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It’s not a presidential election year or even the midterms, but the stakes for Election Day 2025 remain undeniably high, with outcomes that could leave a lasting impact on the nation’s direction.Will California redefine the congressional landscape ahead of 2026? Could New York City elect a democratic socialist as its next mayor? And how will the perception of the Trump administration impact critical gubernatorial contests in New Jersey and Virginia?This week holds the answers to those pressing questions. Here’s what you need to know before the results start rolling in tomorrow night.California’s Prop 50On Nov. 4, Californians will vote on Proposition 50, Prop 50 for short, which is a ballot measure to redraw the congressional districts in the state to favor the Democratic Party. The measure is a response to similar efforts by Republicans in Texas, Missouri and North Carolina.California currently has 52 seats in the U.S. House of Representatives. Forty-three of the seats are held by Democrats and nine by Republicans. The new map attempts to remove five Republicans and replace them with Democrats by funneling more urban voters into traditionally rural districts.The redrawn map would remain in place until after the 2030 elections. Gov. Gavin Newsom has pushed hard for approval of Prop 50, emphasizing that it is a justified rebuttal to the Trump administration-led redistricting in other states, giving the Democratic Party a chance to take back a majority in the House of Representatives in 2026.“(President Donald Trump) is changing the rules. He’s rigging the game because he knows he’ll lose if all things are equal,” Newsom told NBC News last week. “He did not expect California to fight fire with fire.”Prop 50 has also been endorsed by most Democratic state leaders, former President Barack Obama, former Vice President Kamala Harris and Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin.Former California Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has been a vocal critic of Prop 50 and a strong advocate to vote down the ballot measure."It is insane," the former Republican governor and action-movie star said last month."It doesn't make any sense to me that because we have to fight Trump, to become Trump," Schwarzenegger added. "Two wrongs don't make a right."Current polling indicates that Prop 50 is likely to pass, with a Berkeley IGS survey from late October showing that 60% of voters support the measure, while 38% oppose it. NYC mayorThe race to lead the largest city in the U.S. has come down to three candidates: Democratic nominee Zohran Mamdani, Republican nominee Curtis Sliwa and former Gov. Andrew Cuomo, who is running as an independent.Mamdani, a state assemblyman and self-described democratic socialist, is seen as the favorite after soundly defeating Cuomo in June’s Democratic primary. According to aggregate polling from Decision Desk HQ, Mamdani is at 44.4%, Cuomo is at 33.7% and Sliwa trails at 18%.Mamdani, 33, is running on an ambitious progressive agenda, promising to freeze the rent for stabilized tenants, free public buses, city-owned grocery stores and free childcare for children under 5 years old.Cuomo, who resigned as New York’s governor in 2021 following sexual misconduct allegations, is running to Mamdani’s right, attacking the democratic socialist for being impractical and antagonistic.“Socialism didn’t work in Venezuela. Socialism didn’t work in Cuba. Socialism is not going to work in New York City,” Cuomo said during a campaign stop this week.The 67-year-old Cuomo is also touting outgoing Mayor Eric Adams’ endorsement. Adams withdrew from the race on Sept. 28 after his reelection campaign as an independent failed to gain momentum. Still, Adams’ name will appear on the ballot.Sliwa is the Republican mayoral nominee for the second straight cycle, losing to Adams in 2021. Sliwa, 71, is the founder of the Guardian Angels, a nonprofit volunteer organization that has specialized in unarmed crime prevention in New York City since 1979.President Trump endorsed Cuomo on Monday evening, stating that a vote for Sliwa was essentially a vote for Mamdani."Whether you personally like Andrew Cuomo or not, you really have no choice. You must vote for him, and hope he does a fantastic job," Trump posted on Truth Social Monday evening. "He is capable of it, Mamdani is not!"Trump added that if Mamdani wins, he would likely withhold additional federal funds from the state."If Communist Candidate Zohran Mamdani wins the Election for Mayor of New York City, it is highly unlikely that I will be contributing Federal Funds, other than the very minimum as required," Trump wrote. "This once great City has ZERO chance of success, or even survival! It can only get worse with a Communist at the helm, and I don’t want to send, as