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This fact brief was originally published as an experiment to test the concepts behind fact briefs.
Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of useful information in fact briefs like this one, not all of them reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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FACT BRIEF

Did a 1996 immigration-related ballot initiative help change California into a Democratic stronghold?

By Christopher Hutton
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YES

Republican support for a 1994 ballot initiative seeking to block access to public services for immigrants illegally in the state marked a "turning point" for the party's position in the largest state, political scientists say.

In 1984, President Reagan was re-elected with 59% support in his home state, and 45% of the state's Latino vote. In 1994, Republican Gov. Pete Wilson ran for reelection and supported the ballot initiative, Proposition 187. The measure passed narrowly, but was blocked in the courts. The campaign for the ballot initiative motivated Latino voters to register and turn out, and its influence has lingered. Today, the Latino vote is more than 70% Democratic, and Latinos are about 30% of the voting-age population, up from 10% in 1996.

This fact brief is responsive to conversations such as this one.
Sources
Latino Decisions: the Prop 187 Effect on the California GOP
Ballotpedia: California Proposition 187 (1994)
Public Policy Institute of California: Race and voting
Public Policy Institute of California: Immigrants
Los Angeles Times: After decades of Republican victories, here’s how California became a blue state again
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Gigafact
Between 2020 and 2022, under close editorial supervision, Gigafact contracted a group of freelance writers and editors to test the concepts for fact briefs and provide inputs to our software development process. We call this effort Gigafact Foundry. Over the course of these two years, Gigafact Foundry writers published over 1500 fact briefs in response to claims they found online. Their important work forms the basis of Gigafact formats and editorial guidelines, and is available to the public on Gigafact.org. Readers should be aware that while there is still a lot of relevant information to be found, not all fact briefs produced by Gigafact Foundry reflect Gigafact's current methods and standards for fact briefs. If you come across any that you feel are out of date and need to be looked at with fresh eyes, don't hesitate to contact us at support@gigafact.org.
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About fact briefs published on Gigafact
Fact briefs are short, credibly sourced summaries that offer “yes/no” answers in response to claims found online. They rely on publicly available, often primary source data and documents. Fact briefs are created by contributors to Gigafact —a nonprofit project looking to expand participation in fact-checking and protect the democratic process. See all fact briefs here.