Susan Talamantes Eggman is congratulated in the Assembly following passage of her right-to-die measure. (Photo: AP/Rich Pedroncelli)Susan Talamantes Eggman was raised in Turlock, where her family owned a small almond orchard and apiary (bee-keeping), and her first job that wasn’t on the family farm started her on a path to working in health care and mental health throughout her life.
An Illustration of prescription pain killers spilled on a table. (Image: Kimberly Boyles, via Shutterstock)OPINION: Amid an opioid and alcohol use disorder crisis exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic, California health advocates are calling for the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid to expand coverage of Medication Assisted Treatment and behavioral health care for Medi-Cal recipients.
Sunbathers in San Francisco's Dolores Park during the pandemic. (Photo: eddie-hernandez.com, via Shutterstock)OPINION: Latinos have long-been committed to protecting public lands and rivers. Yet, California Latinos are almost twice as likely to live somewhere that is “nature deprived” than white communities, meaning there are far fewer parks, streams, beaches, and other natural places nearby.
A portion of California and its key regions in the 2021 redistricting. (Photo: Victor Maschek)The 2021 redistricting has begun in earnest with the seating of the first eight members of the California Citizens Commission, the so-called “Lucky Eight” because they were seated after a random draw of ping-pong balls. In the quarantine era, this drawing, carried live, likely qualified as riveting entertainment.
A television screen surrounded by viewing options. (Photo: Haywiremedia, via Shutterstock)OPINION: We all adjust our individual habits in response to positive changes in the marketplace – the ubiquity of smartphones means I now text more often then I call, and consume news on my phone rather than my laptop. These habit changes are generally a good thing – companies are encouraged to invest in new products and services that satisfy consumers changing demands.
Elizabeth Warren addresses Democrats earlier this year at a state party convention in San Francisco. (Photo: Gage Skidmore)Our November tracking poll for California’s 2020 presidential primary election shows some significant changes in the field, with the national field gelling around four major candidates and the potential havoc of new candidates entering the race. The poll, in the field since April, has now surveyed over 7,500 likely voters, utilizing data supplied by Political Data Inc. It uses an online survey emailed directly to voters deemed likely to vote in the March Democratic primary.
An array of voters casting their ballots. (Photo: Alexandru Nika, via Shutterstock)A report from the Public Policy Institute of California on the makeup of the California electorate as the 2020 elections approach. Eight in ten eligible voters are registered to vote; independent registration continues to increase. As of February 2019, 19.9 million of California’s 25.3 million eligible adults were registered to vote. At 79.1% of eligible adults, this is an increase from the registration rate in 2015 (72.7%), the last year preceding a presidential election.
Los Angeles, California's largest city and part of its most populous county, at dusk. (Photo: ESB Professional, via Shutterstock)As California’s population growth flattens out, the state could lose a congressional seat for the first time in its history. The state’s most recent demographic report shows that California added only 186,807 residents last year, showing a growth rate of .47 percent, the slowest ever.
A 2018 political rally at San Francisco City Hall. (Photo: Sheila Fitzgerald, via Shutterstock)Voter participation dramatically increased in California in the 2018 midterm elections, part of a nationwide trend. About 51.9% of California’s 25.1 million eligible voters hit the polls in the 2018 general election, up from 36.6% in 2014, the previous midterm election, according to the U.S. Census Bureau.
Gavin Newsom, then a candidate for governor, addresses a group last year during a campaign stop. (Photo: Associated Press)PPIC Report: Majorities of Californians support Gov. Newsom’s first proposed budget, which increases spending on K–14 education, higher education, and health and human services. This is among the key findings of a statewide survey released today by the Public Policy Institute of California (PPIC).