President, good money after bad." Virginia governorSince 1973, Virginians have only once elected a governor of the same party as the sitting president — in 2013 when Democrat Terry McAuliffe won.This year, Republican nominee and current Lt. Gov. Winsome Earle-Sears is looking to replicate McAuliffe’s success. She is facing Democratic nominee and former U.S. Rep. Abigail Spanberger.Earle-Sears, 61, has made issues related to transgender people a main sticking point in the race. She has attacked Spanberger for supporting policies that would allow transgender individuals to use their preferred facilities and compete in their preferred sports.Spanberger has repeatedly affirmed her support for the LGBTQ+ community, but she has largely avoided delving into the details of her exact policy positions, stating that decisions about transgender students should be left up to local communities.The 46-year-old Spanberger has run a mostly moderate campaign, focusing on pragmatic solutions to rising housing, healthcare and energy costs. “Don’t promise things you know you can’t deliver,” Spanberger said to reporters aboard her campaign bus this week.Notably, Virginia is home to roughly 150,000 civilian federal workers. It will be interesting to see if the Trump administration’s antagonistic approach to that group, as well as the financial stress induced by the current shutdown, will have an impact on the race.At the time of print, Trump has not endorsed Earle-Sears, though he is scheduled to do a tele-rally for Republicans in Virginia on Monday.Right now, Spanberger is leading in the polls, with Decision Desk HQ showing her with a nearly 10-point lead over Earle-Sears. Either way, Virginia is set to elect its first female governor this week.While in Virginia, one other race to watch is for attorney general. Democrat Jay Jones is challenging incumbent Republican Jason Miyares.Jones made headlines earlier in the cycle when texts leaked of him making disparaging and even violent comments about Republican state leaders and their families. Spanberger and other Democratic leaders strongly condemned Jones’ comments, but Spanberger received pushback from Republicans for not calling on Jones to drop out of the race.According to Decision Desk HQ, Jones trails Miyares by about 2% in polls.New Jersey governorUnlike Earle-Sears, Republican nominee Jack Ciattarelli has received the full backing of Trump.“JACK CIATTARELLI IS A WINNER FOR NEW JERSEY! Mikie Sherrill is the exact opposite, a stone cold loser, who will drive your Energy costs through the roof, just like the Democrats are doing all over the Country but, even more so, because she has no understanding of what she is doing,” Trump wrote on social media last month.Ciattarelli, 63, is a former state legislator. He is facing Democratic nominee and U.S. Rep. Mikie Sherrill, who has represented New Jersey’s 11th congressional district since 2019.This race is a fascinating test case to see if New Jersey's recent rightward shift can be sustained. In 2020, Joe Biden won the state by nearly 16%. In 2024, Kamala Harris only carried the Garden State by roughly 6%. The GOP has not won a statewide election since 2013, but the party hopes to change that this year.“Republicans are energized and ready to take back our state, but only if YOU show up to vote,” Ciattarelli wrote on social media. “It’s time to flip NJ RED!”Sherrill has maintained a confidence that New Jersey will remain blue."New Jersey is not a red state. I love you guys, but New Jersey is not a red state," Sherrill told supporters this past weekend. "I've got some even better news, guys. New Jersey is not a purple state… New Jersey is a blue state. That's right. That is right. I have seen the polling numbers, guys. I've seen it. I've seen it. So when we vote, we win.”Sherrill has also received the backing of a commander-in-chief: Barack Obama.The 44th President spoke at a rally on Saturday, sharply attacking Trump and the GOP.“If you meet this moment... You will not just put New Jersey on a better path. You will set a glorious example for this nation," he said.“You’ve got a candidate for governor who is a proven fighter, someone who will work for you every single day,” Obama added. As one of the most expensive states in the country, affordability has been a central topic in this New Jersey race. Sherrill has linked Ciattarelli to Trump’s tariffs and Republican-led healthcare cuts, while Ciattarelli has criticized Gov. Phil Murphy and the Democrats for the rising cost of living.According to Decision Desk HQ, Sherrill currently leads by approximately 4%, but Ciattarelli has been closing the gap quickly as the election approaches.Correction: A previous version of this story stated that President Trump had not made an endorsement in the New York City mayoral race. It has been updated to show that Trump has endorsed Cuomo.