Elections

Ben Valdez, an L.A. Uber and Lyft driver, says predicting his pay on the apps is "like going to Vegas." Photo by Tash Kimmell for Cal Matters

Economy

What to know about gig worker pay before voting on Prop. 22

No, the ballot measure won’t ban Uber and Lyft in California. But it would overhaul how drivers get paid.

By

Lauren Hepler

• October 6, 2020

A birthday cake alongside a ballot box. CalMatters' video playlist allows voters to get up-to-speed on the dozen propositions on the November ballot in no time flat. Illustration by Rita Liu

Elections

California 2020 props explained in 1-minute videos

Want a quick introduction to the dozen measures on your November ballot? This playlist gives you a 60-second description of each — just play the first one and the rest will automatically play afterward: The Props-in-a-Minute playlist, produced by CalMatters’ reporting team, covers the array of subjects voters will be asked to decide this fall. […]

By

Byrhonda Lyons

• October 2, 2020

President Trump speaks to supporters at a "Keep America Great" rally in Arizona. This week he urged supporters to become poll watchers to guard against election fraud — evoking California memories of past voter intimidation efforts. Photo by Gage Skidmore via Flickr

Elections

Trump call for poll watchers evokes chilling memories of Orange County, 1988

When debate moderator Chris Wallace asked President Donald Trump last night whether he would urge his supporters “not to engage in any civil unrest” while ballots are being counted and to “not declare victory until the election has been independently certified,” the president responded with a very different appeal to his base. “I’m urging my […]

By

Ben Christopher

• September 30, 2020

President Donald Trump and Democratic presidential candidate former Vice President Joe Biden clashed over California wildfires and climate-altering emissions in the first presidential debate Sept. 29. Photo by Olivier Douliery, Pool via AP

Elections

California caught in presidential cage match debate

If you didn’t catch the first presidential debate of 2020 tonight — and if you didn’t, and did virtually anything else with that time, congratulations on a restful evening well-spent — you missed a cameo appearance by California. The Golden State made its entrance around the 75-minute mark. That was presumably long after everyone but […]

By

Ben Christopher

• September 29, 2020

Owner John Kevranian fills a bag up with candy corn at Nuts for Candy & Toys in Burlingame on May 18. He is among small business owners worried that the cost of property tax hikes inherent in Prop. 15 will get passed on to small businesses. Photo by Randy Vazquez, Bay Area News Group

Elections

If voters raise taxes on corporate landlords, will small biz foot the bill?

When supporters of a November property tax ballot measure talk about soaking the state’s faceless corporate giants and its wealthiest landlords, they are not talking about people like John Kevranian. The co-owner of Nuts for Candy & Toys in Burlingame, Kevranian and his wife have operated this mainstay of the Bay Area city’s downtown strip […]

By

Ben Christopher

• September 28, 2020

Alice Huffman, President of the California State Conference of the NAACP, speaks as part of a coalition in support of proposition 13 at the California Capitol on January 8, 2020. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters

Politics

California NAACP president aids corporate prop campaigns — collects $1.2 million and counting

Alice Huffman, who is both a professional campaign consultant and long-time NAACP leader, was especially sought after this year as political campaigns respond to the national reckoning over race.

By

Laurel Rosenhall

• September 25, 2020

Gov. Gavin Newsom has a history of making bold,risky political moves that affect political decision-making nationwide. Will his order to ban new gas-powered cars by 2035 follow suit? Illustration by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters; iStock

Elections

Could Newsom’s big, bold car ban hurt Biden in swing states?

Yesterday Gov. Gavin Newsom leaned over the hood of an electric car and signed an executive order to phase out new gas-powered vehicles in California by 2035 and halt new fracking projects by 2024. It was exactly the kind of “big, hairy, audacious” move that Newsom has made his calling card: one guaranteed to generate […]

By

Ben Christopher

• September 24, 2020

Sen. Scott Wiener on the Senate floor on the last day of the legislative session on Aug. 31, 2020. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters

Elections

Falsehoods about sex-offender law hit the campaign trail

For over a year a bill — signed into California law this month — that gives judges discretion over whether or not to require someone convicted of statutory rape to register as a sex offender, has been at the center of a storm of viral misinformation. Now it’s become an issue in a handful of […]

By

Ben Christopher

• September 23, 2020

A finger points at a bullseye taped over the official portrait of Democratic Assemblyman Reggie Jones-Sawyer

Elections

In attack ad, California prison guards put bullseye on legislator

Maybe you saw the video on Facebook before it was deleted: Glen Stailey, president of the state prison guards’ union, rails against “failed public safety policies” and “cheap political points” and announces that “it is time to bring accountability back to the state Capitol.” Cut to a shot of the union president, with a horseshoe […]

By

Ben Christopher

• September 17, 2020

Our Election 2020 crossword puzzle lets you see how much you know about California, its 2020 election and far-flung trivia. Image via iStock

Elections

Election 2020: The California Crossword edition

Every election season has its ups and downs — now this one has acrosses as well. Think you know California, from its Capitol culture to its latest ballot props? This crossword puzzle will put your expertise to the test. Time yourself and let us know how you did. And if you need hints, avail yourselves […]

By

Ben Christopher

• September 16, 2020