KQED's The California Report

Over One Million Coronavirus Infections Confirmed in California California has now reached one million confirmed coronavirus infections. This comes nearly 10 months after the first cases were confirmed here. San Francisco Lawyers Say ICE Misled Federal Judge About Coronavirus Outbreak San Francisco lawyers representing immigrants detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement say the agency...

California Has Recorded Nearly One Million COVID-19 Cases California is on the brink of recording it’s one millionth COVID-19 infection. That’s more than any other state except Texas. This grim milestone has been accelerated by the virus’ recent uptick, with more than 6,000 new daily cases recorded in the state over the past week. False Claims of Voter Fraud in Nevada Persist Republicans and conse...

Trump's Immigration Policies Could be Difficult to Reverse The Trump administration has focused much of its energy on the border over the past 4 years. Joe Biden has promised to undo many of these policies, but that might be difficult, according to a report out this week from the non-partisan Migration Policy Institute. Reporter: Max Rivlin-Nadler, KPBS COVID-19 Increases Restrictions in 11 Counti...

Governor Warns Against Complacency as COVID-19 Cases Swell The U.S. has surpassed more than 10 million coronavirus cases and looks on track to hit record hospitalizations. Here in California, COVID-19 cases are increasing as well. In a press conference yesterday, Governor Gavin Newsom warned against complacency. Reporter: Marisa Lagos, KQED Who Should Get the Coronavirus Vaccine First? A panel of...

Biden-Harris Supporters Celebrate Across California People celebrated in downtown L.A. on Saturday morning after it was announced that Joe Biden and Kamala Harris had won the 2020 election and Donald Trump had been defeated. The same kind of scenes played out in many cities and town across California as people gathered spontaneously to express their joy. The Extraordinary Rise of Vice President-El...

California's College Students Come to Grips with Prop 16's Defeat Students who lobbied hard this year to overturn the state’s ban on affirmative action are coming to terms with the rejection of Proposition 16. Reporter: KQED’s Vanessa Rancaño, KQED Criminal Justice Reform Advocates Celebrate Wins at the Ballot Box California voters gave people on parole the right to vote, and half dozen Bay Area c...

Latino Support For President Trump is Growing Latino voters overwhelmingly supported Joe Biden for the presidency, but a growing share of Latinos voted for President Donald Trump both in California and nationwide. That’s according to a poll of more than 5,000 Latinos across the U.S., taken the day before election day.  Reporter: Farida Jhabvala Romero, KQED  Prop 21's Defeat is a Big Win for the R...

Biden's Lead in Nevada Dwindles to 8,000 Votes Here in California, Joe Biden won a decisive victory against President Donald Trump capturing 64% of the vote. But the presidential race is tight next door in Nevada, where Biden's lead has dwindled to less than 8,000 votes. Reporter: Paul Boger, KUNR  Prop 22 Passed, Allowing Tech Companies to Deny Employee's Benefits Silicon valley’s gig companies l...

Judge Upholds 'Abuse of Power' Lawsuit Against Governor Newsom A judge in Sutter County has handed a victory to two Republican state lawmakers who filed an “abuse of power” lawsuit against Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom. The judge struck down an executive order the governor issued in June which set up new requirements for the 2020 election. Guest: Assemblymember James Gallagher, Dictrict 3, Yuba...

Record Turnout as Californians Vote Early More than 22 million people are now registered to vote in California. That's nearly 88% of those eligible, and according to the Secretary of State's office, it's the highest percentage heading into a general election in the past 80 years. Head of California's Employment Development Department Steps Down Governor Gavin Newsom's office is set to launch a sea...

As Election Day Nears, Cities Prepare for Unrest Governor Gavin Newsom says that the state is taking precautions to make sure Californians remain safe, although he wouldn’t go into details. In Los Angeles, Mayor Eric Garcetti says the city’s received no intelligence about possible acts of violence or voter intimidation, but that quote “We prepare for the worst.” Mexican Consulate Speaks Out After...

Inside the Race for California's 50th Congressional District One of the most closely watched political races in California is happening in the 50th Congressional district covering much of eastern San Diego County and part of Riverside County.  The race pits a veteran Republican politician, and a young Democrat who ran for the same seat two year ago and lost. Reporter: Matt Hoffman, KPBS How Affirm...

