blog post Most Californians Continue to Identify Homelessness as a Big Problem By Deja Thomas Oct 4, 2022 Strong majorities of adults and likely voters say that homelessness is a big problem in their part of the state. In addition, most Californians say that the presence of people experiencing homelessness has increased over the past year.
blog post Who Voted in the March Primary and What Does It Mean for November? By Eric McGhee Jul 9, 2024 Turnout was low in California's March primary, with slightly more than one in three registered voters casting a ballot. We examine which groups did—and did not—vote this past March and discuss some key implications for this fall's general election.
Statewide Survey PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and Their Government By Mark Baldassare, Jennifer Paluch, Dean Bonner, Sonja Petek Dec 3, 2008 Some findings of the current survey: Proposition 8, the same-sex marriage ban that voters approved, drew support from evangelical Christians, Republicans, Latinos, voters without a college degree, and those aged 55 and older. The most frequently cited reason for voting against Proposition 4, the abortion measure that lost, was belief in a woman's right to choose (38%). Most voters agree that too much money was spent on the initiative campaigns (75%), the ballot wording was too complicated and confusing (63%), and that there were too many initiatives (52%). This is the 93rd PPIC Statewide Survey and the 33rd in the Californians and Their Government survey series, which is conducted to examine the social, economic, and political trends that influence public policy preferences and ballot choices. It is currently supported with funding from The James Irvine Foundation.
Fact Sheet Californians’ Attitudes Toward Marijuana Legalization By Mark Baldassare, Lunna Lopes, Dean Bonner Apr 22, 2015
Fact Sheet Californians’ Views on Climate Change By Mark Baldassare, Alyssa Dykman, Lunna Lopes, Dean Bonner Sep 7, 2018 The state’s leadership on climate change is important to most Californians. Most are concerned about the effects of global warming—including severe wildfires and rising sea levels. Majorities support action on climate change even if it increases costs.
press release Support for Governor’s Recall Still Falls Short; Outlook on COVID-19 Improves, though Some Groups Lag in Vaccines May 25, 2021
Report What to Expect from California’s New Motor Voter Law By Eric McGhee, Mindy Romero Jun 15, 2016 In 2015, California passed major legislation to increase the state’s voter rolls by simplifying the voter registration process. Under the New Motor Voter Act, the Department of Motor Vehicles (DMV) will electronically transmit information about DMV customers who are eligible to vote to the California Secretary of State, which will add eligible customers to the voter rolls unless they opt out. We find that this law has the potential to significantly alter the demographic composition of the California electorate, making the population of registered voters more representative of the state as a whole. Our estimates also suggest that the new system may rapidly expand the voter rolls, adding more than 2 million new registrants in the first year. Key implementation issues will decide the impact of the New Motor Voter Act. To ensure the law’s success, the state should require DMV customers to attest to their eligibility to vote as a precondition for completing their transaction. It will also be necessary to mobilize new registrants aggressively if they are to become new voters.
blog post California’s Politically Invisible By Eric McGhee Jul 27, 2021 California voters are older, better educated, wealthier, and more likely to be white than Californians who don’t vote. This gap between the voting public and Californians as a whole can make election results unrepresentative.
