How California Turned Blue
This chapter describes California’s transformation into a deep blue state. For many years, the Republican Party was the dominant force in California politics. Yet the state was never overwhelmingly conservative. It was a leader of the national Progressive movement of the early twentieth century and for decades continued to support a range of liberal policies even under Republican governors. Democrats began to gain ground in the 1950s and the two parties were highly competitive in the four decades between 1958 and 1998. In the 1990s, California began to shift from a competitive two-party system to Democratic control. Changes in the state’s demographics, economy, and culture contributed to this transformation. Once the parties polarized along ideological lines, California more naturally aligned with the party of the left. Democrats have now gained near total control over California, making it the nation’s most consequential blue state.