WASHINGTON 

US President Donald Trump maligned a new redistricting effort in the state of California on Friday that was overwhelmingly approved by voters in a rebuke to his efforts to hedge his electoral chances ahead of next year’s midterm elections.

"I heard that a big lawsuit will be taking place, is, but will be taking place concerning the California hoax, where they're trying to get five more seats, and California is one of the most dishonest elections ever," he told reporters on Air Force One.

"California is a disgrace on voting, and they're doing something that is very illegal. So, we will be suing California on the five seats," Trump added.

He alleged that officials in California mailed out "10s of billions of ballots to people all over the place. Many of those people get two or three ballots." He likely meant "tens of millions," not billions.

While California is by far the most populous US state, it has a population of just 39.5 million people. The state mails ballots to all registered voters as part of its efforts to facilitate voting, in part because the US, unlike most other industrialized nations, does not make Election Day a holiday.

Just about 60% of Americans vote in presidential election years, with even fewer showing up in off-year elections like the ones held in states this year.

Earlier this month, California voters overwhelmingly supported Proposition 50, with nearly two-thirds approving the ballot measure amid an ongoing power play between Trump and Democratic governors.

The Justice Department sued California on Thursday to block the new congressional map, which is intended to flip five seats in the House of Representatives for Democrats.

Attorney General Pam Bondi called the redistricting map a "brazen power grab that tramples on civil rights and mocks the democratic process."

"Governor (Gavin) Newsom’s attempt to entrench one-party rule and silence millions of Californians will not stand," she said in a statement.

Newsom put the map before voters in response to Texas' decision to redistrict that state with the expectation that Republicans would be able to win five new House seats in the southern state. Trump has urged Texas and other Republican states to carry out off-year redistricting in the hopes of shoring up their electoral prospects.

Trump is seeking to maintain Republican control of the House during the final two years of his presidency. The party in power, in this case Republicans, typically loses seats in Congress during midterm election cycles.

Unlike in California, voters did not approve Texas' new district map. It was instead rushed through the legislature by Gov. Greg Abbott at Trump's direction.

The Justice Department is joining an earlier lawsuit launched by the California Republican Party, one day after Prop 50 won widespread support.

The lawsuit, brought forward by State Assemblyman David Tangipa and 18 co-plaintiffs, alleges that Proposition 50 "unconstitutionally gerrymanders districts in violation of the 14th and 15th Amendments" of the US Constitution.