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Saturday, Aug. 22, 2020

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

Christopher Hutton, Gigafact Foundry
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.

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