California has passed a new congressional map with six more Latino-majority districts, which could benefit Democrats as they seek greater support in this year's midterms if they can maintain their historically gained influence, reversing Republican incursions among Latino voters.

The release of the 2020 Census marked the official start of the once-a-decade redistricting battles as the population size varies. In the process, some states lose seats in the House of Representatives and others gain. Redistricting should be done in a technical way, considering the population density of each district. However, depending on the majority party in each state, the new design is made to ensure maximum results for that group, at the expense of legitimacy.

In December, the California Citizen Redistricting Commission (CRC) approved final maps for the state's new political districts, and California's new Congressional map could, in theory, benefit the vote of Latino and simultaneously, give Democrats a new lease of life in the national context as they vie for control in Congress.

“California law requires the CRC to pay serious attention to the Federal Voting Rights Act (VRA), which requires the commission to draw districts for an underrepresented racial or ethnic group where that group is large, geographically concentrated, and politically distinct. The law also includes provisions for “communities of interest” that can sometimes be interpreted as encouraging more districts for underrepresented groups where their populations might influence but not determine election outcomes”, according to Public Policy Institute of California.

California is among 36 states that have passed maps in the 10-year redistricting process. The new map of Congress brings the total number of Latino-majority districts in the state to 16, which represents about 30% of the state's 52 congressional districts, according to the Institute.

According to Institute, “Democrats would do quite well under the new maps, winning 41 congressional seats, 31 state senate seats, and 62 state assembly seats”.

Democrats, however, should not take for granted political success in Latino-majority districts, as this electorate has demonstrated different priorities in different regions of the country, including California.

According to Christian Arana, vice president of the Latino Community Foundation (an independent non-profit Latino advocacy organization) to CNBC, “California’s Latino vote could be the best and last hope for Democrats nationally  […], But therewould need to be more engagement and investment in these majority-Latino districts”.

Even so, holding the ground or winning more Democratic seats in California could boost the party during the midterm elections, in addition to ending a possible trend of falling political and popular support for President Joe Biden. A significant portion of Hispanic/Latino voters who in 2020 overwhelmingly voted for the Democratic candidate for the White House are leaving the Democratic Party, as demonstrated by a poll in December 2021.