Gov. Gavin Newsom gives a press conference at Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Union City on April 15, 2021. Today, Newsom announced state employees and health care workers must be vaccinated or undergo weekly testing and wear masks. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters
California Gov. Gavin Newsom gives a press conference at Our Lady of the Rosary Church in Union City on April 15, 2021. Today Newsom announced state employees and health care workers must be vaccinated or undergo weekly testing and wear masks while working. Photo by Anne Wernikoff, CalMatters

Politico California’s Carla Marinucci and CalMatters’ Dan Walters join Nicole and Nigel on the final podcast episode to discuss how the pandemic shaped California politics.

“I think we have learned to live with [COVID-19], begrudgingly. Unhappily, perhaps. Although it is kind of interesting that there is this odd sort of residual resistance to the whole idea of COVID,” Walters said. “We have reports now of resignations flooding the Los Angeles Police Department by officers who are not going to comply with the vaccination mandate.

Marinucci and Walters also discussed what lies ahead for California 2022, a looming election year.

“What we see here is a very vibrant and increasingly divisive political structure here in California, and I think that’s got to be the concern as you look at the changes from the 2003 era to 2021,” Marinucci said. “I think that’s the concern of a lot of people, even Democrats, even Progressives who like the one-party rule. That somehow, California has to get back to a little bit of equilibrium when it comes to discussion, debate, and recall politics.”

The final episode of California State of Mind was released on Oct. 1, 2021.

Listen to the “California State of Mind” episode, co-hosted by Nicole Nixon and Nigel Duara, on Apple podcasts, Spotify or wherever you listen to your podcasts. Follow @yourgoldenstate, @CalMatters and @CapRadioNews on Twitter to engage with our show every week and see the top California news of the day.

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Courtney is the marketing coordinator at CalMatters, where she focuses on developing audience relationships. She was an Editor-in-Chief at Cosumnes River College’s student newspaper before transferring...