California had a 12-point shift towards Donald Trump in 2024, according to Newsweek analysis.
Donald Trump significantly outperformed his 2020 and 2016 presidential election performances in the state of California on Tuesday, while progressives were unseated as mayor of San Francisco and Los Angeles County district attorney.
The results provide evidence of what University College London (UCL) political scientist Thomas Gift called a « right-shift » in the Golden State, which has seen Republicans making something of a revival.
As of 10 a.m. ET on Friday Trump was on 39.8 percent in the Golden State, behind Democratic rival Kamala Harris on 57.6 percent, with 59 percent of the votes counted. By comparison Trump only received 34.3 percent of the vote in California when he lost office in 2020, and 31.5 percent when he won the presidency in 2016. Newsweek analysis published on Wednesday showed California had the joint biggest swing towards Trump of any state in 2024, at 12 percentage points, along with New York.
Overall Trump convincingly won the 2024 election with at least 295 Electoral College votes, according to the Associated Press, significantly above the 270 needed for victory. This number is likely to be extended further as Trump leads in Arizona and Nevada, the only two states AP has yet to call, and he looks on track for a popular vote victory for the first time.
Tuesday also saw Los Angeles District Attorney George Gascón, a progressive Democrat, unseated by Nathan Hochman, an independent former Republican who promised a major crackdown on crime.
