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The incoming Trump administration will likely mean huge changes across a wide range of policies in California. CalMatters reporters are talking to officials, experts and advocates about many of them:  Reproductive rights advocates and Democratic leaders are also concerned that a Trump presidency will severely restrict abortion access. The Markup, which is part of CalMatters, […]

Between July and October last year, Google spent $120,000 on lobbying California’s government. In those same three months this year, the tech giant put in a lot more — $10.7 million. The big difference? The Legislature was debating a major bill with direct impact on Google’s bottom line — a media funding proposal — explain […]

Immigration advocates are sounding the alarm over the prospect of mass deportations upending California immigrant communities, which Donald Trump has vowed to initiate when he returns to the White House in January. But smaller programs are also at risk, writes CalMatters Capitol reporter Jeanne Kuang. To ensure that labor laws are being enforced, a federal […]

Good morning, Inequality Insights readers. I’m Wendy Fry.  President-elect Donald Trump campaigned on implementing a sweeping border crackdown and undertaking the largest-scale deportation effort in history. If carried out, his proposed initiatives will have profound consequences in California, which shares a 140-mile border with Mexico.  On day one, he has pledged to begin a massive […]

Scheduling note: WhatMatters is honoring our veterans on Monday and will return to your inboxes on Tuesday. California Democrats and their allies are battening down the hatches for Donald Trump’s return to the White House in January. On Thursday Gov. Gavin Newsom called for a special session to prepare the state for likely legal challenges […]

Politicians and pundits are reading the tea leaves from the sweeping Democratic defeats nationally, as well as the California election results. To California Republicans, the passage of Proposition 36 — coupled with the recall of Alameda County’s district attorney and the defeat of Los Angeles County’s district attorney — offers clear evidence that voters reject […]

Election Day has come and gone, but the suspense is far from over. Voting went relatively smoothly, as election officials across California reported they were confident about counting votes in the face of minor technical challenges. A new survey by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies found that only 14% of Californians planned to […]

It’s Election Day in California! Today’s the last day to vote in person or return ballots by mail, though Californians have been voting for a month. As of Monday, more than 8 million ballots are already in of the 22.8 million sent out (the percentage returned is down from the same point in 2020). Here […]

There are only two more days to vote in California, and more than 7.6 million Californians have cast their ballots. But the counting will last for days, if not weeks, before news outlets declare all the winners or candidates concede.  The delays and uncertainty — which have grown since California started sending mail ballots to […]

Good morning, Inequality Insights readers. I’m Wendy Fry.  Local elected officials in San Francisco and Los Angeles have already shown interest in expanding rent control if Prop 33 passes, opening the door to such moves. CalMatters housing reporter Felicia Mello took a look this week at where the state ballot measure might have the most […]