WhatMatters

The blue tsunami was bigger than almost any Democrat could dream up. Democrats not only reclaimed control of the House by a decisive margin, but they flipped the Senate too, claiming seats in deep red states like Kansas, South Carolina, and Texas. That gives the party a powerful check on President Donald Trump in his […]

Election Day is here and it’s an exciting one. Tonight we’ll start to learn which party controls Congress in the final two years of President Donald Trump’s term, whether Californians want to tax billionaires and if Democrats will continue a run that dates to 2010 of winning every statewide office. We have reporters all over […]

Some California counties are issuing guidelines restricting the press from documenting Election Day proceedings at polling places in ways that appear to violate state statutes and the First Amendment.  A coalition of media outlets, led by CalMatters, and a First Amendment advocacy group sent a letter to Kern County raising these concerns, after county elections […]

How do you distinguish between the two Democrats running for insurance commissioner? Well, one of them wants state-backed public insurance. We have more on that, as well as details on a move campaigns are using to dodge spending limits this fall. But we have more than election news in your inbox today. California employers scored […]

We’ve got so much news in today’s WhatMatters: The latest homeless numbers, a brand new tool and the passing of an icon whose work transcended the California farmworker movement and became a worldwide symbol for human rights. We also have some breaking news this morning. The head of California’s high-speed rail agency resigned late last […]

Californians’ appetite for a first-in-the-nation wealth tax appears to be waning. With less than a week before Election Day, support for Proposition 40, a proposed billionaire tax, is now under water, according to the latest poll by Public Policy Institute of California. Published Tuesday, the survey found that 46% of 1,086 likely voters support the […]

Democrats are ahead in the polls and appear to be on track to flip at least one branch of Congress next week. But if they win, would Republicans refuse to accept the results? That may sound impossible, but memories of Jan. 6 led a bipartisan pair of federal lawmakers to urge their colleagues in Congress […]

Does more housing mean more sprawl? Traditional supporters of building more homes are split over a ballot measure that backers say would create more California homes. As CalMatters’ Ben Christopher explains, Proposition 45 would limit environmental reviews under the California Environmental Quality Act. It would help developers advance projects they deem as “essential” faster and […]

California’s carbon market was supposed to help the state cut pollution and reach its ambitious zero-emissions climate goals. But 20 years after its creation, some environmental advocates argue recent changes to the program will greatly diminish its effectiveness, and the fallout could land at the feet of the next governor.  As Emma Foehringer Merchant explains […]

Some low-income seniors and people with disabilities are being forced to draw down their savings to retain their healthcare coverage under a new Medi-Cal asset limit, writes CalMatters’ Kristen Hwang. The new limit kicks certain groups off of Medi-Cal if they have more than $21,000 in savings as of July 2027. State lawmakers lowered the […]