WhatMatters

In the battle over whether to change a California crime law, both supporters and critics are waging their campaign not only through crime statistics but also by invoking harrowing anecdotes — including one involving American rapper Lil Nas X. As Gagandeep Singh for CalMatters explains, legislators are advancing a bill that would lower the threshold […]

To vote early, or not to vote early? That is the question — at least for some California Democrats who want to avoid seeing two Republicans as the only candidates for governor come November. As CalMatters’ Maya C. Miller explains, fears that two GOP candidates will advance through the June primary because Democratic voters failed […]

What was it like interviewing eight candidates for governor in a wild-west primary battle? I posed that question to CalMatters Capitol reporter Jeanne Kuang, who was the lead reporter on the voter guide that features bite-sized videos of what the candidates said on major topics, such as taxes and homelessness. Jeanne and I also discussed […]

California Latinos who helped reelect President Donald Trump for a second term do not think he’s making America great again. CalMatters reporters examined 99% of the votes cast in last year’s special election for Proposition 50 and found that the measure outperformed Vice President Kamala Harris’ 2024 presidential campaign in precincts where most of voters […]

Gov. Gavin Newsom created Homekey in 2020 amid the peak of COVID-19 and pressure to do something about the state’s persistent homelessness crisis. The state program sought to get money into the hands of local governments to create housing for homeless residents while cutting red tape.  But the program came with little built-in oversight. Earlier […]

Homelessness remains one of California’s more vexing issues, and the next governor will have to contend with nearly a quarter of the entire country’s homeless population. CalMatters’ Marisa Kendall, in partnership with the Steinberg Institute and Abridged — PBS KVIE, spoke with four of the eight top-polling candidates for governor to learn more about what […]

Though you are surely plumbing the depths of CalMatters’ comprehensive voter guide, let’s highlight two parts in particular: The race for state treasurer and California legislative elections: State treasurer: Six candidates are vying to be California’s next money manager, but the race is largely between two top Democrats: Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, whom Gov. Gavin Newsom […]

CalMatters’ voter guide for the June 2 primary is out and it has everything you need to know about who’s running for governor, what races you should keep an eye on, how to vote and more. This year’s guide includes short video Q&As with each of the leading gubernatorial candidates across major topics, such as […]

Proponents of a huge water project are claiming victory after the $20 billion tunnel largely cleared a key hurdle last week. But the massive construction — known as the Delta tunnel — is still mired in controversy, and many roadblocks lay ahead, writes CalMatters’ Rachel Becker. To shore up state water supplies, the Delta tunnel […]

The U.S. Supreme Court struck down a congressional voting map in Louisiana, adding a new wrinkle to the multistate gerrymandering war, report CalMatters’ Nigel Duara and Maya C. Miller. On Wednesday the high court upheld an earlier ruling by a federal district court rejecting a 2024 voting map that was redrawn to give Louisiana a […]