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Californians and Congress

By Mark Baldassare

Even in this era of hyper-partisanship, California likely voters of different political stripes are united in their low approval of Congress.

Statewide Survey

PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and Their Government

By Mark Baldassare, Dean Bonner, Sonja Petek, Jui Shrestha

Some findings of the current survey:

  • Four in ten Californians say they will not be affected much by health care reform. About a quarter think they will be better off and a similar share think they will be worse off.
  • Half of Californians support the state government’s plan to ease prison overcrowding; most are concerned about the possible early release of prisoners.
  • There is overwhelming support for regulations requiring oil companies to obtain permits and disclose information on chemicals used in fracking and other oil extraction methods.
  • For the first time, a majority of Californians say marijuana use should be legal.

Job Approval Ratings:
President Obama [PDF]
Governor Brown [PDF]
California State Legislature [PDF]
U.S. Congress [PDF]
Senator Boxer [PDF]
Senator Feinstein [PDF]
Their Own State Legislators in the Assembly and Senate [PDF]
Their Own Representative in the U.S. House of Representatives [PDF]

Time Trends of Job Approval Ratings:
President Obama [XLS]
Governor Brown [XLS]
California State Legislature [XLS]
U.S. Congress [XLS]
Senator Boxer [XLS]
Senator Feinstein [XLS]
Their Own State Legislators in the Assembly and Senate [XLS]
Their Own Representative in the U.S. House of Representatives [XLS]

Mood of Californians:
General Direction of Things in California [PDF]
Economic Outlook for California [PDF]

Time Trends for the Mood of Californians:
General Direction of Things in California [XLS]
Economic Outlook for California [XLS]

This survey was supported with funding from The James Irvine Foundation.

blog post

An Early Look at the 2024 Election

By Mark Baldassare

Three Democratic members of Congress—Katie Porter, Adam Schiff, and Barbara Lee—hold an early lead in the top-two US Senate primary. Former president Donald Trump has a sizeable lead in California's Republican presidential primary, but trails President Joe Biden by a wide margin in the general election.

blog post

Diversity in the California Statehouse

By Jennifer Paluch

White lawmakers account for a disproportionately large share of the legislature, while Latinos are underrepresented. But the legislature has gotten more diverse in recent years.

Statewide Survey

PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and the Environment

By Mark Baldassare, Dean Bonner, Sonja Petek, Jui Shrestha

Some findings of the current survey:

  • A record-high majority say California should act now to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, rather than wait until the economy improves.
  • Although many are unaware of the state’s cap-and-trade program, most consider it important to spend some of the revenues in disadvantaged areas.
  • Slim majorities favor building the Keystone XL Pipeline, but oppose increased use of fracking.

Job Approval Ratings:
President Obama [PDF]
Governor Brown [PDF]
California State Legislature [PDF]
U.S. Congress [PDF]

Time Trends of Job Approval Ratings:
President Obama [XLS]
Governor Brown [XLS]
California State Legislature [XLS]
U.S. Congress [XLS]

This survey was supported with funding from The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation.

Statewide Survey

PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and Their Government

By Mark Baldassare, Jennifer Paluch, Dean Bonner, Sonja Petek

Some findings of the current survey:

  • Former eBay CEO Meg Whitman leads the field among likely voters in the GOP gubernatorial primary, but Democrat Jerry Brown beats all three potential Republican candidates in hypothetical 2010 general election matchups.
  • More than half of likely voters say the issues of lowering the legislative vote threshold to pass a state budget and allowing same-sex marriage are very important.
  • Half of Californians support proposed changes to the health care system, given what they know about the legislation. They take a pessimistic view of military efforts in Afghanistan, and are divided on President Obama’s proposal for more troops there.

Job Approval Ratings:
President Obama
Governor Schwarzenegger
California State Legislature
U.S. Congress
Their Own State Legislator in the Assembly and Senate
Their Own Representative in the U.S. House of Representatives

Time Trends of Job Approval Ratings:
President Obama
Governor Schwarzenegger
California State Legislature
U.S. Congress
Their Own State Legislators in the Assembly and Senate
Their Own Representative in the U.S. House of Representatives

 
 
This survey is supported with funding from The James Irvine Foundation.

Statewide Survey

PPIC Statewide Survey: Californians and Their Government

By Mark Baldassare, Dean Bonner, Sonja Petek, Jui Shrestha

Some findings of the current survey:

  • Public support has dropped for holding a June special election on extending temporary tax and fee increases.
  • Nearly half of Californians say the amount of money that state and local governments spend on public employee pension or retirement systems is a big problem.
  • Sixty-two percent of Californians think Congress and the Obama administration are not doing enough to help create jobs.
  • At least half of Californians have an unfavorable opinion of the federal (52%) and state (55%) governments, but a majority (54%) view their local government favorably.

Job Approval Ratings:
President Obama [PDF]
Governor Brown [PDF]
California State Legislature [PDF]
U.S. Congress [PDF]
Senator Boxer [PDF]
Senator Feinstein [PDF]
Their Own State Legislators in the Assembly and Senate [PDF]
Their Own Representative in the U.S. House of Representatives [PDF]

Time Trends of Job Approval Ratings:
President Obama [XLS]
Governor Brown [XLS]
California State Legislature [XLS]
U.S. Congress [XLS]
Senator Boxer [XLS]
Senator Feinstein [XLS]
Their Own State Legislators in the Assembly and Senate [XLS]
Their Own Representative in the U.S. House of Representatives [XLS]

Mood of Californians:
General Direction of Things in California [PDF]
Economic Outlook for California [PDF]

Time Trends for the Mood of Californians:
General Direction of Things in California [XLS]
Economic Outlook for California [XLS]

This survey was supported with funding from The James Irvine Foundation.

    blog post

    An Early Look at the November Election

    By Mark Baldassare

    With California's November ballot taking shape, we examine how the state's voters are feeling about races for president, the US Senate, and the House of Representatives.

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