Historically, UC Irvine has not been a hotbed of on-campus political activity. This made sense when our home in Orange County used to be safe Republican territory — not the place where intense activism would thrive — but that isn’t our environment anymore.
Our county now stands at the forefront of all the most important debates animating American political discourse, divided nearly right down the middle.
There is virtually nobody better positioned in the country to make a difference, nobody more impacted by the actions of this administration, than a UCI student. That’s why I’m asking you to step up and vote yes on Proposition 50 this November.
In the short time Donald Trump has been in office, he has trampled on our constitutional rights.
Immigration enforcement has rampaged through the most vulnerable of our communities, depriving citizens and noncitizens alike of basic civil liberties. These raids are not confined to some faraway land, with sweeping raids in Santa Ana and ICE activity even here in Irvine.
Five students here at UCI have had their visas revoked for speech protected under the First Amendment, as the administration seeks to punish the most vulnerable for opinions it finds objectionable.
The UC system itself is wrestling to retain funding as the administration wages war on academia, from terminating research grants to calling Hispanic-serving institutions unconstitutional.
Trump and Republicans know this is all deeply unpopular, so they’re seeking to rig the game. Republicans know they’ll be voted out when they run on policy, so they’re changing the rules to better their odds of reelection.
This November, we have an opportunity to stand up to the Trump administration and help protect democracy across all 50 states. Proposition 50, the Election Rigging Response Act, levels the playing field, temporarily redrawing California’s congressional maps to combat Republican redistricting efforts in other states, making it so that when voters cast their ballots at the midterms, they’ll actually have a fair shot at making their voice heard and holding their government accountable.
If we pass Prop 50, we can make sure that Republicans don’t get to enact damaging policies without consequences.
Here’s a glimpse of how this applies to students here at UCI every single day.
They pose importance for the incoming freshman, who worry about what the status of financial aid will look like a year or two from now.
They pose importance for the new graduate, who enters a job market rattled by tariffs, inflation, and slow job growth.
They pose importance for the foreign exchange student, whose social media must be combed for opinions the administration deems thoughtcrime, and who must not be too vocal lest they be snatched away and deported.
As an American citizen, I understand I have extraordinary privilege. I can speak out without fear that I will be deported. I can write this op-ed knowing that I won’t be snatched up off the street for it. Rümeysa Öztürk couldn’t.
This administration is increasingly unpopular, and so is the Congress that supports it. Take a look at any video from a Republican town hall in recent months, and that will become apparent.
The choice we are now faced with is how we can mobilize to stop an authoritarian takeover of our country.
Republicans barely took the House in 2024. A five-seat swing towards Democrats would have prevented the Big Ugly Bill, ICE’s ballooning budget, the defunding of public media and so much more.
A Democratic majority in Congress may not be a magical fix-all, but it would be a monumental step towards reining in an administration that thinks it has no constraints. Democrats could conduct oversight, hold hearings to grill officials in the administration and take back power in government funding and budget negotiations.
A blue Congress ends Trump’s agenda in its tracks. Why else would he be so terrified of the possibility?
Ground zero starts here, at UCI. Register to vote at your on-campus address, rather than back home, to directly impact Irvine elections. None is more important to us now than Prop 50. Election day is November 4, 2025, so change your voter registration by Monday, October 20, to be mailed a ballot.
The College Democrats at UCI are going to be at the forefront of this battle. We’re working in conjunction with Orange County Young Democrats and the Newport Beach Women’s Democratic Club to register people on campus and conduct our get-out-the-vote effort.
On October 8, we were joined by Lieutenant Governor Eleni Kounalakis, among other local officials for a Get Out The Vote rally. We have the momentum, the energy, and the organization to hit the ground running and ensure Orange County votes YES on 50 this November.
While we wait until November, spend a few hours phone banking and canvass the community to help our neighbors understand what is at stake. And most of all, VOTE to send Trump and his cronies packing two years early.
Isaiah Reynoso is a third-year political science student and Policy Advisor for College Democrats at UCI. He can be reached at reynosi2@uci.edu.
Edited by Joshua Gonzales
