‘Gavin, Let My People Go,’ California Assemblyman Says as Two Counties Vote to Support Splitting the State

Two rural California counties voted unanimously to back a proposal that would split the Golden State in two. Yuba County supervisors approved their resolution in the morning, and Sutter County supervisors followed in the afternoon. Both counties sit north of Sacramento and would be part of the proposed new state under Assembly Joint Resolution 23, introduced by Assemblyman James Gallagher of Yuba City.

The Plan Would Carve Out 35 Inland Counties

Gallagher’s resolution calls for splitting off 35 inland counties into a separate state, covering most of Northern California, the Sierra Nevada, the Central Valley, and the Inland Empire. The accompanying map keeps the state’s major population centers, including the Bay Area, Los Angeles, San Diego, and Sacramento, in one state. The measure was introduced last August in response to Proposition 50, the redistricting measure, according to the Sacramento Bee.

Gallagher Calls Out Newsom by Name at Press Conference 

At a press conference introducing the proposal, Gallagher, who is currently running for Congress, said, “Gavin, let my people go. We would like a better way forward, and we can no longer abide a government that gives us no voice.” The remark came as Yuba and Sutter counties prepared to vote on resolutions backing his plan.

County Supervisors Point to Water, Wildfires, and Redistricting

The resolutions in both counties point to several fault lines between inland and coastal California, including water rights, wildfire protection, and Proposition 50, the redistricting measure both counties cited in their resolutions. The documents frame those issues as evidence of a long-standing divide in how state resources and political power reach inland communities, according to KCRA 3.

A Supervisor Calls Out Spending on Homelessness and High-Speed Rail

Yuba County Supervisor Andy Vasquez Jr. pointed to the state’s budget as another source of tension, saying, “If you look at the funds Governor Newsom has wasted, both on the train to nowhere, homelessness, the amount of corruption in this state is unbelievable,” Vasquez said, according to the New York Post. He added that rural communities feel governed entirely by San Francisco and Los Angeles, with no meaningful say of their own.

A Sutter Supervisor Says the State Is Not One-Size-Fits-All

Sutter County Supervisor Mike Ziegenmeyer said the state’s approach to governance doesn’t fit every community equally. “California’s not a one-size-fits-all,” he said, according to the Sacramento Bee. “I respect other places, other cities, other counties, but we just have a way of doing things here.” Yuba Supervisor Renick House separately said rural counties spend millions, if not billions, lobbying for services they argue should come automatically.

The Proposal Faces Long Odds in Sacramento

For the split to move forward, a majority in both the state Assembly and Senate would need to approve the plan, and Congress would also have to sign off. That approval is considered unlikely given the current balance of power. Democrats hold a supermajority in both chambers, according to KCRA 3, giving the party enough votes to block the measure without Republican support. Gallagher is also currently running for Congress, and the resolution is not expected to advance.

Newsom Dismisses the Idea as a Political Stunt

Newsom’s office responded to the proposal with a sharp rebuke when Gallagher first introduced it. In a previous statement, the governor’s office said, “A person who seeks to split California does not deserve to hold office in the Golden State. This is a stunt that will go nowhere.” The Sacramento Bee reported the statement, which predated Tuesday’s votes.

California Has Seen 220 Previous Attempts to Split

The push to split California is older than most people realize. The state library has recorded 220 previous attempts, including one that predated statehood in 1850, according to the Sacramento Bee. Among them was the State of Jefferson movement, which sought to group Northern California with several Southern Oregon counties and might have succeeded had World War II not intervened, Gallagher noted. Gallagher has acknowledged the long odds but argues that the push reflects a genuine need for rural communities to have a stronger voice.

The Counties Have Made Their Case 

The resolutions in Yuba and Sutter counties carry no legislative weight on their own, but they reflect a broader tension that has persisted in California for years, with rural communities arguing the state’s political center of gravity leaves them behind. Whether the proposal gains traction beyond symbolic gestures remains to be seen, but for now, the counties have made clear where they stand, and Tuesday’s votes are unlikely to be the last word on the matter.