How California Sees the World, and Itself

As the American political landscape is reimagined in anticipation of President-elect Donald Trump’s second administration, the nation’s most populous state — and a pluralistic democracy at that — is increasingly being looked to as a counterpoint. It’s also valuable to think about California as a political force unto itself, given the early positioning of Governor Gavin Newsom as Trump foil and the looming return of Vice-President Kamala Harris to her home state.

But even in this reliably blue enclave, the vote reflected the dissatisfaction that evidenced itself nationally, and support for Trump this year exceeded the previous margins. California’s overwhelmingly urban residents found themselves front-and-center for many of the issues that were identified as particularly influential in this election cycle, from high housing prices and visible homelessness to the impacts of climate change and the challenges (and opportunities) around immigrant integration.