Poll: 40% of Californians Contemplated Leaving

California is drawing street visits from major presidential candidates trashing the status quo for good reason: 4 in 10 residents have considered leaving it.

According to results of a new poll out Friday, 40 percent of those surveyed said they are “considering” a move out of state. Sixty-one percent of them said California was too expensive, 27 percent said “California’s policies and laws do not reflect my political views,” and 10 percent cited an unspecified reason. A look at Los Angeles and San Francisco makes violent crime and homelessness a good guess. The Bay Area has drawn campaign trips from Democrat Presidential Candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and Florida Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis within the last two weeks.

“You look around, the city is not vibrant anymore,” DeSantis said on a garbage-laden street corner smeared in graffiti for a backdrop. “It’s really collapsed because of leftist policies, and these policies have caused people to flee this area.”

The poll was sponsored by the Los Angeles Times in partnership with several local non-profits, including Strategies 360, the Center for Asian Americans United for Self Empowerment, Hispanas Organized for Political Equality, and the Los Angeles Urban League. Surveyors interviewed 1,354 adults in California online between June 6-16 with a 2.7 percent margin of error.

Just 28 percent, or less than 1 in 3, said the state was headed in the right direction compared to 43 percent who said otherwise. Nearly 60 percent reported dissatisfaction with local public safety, and 68 percent said the same about the state economy. Less than 1 in 5 California residents said they were satisfied with their everyday living expenses.

Despite California’s reputation as the capital of cultural leftism, residents were split on whether the state reflected their “values and political beliefs.” Just half, 50 percent, said the state reflected them “well,” while 46 percent said “not well.” Perhaps that’s because the state is moving too far left.

California lawmakers recently unveiled legislation to declare parents who resist their children’s attempts to change their gender as child abusers. One California state senator was blunt in his assessment of the law.

“If you love your children, you need to flee California. You need to flee,” said Republican state Sen. Scott Wilk.

The senator himself announced his plans to leave once his legislative term expires.

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Tristan Justice is the western correspondent for The Federalist and the author of Social Justice Redux, a conservative newsletter on culture, health, and wellness. He has also written for The Washington Examiner and The Daily Signal. His work has also been featured in Real Clear Politics and Fox News. Tristan graduated from George Washington University where he majored in political science and minored in journalism. Follow him on Twitter at @JusticeTristan or contact him at [email protected]. Sign up for Tristan’s email newsletter here.

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