New report: California’s getting bluer as Republicans leave for red states
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!
RED RETREAT
Partisan politics are shaping the state’s population, according to a new analysis from the Public Policy Institute of California.
As the state’s population growth slows, those leaving California are more likely to be Republican. In fact, between the 2020 and 2024 elections almost five times as many Republicans have moved out of the state than have moved in. Previous PPIC data provides various explanations for this pattern, including that California Republicans often disapprove of the states elected officials.
“Democrats dominate the state’s governing institutions,” PPIC authors Hans Johnson and Eric McGhee said. “And have passed relatively liberal policies.”
For those moving into the state, the opposite is true, as they are more likely to be Democrats. This pattern of Republican departures and Democratic arrivals is making the state more blue than before. It doesn’t guarantee particular political outcomes, though. In the 2024 presidential election, for example, California voters voted more Republican than they had in 20 years.
Still, coupled with the fact that newly eligible, young voters are registering with the Republican Party at much lower rates than the states average, Johnson and McGhee predict the trend will continue to build on itself. They also say it signals continuing dominance for Democrats in California.
The trend also plays a role in which states Californians are moving to. Republicans and Democrats are more likely to move to states aligned with their political preference — part of a nationwide process that is slowly polarizing the country’s geography by political party.
ADVOCATING FOR ACTION
Via David Lightman...
Democratic senators, led by California’s Adam Schiff and others, Tuesday urged Trump administration officials to “advocate for a large-scale expansion of humanitarian assistance.”
They also said the officials should resume diplomatic initiatives to get a ceasefire agreement to halt the war between Israel and Hamas.
“The acute humanitarian crisis in Gaza is also unsustainable and worsens by the day,” the senators said.
“Hunger and malnutrition are widespread, and, alarmingly, deaths due to starvation, especially among children, are increasing.”
The letter, also signed by Sen. Alex Padilla, D-Calif., was addressed to Secretary of State Marco Rubio and U.S. Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff.
“We stand in strong support of diplomatic efforts to return all hostages, end the fighting in Gaza, and bring humanitarian relief for the safety and prosperity of the Israeli and the Palestinian people,” the letter said.
President Donald Trump said this week he’s aware of the crisis.
“That’s real starvation stuff. I see it, and you can’t fake that. So we’re going to be even more involved,” he said.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“Veterans who have sacrificed so much for our country’s freedom deserve a roof over their heads.”
— Sen. Alex Padilla on the advancement of the bi-partisan Housing Unhoused Disabled Veterans Act
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