It's been nine days since the California primary election, and It is unclear whether he is the governor. Gavin Newsom The ballot measure passed.

Proposition 1, a $6.4 billion bond that is the centerpiece of the governor's plan to bolster California's mental health system and get people with drug addiction and mental illness off the streets, still held a slim lead, 50.2% to 49.8% as of Thursday morning, as county election boards continued to count votes.

Despite a poorly funded opposition campaign He acknowledged this week that the bill was “almost certain” to pass.Newsom has not declared victory, and the Associated Press has not reported the results because even a slight tilt in the “No” side of the outstanding votes could overturn the outcome.

It's pretty shocking that the most powerful official in the state is being put in this position.

This measure is in jeopardy for two main reasons. My colleague Taryn Luna reports:One is that many Democratic voters did not vote; lower-than-expected turnout swelled the share of Republican voters who disliked Newsom. Another is that Proposition 1 was rejected by both ends of the political spectrum: Civil rights groups on the left were concerned about the impact of funding psychiatric hospitals, while opponents on the right derided the estimated budget. Cost: $14 billion in the midst of a huge state budget deficit.

Columnist George Skelton offers a different explanation: arrogance..

“Governor Gavin Newsom should have learned this four years ago – he shouldn't be trying to sell increased government spending to voters in a primary election.” Skelton writes:.

Skelton argues that the bond measure likely would have performed better in November, when Democratic turnout is typically higher.

“Prop 1 might have been more successful if the Governor had focused more on selling a confusing ballot measure and less on promoting his national political image. But the proposition performed worse than expected primarily because it was placed on the wrong ballot, even though Governor Newsom raised over $20 million for his campaign and his opponents spent virtually zero.”

I'm Laurel Rosenhall, Sacramento bureau chief for The Times, bringing you the biggest stories in California politics this week.

California vs. the United States

A major fight has brewed between California and the federal government over funding for homeless housing during the COVID-19 pandemic.

That's because California cities and counties may end up footing the bill for the more than $300 million they've spent to house thousands of homeless people in hotels to stop the spread of the virus.

As my colleague Andrea Castillo reported at the time, local officials took the unprecedented step under the impression that the federal government would cover most of the costs of providing indefinite shelter to homeless people at high risk of severe illness. But the FEMA said they were wrong, and that it had only agreed to pay for hotel stays for up to 20 days.

Now concerned lawmakers are demanding answers. A letter written by Rep. Robert Garcia (D-Long Beach), along with 34 other California Democrats and one Republican, signed the petition. David Valadao (R-Hanford) — Asks the Federal Emergency Management Agency to reconsider and provide reimbursements to already cash-strapped cities.

For more information on this dispute, see this article. Federal government won't reimburse California for $300 million to house homeless people amid COVID-19 pandemic; Congress demands answers

The return of the cryptocurrency giants

Last week, a group called Stand With Crypto hosted a rally for cryptocurrency holders to get out the vote in Los Angeles on the afternoon before Election Day. My colleague Laura J. Nelson says the line stretched for blocks outside the Bourbon Room bar on Hollywood's Walk of Fame for the event, which featured rapper Nas, an early investor in Coinbase.

Inside, guests ate sliders and sipped Sofia Coppola wine while Coinbase's CEO Brian Armstrong He told the crowd they needed to vote to send a “very clear message” ahead of the November election: “To get elected and represent California's values, you have to understand innovation, you have to support technology, you have to support innovation, you have to support cryptocurrency.”

After two years of bad news, including the guilty plea of ​​FTX founder Sam Bankman Freed for fraudAccording to Nelson's report, the crypto industry is back on the political stage in the 2024 election cycle, flaunting large cash reserves. The California Senate race is one of many in which the industry has shown its commitment to backing candidates who support more favorable cryptocurrency legislation in Washington and excluding those who don't.

In California, the industry Drop $10 million Advertisements calling on members of Congress Katie Porter (Democrat Irvine) Fakes, actors, hypocrites. They were plotted to get Porter out of the primary. Rarely Vacant Senate SeatsAs the results came in, Porter Third furthest behind Representative Adam B. Schiff Burbank and Republican Steve GarveyThe cryptocurrency industry PAC touted Porter's alliance with his mentor, the senator. Elizabeth Warren A Massachusetts Democrat who was a vocal cryptocurrency skeptic has “ended his congressional career.”

Porter later blamed his election loss on “billionaires spending millions to rig the election,” a blatant reference to the cryptocurrency group's major donors.

Read more about crypto politics this year: How crypto executives helped decide California's Senate primary

An interesting new bill in Sacramento

Lawmakers in Sacramento have been busy pushing new bills ahead of a deadline for policy committees to submit bills next month. One of the more intriguing bills is being pushed by Democrats. Another attempt to ban tampons with 'forever chemicals' The proposal is backed by environmental and women's rights groups. A similar bill passed last year with bipartisan support and not a single vote against it in the Legislature, but was vetoed by Governor Newsom, who said bans on such chemicals would be difficult and confusing to implement.

Another interesting measure is that California law enforcement agents More information given to family after police killing Changes the way families of the deceased are interviewed. This law: Prevent police from questioning relatives before disclosing that their loved ones have diedIt's a practice exposed in a Times investigation last year.

Lawmakers have also proposed some notable reforms for California schools.

California Political Trends

'The road to 218 goes through California': Interstate contests key in fight for control of House
California is one of the most hotly contested battleground states in the nation, and the fate of the House of Representatives will almost certainly depend on it. The battle for partisan political control over the next two years will be waged door-to-door, from the cul-de-sacs of California's coast to the tiny farming villages of its fertile Central Valley.

Column: Northern California is losing its political edge, and Adam Schiff's victory proves it
Geography — where a candidate comes from — used to be a big factor in political success in California. But now it's largely taken a back seat, a shift that could permanently upset the race's calculations, columnist Mark Z. Barabac writes.

San Francisco ties welfare to drug testing, gives police more power, and takes a surprisingly tough stance on crime
The first measure is Proposal Ewill increase police powers in the city. Proposal F, The bill would require drug testing and treatment for county welfare recipients suspected of illegal drug use, a measure that would bolster efforts to address the city's outdoor drug addiction crisis and the resulting epidemic of street crime and homelessness.

Kamala Harris raised her profile in San Francisco, outlining the “tremendous” importance of the election.
vice president Kamala Harris President Trump returned to his San Francisco home on Monday, less than a week after Super Tuesday, to kick off November's general election with two campaign fundraisers in his old hometown.

Column: California won't send a black woman to the Senate, but Barbara Lee won
Times columnist Erica D. Smith wrote that by any standards it was a major defeat, especially because Republicans in the House of Representatives delivered gains for the GOP. Barbara Leeand our dedicated sister organization of politicians, activists, academics and lobbyists across California, have been working behind the scenes for nearly four years to increase representation for Black women at the highest levels of the federal government.