California electoral votes

But, even if it never happens, the proposal creates any number of fascinating scenarios to examine for political junkies. And, no, we can't resist.

Let's start with the basics. The number of U.S. Senators would jump to 12 - as each of the five new states would be allotted two Senators. As for the House, the addition of five new states would change the current dynamics but not dramatically; the most populous regions (which are heavily Democratic) would still have more representatives than the more sparsely populated ones.

"It seems like there is a net plus of safe Democratic seats in the Senate, " said Rob Stutzman, a California-based GOP strategist, who added that while it seems far-fetched, the six-state plan is - on its face - plausible. "If you look at these proposed states in a vacuum, they all make sense."

Using 2012 presidential election vote tallies as a baseline, we've determined that the Six Californias would break down this way: 1) Three solidly blue states (North California, Silicon Valley, West California) 2) Three swing states (Jefferson, Central California and South California - two of which would lean Republican). Here's a breakdown of the politics of each one.

1. Jefferson (Swing state/leaning Republican)

The northern-most state under the Six California plan combines the state's 14 northern-most counties to form "Jefferson". It would be the smallest of the six Californias in terms of population. With roughly 950, 000 residents, it would be the 7th least populous state, having roughly the same number of residents as Delaware.

Jefferson would include some of the most Republican-counties in all of the six Californias - 11 of which backed Mitt Romney in 2012. In fact, had Jefferson been an independent state in 2012, Romney would have defeated Barack Obama there by more than 20, 000 votes. There's a good chance that, with the right candidates, Jefferson could send a Republican-heavy delegation to Congress. Still, statewide elections in Jefferson would be competitive.

2. North California (Democratic state)

This is another of the smallest states - in both geography and population - of the six Californias. North California is home to Sacramento as well the crucial YOLO County (Ok, we're not actually sure if it's electorally crucial, but we had to find a reason to give this place a mention).