for the 2026, 2028, and 2030 elections, shifting historically Democratic voters into the GOP districts to increase the chances of flipping them blue.

If approved, the new maps would expire after 2030, with the redistricting commission resuming its role to draw fresh boundaries for 2032 based on that year’s census.

Joseph Lord contributed to this report.