election 2020

WhatMatters

Lawmakers want answers on Newsom’s mask deals

Lawmakers want answers on CA mask deals gone awry. California becomes first state to choose all-mail voting for November. How big is state's budget hole?

By

Emily Hoeven

• May 11, 2020

Coronavirus

Not if, but how: California prepares for an all vote-by-mail election in November

All eyes are on the governor who, with an executive order, could make the upcoming election an all-mail affair.

By

Ben Christopher

• April 28, 2020

A man wearing disposable gloves and a bandana over his face walks past a boarded up shop on Haight Street in San Francisco on April 7, 2020. California is entering the fourth week of sheltering in place to limit the spread of the novel coronavirus, and the number of Californians hospitalized and those in ICUs with COVID-19 is starting to edge up only slightly. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters

WhatMatters

CA to feds: Can we borrow >$11B for jobless?

California jobless claims soar, Newsom faces tug of war over when to reopen economy. Counties scramble to trace coronavirus.

By

Emily Hoeven

• April 24, 2020

California mail-in ballot on Super Tuesday 2020. Photo illustration by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters

Coronavirus

Politics in the pandemic: Two California elections in May provide a preview

With coronavirus limiting human contact, campaigns are still trying to engage voters, raise money and make sure people vote in elections by mail.

By

Laurel Rosenhall

• April 15, 2020

Sen. Bernie Sanders's won the California primary, but California didn't matter much in the march to a Democratic nominee. Here Sanders at a February campaign event at the Craneway Pavilion in Richmond. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters

Elections

Vote update: How big was Bernie’s win and the California primary’s loss?

Bernie won, the California primary didn't decide and a (maybe) another blue wave swells on the horizon.

By

Ben Christopher

• April 7, 2020

Empty shelves of toilet paper and paper towels at Safeway in the Fillmore neighborhood of San Francisco on March 13, 2020. On Thursday Gov. Gavin Newsom issued an executive order banning events of more than 250 people amid coronavirus concerns. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters

Commentary

Californians realize it may take three months or longer before life gets back to normal, poll shows

Californians approve of Gov. Newsom’s handling of the state’s approach to the coronavirus pandemic and the state government’s response to the crisis.

By

Guest Commentary

• April 1, 2020

Medical student Shreya Thatai holds up a sign outside of Berkeley Bowl asking for mask donations to help health care workers. California Gov. Gavin Newsom promises to have solved the shortage by cutting a massive deal for new masks. Photo by Anne Wernikoff for CalMatters

WhatMatters

Why wasn’t CA better prepared for a pandemic?

As California coronavirus cases continue to grow, so do questions about why the state wasn't better prepared for COVID-19 pandemic.

By

Emily Hoeven

• March 30, 2020

Voters including Dave Ade of San Jose, right, fill out their ballots on Nov. 6, 2018, at The Salvation Army in San Jose. Photo by Dai Sugano, Bay Area News Group

Politics

One upside of the coronavirus shutdown, maybe? Fewer voter initiatives

Initiative proponents have until the end of April to collect the signatures they need to put their ideas on the ballot — and with millions of Californians staying home, some campaigns won't have time to collect enough signatures.

By

Laurel Rosenhall

• March 27, 2020

Republican California primary results moderate 2020 top two

Elections

Republican tug-of-war: Election raises a familiar GOP dilemma in California

How to be conservative enough for a conservative party but liberal enough for a liberal state? Primary election results in Orange County pose the question anew for California Republicans.

By

Ben Christopher

• March 13, 2020

Mrs. Kilgore’s fifth and sixth grade classroom on December 13, 2019. Smart classrooms were one of the upgrades the school received when the building was rebuilt.

Education

California’s Prop. 13 school bond is officially defeated

As the campaign conceded on Wednesday, the first statewide school bond to go down to defeat in two decades went out, not with a bang, but with a tweet.

By

Ricardo Cano

• March 11, 2020

Election 2020