Western States Join California's COVID Vaccine Advisory Group Governor Gavin Newsom says Oregon, Washington, and Nevada are joining California's vaccine advisory working group, which will evaluate the safety of COVID-19 vaccines once they become available. L.A. Studying Reliability of At-Home COVID-19 Antigen Tests The city and county of Los Angeles are conducting a pilot study to test the reliabi...

Two Firefighters Critically Injured in Silverado Fire In Southern California, The Silverado and Blue Ridge Fires have forced the evacuation of tens of thousands, and left two firefighters in critical condition with second and third degree burns. Like other recent blazes, the Silverado fire might be connected to a utility company. Reporter: Lily Jamali, KQED Governor Newsom Strikes Another Blow Aga...

How Prop 16 Could Reshape Higher Ed Campuses Across California Student journalists are taking over The California Report to kick off a special collaboration with CalMatters' College Journalism Network. They're looking into Prop 16, is a statewide ballot measure that would restore affirmative action in public institutions and government contracts. Reporters: Kayleen Carter, Marisa Martinez, Janelle...

Uber Drivers Sue Over Pop Up Messages Soliciting Support for Prop 22 The lawsuit identifies three messages in the Uber app that began popping up in August. One asked drivers to vote for Prop 22, which would legalize contractor status for gig workers. Reporter: Sam Harnet, KQED  Creative Economy Slammed by Coronavirus Pandemic, New Study Shows A study out this week from Otis College of Art and Desi...

More than 4.8 Million Californians Have Voted So Far Californians are exceptionally motivated to vote in this election, with more than 4.8 million vote-by-mail ballots already returned. A new statewide poll also finds deep-seated skepticism about a potential coronavirus vaccine.  Reporter: Marisa Lagos, KQED Competitive Central Valley House Race is a Toss-Up Following Debate The two candidates in...

State Coronavirus Numbers Up Slightly, But Positivity Rate Remains Low California counties find themselves on very different paths when it comes to reopening during the COVID-19 pandemic. Yesterday San Francisco learned it is moving into the yellow tier of the state’s framework on restrictions as Shasta and Riverside counties are being downgraded to purple after a spike in cases. $100 Million Scho...

Fire Experts Use Satellites to Monitor and Understand Wildfires As this epic fire season drags on, the state is watching for new fires from space. Satellites allow scientists and fire officials see where wildfires are, and help them understand how quickly these fires grow and what controls their growth. Reporter: Danielle Venton, KQED Residents Protest Bankrupt Battery Plant's Contamination of Eas...

GOP Agrees to Modify Controversial Ballot Boxes California’s Republican Party says it plans to modify but expand its ballot collection program after legal threats by California’s Attorney General. The boxes appeared in counties with competitive congressional races, including Fresno where the boxes have been removed, for now. Reporter: Alex Hall, KQED Polls Show Suburban Women Turning Away From Tru...

Trump Administration Rejects State's Petition for Wildfire Relief The Trump Administration has rejected California’s petition for a federal disaster declaration and relief funds in the aftermath of several recent wildfires, including the devastating August Complex Fire, the biggest wildfire in state history.  Oakland, Portland Sue Over Use of Federal Agents at Protests The City of Oakland is chall...

Dangerous Weather Conditions Mean More Power Shut-Offs in Northern California 53,000 Pacific Gas and Electric customers in Northern and Central California are without power this morning. The utility has shut it off because of dangerous weather conditions that could spark a wildfire.  Reporter: Dan Brekke, KQED State Grid Operator Faces Tough Questions About Rolling Blackouts The agency that manage...

SCOTUS Ruling Ends Census, Leaving Marginalized Communities Undercounted The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that the Trump Administration can end counting for the 2020 Census now instead of waiting until the end of the month. The court’s decision is a blow to local governments and advocacy groups, who say stopping the count now will lead to a big undercount of marginalized communities. Trick-Or-Trea...

State Eases Restrictions as COVID Hospitalizations Drop Hospitalizations for coronavirus patients in California are at their lowest level in six months. Just over 2,200 COVID patients were hospitalized as of this past Saturday compared to the peak of nearly 7,200 patients hospitalized in July. And coronavirus patients in intensive care units are now at their second-lowest level since the pandemic...

PG&E Under Investigation in Connection with Deadly Shasta County Wildfire Utility giant, Pacific Gas and Electric says state authorities are investigating whether the company’s equipment might have started a Northern California fire that killed four people late last month and destroyed over 200 structures. Reporter: Dan Brekke, KQED Thousands March in Beverly Hills in Solidarity with Armenia Thous...