By Cris Alarcon, InEDC Writer. (Aug 21, 2025)<\/p>\n
El Dorado County District Attorney Vern Pierson<\/strong> on Wednesday used social media to accuse Gov. Gavin Newsom of<\/p>\n \u201cattempting to defy the will of Californians,\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n criticizing the governor\u2019s opposition to Proposition 36 and a new push in Sacramento to redraw California\u2019s congressional maps before 2030.<\/p>\n \u201cIs Governor Newsom once again attempting to defy the will of Californians?<\/em>\u201d<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n Pierson wrote, adding that he co-authored Proposition 36 and that Rep. Kevin Kiley, R-Rocklin, was \u201cinstrumental\u201d in helping qualify and support it.<\/p>\n Proposition 36, a 2024 ballot measure that increases penalties for certain drug and theft crimes and creates \u201ctreatment-mandated\u201d felonies in some cases, passed with about 68%<\/strong> support statewide. The measure rolled back parts of Proposition 47 and took effect in late 2024. Pierson is listed publicly as a co-sponsor; Kiley campaigned for the measure.<\/p>\n Newsom opposed Prop. 36 and last year signed a separate package of retail-theft bills, arguing his approach targeted organized theft without reviving mass incarceration. \u201cThis is the real deal. Grocers and retailers understand that,<\/em>\u201d the governor said when signing the legislation on Aug. 16, 2024. He had earlier floated\u2014and then pulled\u2014a competing anti-crime ballot measure as talks with initiative backers collapsed.<\/p>\n Pierson also alleged the governor \u201crefused to fund\u201d Prop. 36 by claiming treatment beds are too costly. Fiscal debates have been ongoing: while some advocates and editorial boards criticized Newsom\u2019s initial budget drafts for lacking dedicated dollars to expand treatment capacity under Prop. 36, the final 2025-26 spending plan approved in July included $80 million<\/strong> for counties to implement voter-approved crime reforms.<\/p>\n The district attorney further tied his critique to the governor\u2019s new redistricting<\/strong> push, which would ask voters to approve mid-decade congressional map changes through a special election\u2014sidestepping the state\u2019s voter-created Citizens Redistricting Commission. Newsom and Democratic leaders argue the change is about fairness and compliance with federal law; Republicans and good-government groups call it a power play that weakens independent map-drawing. The debate is rapidly evolving in Sacramento this week.<\/p>\n For El Dorado County readers, the stakes are local: Kiley\u2019s 3rd Congressional District includes much of the region. He won re-election in 2024 over Democrat Jessica Morse, a former Newsom administration official\u2014context for Pierson\u2019s claim that voters here rebuked the governor\u2019s political orbit.<\/p>\n Some of Pierson\u2019s broader critiques mix fact and argument. California does have one of the highest unemployment rates<\/strong> among states this year and the largest total homeless population<\/strong> in the nation, driven especially by unsheltered homelessness. But drug mortality rates are more complex; California\u2019s per-capita overdose death rate trails several states even as fentanyl deaths rise. Those data points will shape the upcoming policy fights over treatment capacity and sentencing under Prop. 36.<\/p>\n A spokesperson for the governor did not immediately respond to a request for comment Wednesday. In past remarks, Newsom has framed his approach as balancing accountability and reform: \u201cWe didn\u2019t just wake up to this issue,<\/em>\u201d he said of retail theft last year, touting new tools for prosecutors and police.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" El Dorado DA Vern Pierson took aim at Gov. Newsom over Prop. 36 funding and a new redistricting push. The governor points to new laws and budget money<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":9784,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jnews-multi-image_gallery":[],"jnews_single_post":{"format":"standard","override":[{"template":"7","parallax":"1","layout":"no-sidebar-narrow","sidebar":"default-sidebar","second_sidebar":"default-sidebar","sticky_sidebar":"1","share_position":"float","share_float_style":"share-normal","show_share_counter":"1","show_view_counter":"1","show_featured":"1","show_post_meta":"1","show_post_author":"1","show_post_author_image":"1","show_post_date":"1","post_date_format":"default","post_date_format_custom":"Y\/m\/d","show_post_category":"1","post_reading_time_wpm":"300","post_calculate_word_method":"str_word_count","show_zoom_button":"0","zoom_button_out_step":"2","zoom_button_in_step":"3","show_post_tag":"1","show_popup_post":"1","number_popup_post":"1","show_author_box":"1","show_post_related":"1","show_inline_post_related":"1"}],"image_override":[{"single_post_thumbnail_size":"crop-500","single_post_gallery_size":"crop-500"}],"trending_post_position":"meta","trending_post_label":"Trending","sponsored_post_label":"Sponsored by","disable_ad":"0","subtitle":"Local prosecutor says governor is \u201cdefying voters\u201d on crime and maps; Newsom points to new retail-theft laws and budget money for implementation"},"jnews_primary_category":[],"jnews_social_meta":[],"jnews_override_counter":{"view_counter_number":"0","share_counter_number":"0","like_counter_number":"0","dislike_counter_number":"0"},"footnotes":""},"categories":[5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-9782","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-government"],"yoast_head":"\n\n
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