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2020 California elections

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2020 California elections
← 2018
November 3, 2020
2022 →
Registered22,047,448[1]
Turnout80.67% (Increase 16.13 pp)[1]

Elections were held in California on November 3, 2020. Unlike previous election cycles, the primary elections were held on Super Tuesday, March 3, 2020.[2]

In addition to the U.S. presidential race, California voters elected all of California's seats to the House of Representatives, all of the seats of the State Assembly, and all odd-numbered seats of the State Senate. Neither of the state's two U.S. Senate seats were up for election in 2020.

Pursuant to Proposition 14 passed in 2010, California uses a nonpartisan blanket primary for almost all races, with the presidential primary races being the notable exception. Under the nonpartisan blanket primary system, all the candidates for the same elected office, regardless of respective political party, run against each other at once during the primary. The candidates receiving the most and second-most votes in the primary election then become the contestants in the general election.

President of the United States

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California, a stronghold for the Democratic Party, has 55 electoral votes in the Electoral College. Joe Biden won with 63% of the popular vote. On December 14, 2020, California cast its electoral votes for Joe Biden.[3]

United States presidential election in California
Party Candidate Votes % ±%
Democratic Joe Biden 11,110,250 63.48% +1.75
Republican Donald Trump (incumbent) 6,006,429 34.32% +2.70
Libertarian Jo Jorgensen 187,895 1.07% −2.30
Green Howie Hawkins 81,029 0.46% −1.51
American Independent Rocky De La Fuente 60,160 0.34% N/A
Peace and Freedom Charlie Bourbon 51,037 0.29% −0.18
Write-in 4,081 0.02%
Total votes 17,500,881 100.00%
Democratic win

United States House of Representatives

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There are 53 U.S. Representatives in California that were all up for election. The Democratic Party won 42 seats while the Republican Party won 11 seats. Three districts were gained by the Republican Party: the 21st, 39th, and 48th.

State Senate

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The 20 California State Senators in the odd-numbered districts were up for election. Out of the contested seats, Democrats won 17 and Republicans won 3. The resulting composition was 31 Democrats and 9 Republicans. Two districts were gained by the Democratic Party: the 29th and 37th.

State Assembly

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All 80 representatives in the California State Assembly were up for election. The resulting composition was 60 Democrats, 19 Republicans, and one independent. The Republican Party gained the 38th district.

Propositions

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Since the passage of a November 2011 law, only propositions placed on the ballot by the state legislature may appear on the primary ballot, and all qualifying measures placed via petition are automatically moved to the general election ballot.[4]

Primary election

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  • Proposition 13: "Public Preschool, K-12, and College Health and Safety Bond Act of 2020" (Assembly Bill 48)
Prop 13 was a $15 billion bond measure to fund seismic retrofitting and other capital improvements on various California public preschool, K-12, and college campuses.[5] Supporters argued that these improvements would make public schools safer and healthier. Opponents said that the actual total cost of the bonds plus interest would exceed $27 billion, more expensive than using funds directly from the regular state budget.[6] It failed by a margin of 6 percentage points.
2020 California Proposition 13
ChoiceVotes%
For4,304,01346.99
Against4,856,15453.01
Total9,160,167100.00
Source: California Secretary of State[7]

General election

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Twelve state propositions were on the ballot.[8]

2020 California propositions (November)
Name Description Votes Type
Yes % No %
Proposition 14 Issues $5.5 billion in bonds for the state stem cell research institute.[9] 8,588,156 51.12 8,211,692 48.88 Citizen-initiated state statute
Proposition 15 Increases government and education funding by requiring commercial and industrial properties to be taxed based on market value.[10] 8,212,641 48.03 8,885,052 51.97 Citizen-initiated constitutional amendment
Proposition 16 Repeals Proposition 209 (1996) , which says that the state cannot discriminate or grant preferential treatment based on race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public employment, education, or contracting.[11] 7,216,721 42.77 9,655,024 57.23 Legislatively referred constitutional amendment
Proposition 17 Establishes the right to vote for people convicted of felonies who are on parole.[12] 9,985,065 58.55 7,068,706 41.45
Proposition 18 Allows 17-year-olds who will be 18 at the time of the next general election to vote in primaries and special elections.[13] 7,513,957 43.96 9,577,238 56.04
Proposition 19 Allows homeowners over 55 years old or severely disabled to transfer their property tax base from their old home to their new one, regardless of the new residence's property value or location.[14] 8,545,393 51.11 8,175,618 48.89
Proposition 20 Makes changes to policies related to criminal sentencing charges, prison release, and DNA collection.[15] 6,385,421 38.28 10,293,563 61.72 Citizen-initiated state statute
Proposition 21 Expands local governments' power to use rent control.[16] 6,770,958 40.15 10,094,634 59.85
Proposition 22 Considers app-based drivers to be independent contractors and enacts several labor policies related to app-based companies.[17] 9,957,858 58.63 7,027,467 41.37
Proposition 23 Requires physician on-site at dialysis clinics and consent from the state for a clinic to close.[18] 6,161,109 36.58 10,683,606 63.42
Proposition 24 Expands the provisions of the California Consumer Privacy Act and creates the California Privacy Protection Agency to implement and enforce CCPA.[19] 9,384,125 56.23 7,305,026 43.77
Proposition 25 Replaces cash bail with risk assessments for suspects awaiting trial.[20] 7,231,044 43.59 9,356,096 56.41 Veto referendum
Source: California Secretary of State[21]

References

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  1. 1 2 "Historical Voter Registration and Participation" (PDF). California Secretary of State.
  2. ↑ Dezenski, Lauren (December 19, 2018). "Why California leapfrogged the 2020 primary schedule".
  3. ↑ "Washington Post Live Electional College updates". Washington Post. Archived from the original on December 14, 2020.
  4. ↑ Siders, David (October 8, 2011). "Gov. Jerry Brown signs bill restricting ballot initiative to November elections". Sacramento Bee. Archived from the original on February 12, 2013. Retrieved September 28, 2012.
  5. ↑ "CA Legislature passes facilities bond measure for 2020 ballot". The Daily Californian. September 15, 2019.
  6. ↑ "Proposition 13". March 3, 2020 Primary Election Official Voter Information Guide. California Secretary of State.
  7. ↑ Official Declaration of the Vote Results on March 3, 2020 in State Ballot Measure, California Secretary of State, p. 173.
  8. ↑ "California 2020 ballot propositions". Ballotpedia. Retrieved August 15, 2026.
  9. ↑ "California Proposition 14 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  10. ↑ "California Proposition 15 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  11. ↑ "California Proposition 16 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  12. ↑ "California Proposition 17 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  13. ↑ "California Proposition 18 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
  14. ↑ "California Proposition 19 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved July 2, 2020.
  15. ↑ "California Proposition 20 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  16. ↑ "California Proposition 21 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  17. ↑ "California Proposition 22 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  18. ↑ "California Proposition 23 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  19. ↑ "California Proposition 24 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved June 27, 2020.
  20. ↑ "California Proposition 25 (2020)". Ballotpedia. Retrieved August 15, 2026.
  21. ↑ "Statewide Summary by County - Propositions 14-25" (PDF). California Secretary of State. Retrieved August 15, 2026.

Further reading

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