Photo: GrassrootsLab.comCalifornia will award 172 delegates in the Republican presidential primary, a mother load of support that could guarantee a decisive national role for Golden State GOP voters on June 7. Unlike several other states in the election cycle where the winner takes all delegates, California Republicans designed special rules to empower grassroots activists a few years ago.
A presidential campaign event at the Oxnard train station during an earlier election. (Photo: Joseph Sohm, via Shutterstock) Brace yourselves, Californians. The violent, vicious and volatile Republican political campaigns that have destroyed civility across parts of the South and Midwest are increasingly likely to cross the Sierra and spread vitriol in the Golden State.
Illustration by Tim Foster, Capitol Weekly. Yes, this could be happening. California, despite holding its primary presidential election in June and being a (somewhat) proportional state, could matter in the Democratic nomination process. And it will almost certainly provide the final big set of Republican delegates that could give Donald Trump the 1,237 he needs for the nomination — or deny him and ensure a contested GOP convention.
Former California Gov. Ronald Reagan and wife Nancy voting in the 1980 presidential general election. (Photo: Associated Press)There are few more iconic images in American politics than the candidate and spouse exiting the polling booth on Election Day. The sun is shining, the vibrant political family is in full bloom and democracy is in the air. But, in modern elections, this is changing
The attitudes of voters. Illustration by Niroworld, via Shutterstock.Friday night, my wife Jodi got home after a long week. Trying to decide what we should do, she flipped through some channels, looking at the networks, a couple sports channels, a few news channels, HBO and Showtime, and then finally announced “I don’t think there’s anything good on TV, let’s go see a movie.”
Stock vector illustration, via Shutterstock.With the release of official voter registration numbers this week, the focus has been on the continued decline in Republican registration and growth in Independent voters. The stories, for the most part, treat these two factors as directly related, like two ends of a see-saw. As Republicans lose ground, independents grow and common wisdom within California’s political class jumps to the causal link. However, looking closer at the data, there are two significant factors that should temper this quick rush to judgement.
Patty Lopez and Raul Bocanegra (Illustration by Tim Foster/Capitol Weekly)If someone comes to you and says, “I won my election because I was the first name on the ballot,” you should immediately check for the tinfoil hat — and then show them the door. The notion that a democratic election for something as important as a legislative or congressional seat, or even a city council, can be decided by the order on a ballot is the domain of wild conspiracy theorists. Until it actually happens.
San Quentin prison, as seen from San Francisco Bay. (Photo: San Quentin News, prison newspaper)ANALYSIS: What if, instead of building prisons in remote locations, we put them near cities, accessible to family members and to the resources — educational, vocational, therapeutic, recreational, cultural — that are scarce in most prison towns?
The Republican national convention in Cleveland's Public Auditorium in 1924. This year's GOP convention is in Cleveland, too. (Photo: Everett Historical, via Shutterstock)ANALYSIS: The conventional wisdom says fuggedaboutit. Pundits, campaign managers, and the politicians themselves express doubt about the possibility. Not as much as previously, but still doubt. It might happen. And California could be in the middle of it all. We’re talking about a “brokered” convention.
Illustration by Tim Foster, Capitol WeeklyAs Capitol Weekly reported today, the November ballot is growing with seven measures already qualified, and another 66 in the wings. Most won’t qualify, so there is little reason to fear a 48-measure ballot like California saw in 1914. But we could near or exceed the modern high water mark of 29 on the 1988 Primary Election Ballot, and we will definitely exceed the average of 8.5 measures per ballot since 2000.