When and why did California turn left? Some say the turning point was in 1994, with Proposition 187 denying social services to lawbreaking immigrants. It won by an overwhelming 18-point margin, indicating a strong conservative majority opposed to illegal immigration, but it was gutted by the liberal 9th Circuit and then abandoned by Gov. Gray Davis.
Emboldened by the legal win, Prop. 187’s leftist opponents painted Republican supporters as bigots, and registered more and more Democrats. The three-decade line from there to today’s anti-ICE riots (fanned by an incompetent pro-Castro, diversity/equity/inclusion mayor and a feckless San Francisco governor), is pretty compelling. Democrats appeal to being good people; Republicans appeal to making good policy. When the former wins over the latter, people vote for bad policies … and feel good about it.
Rob Kerchner
Valencia
