CalMatters

Opinion | We keep behaving as though there is only a binary choice to either ban technologies, whether phones or AI, or keep the status quo. Both options fail the kids who need support the most. 📝 Gillian Hayes 📷 Gabrielle Lurie

With Election Day a week away, the two-years-long race to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom is winding to a predictable end. Read more: 📷 Zoë Meyers and Larry Valenzuela

It’s time to lock in on Election Day if you haven’t already mailed in your ballot. Click the link to learn more. 📷 Miguel Gutierrez Jr.

California is on the brink of a total overhaul in the way it governs K-12 schools, but whether those changes actually happen or fade into irrelevance will come down to one person: the next governor. 📷 Semantha Norris

Election officials from across California questioned the accuracy of the federal government’s methodology for finding noncitizen voters after the Trump administration threatened them with criminal charges last week. 📸 Adriana Heldiz

A federal judge is unlikely to issue a final ruling on the Trump administration’s claim that noncitizens are registered to vote in California until after Election Day. 📸 Pablo Unzueta

Public pushback over municipal police drones is boiling over across California, turning routine local policy hearings into high-stakes battles over the boundaries of neighborhood surveillance. 📷 Skydio

Will President Donald Trump’s MAGA Republican allies in Congress try to block newly elected Democrats from taking their seats after the midterms, claiming the election was rigged? 📷 Max Whittaker

Opinion | Politicians like Newsom are shooting in the dark as they attempt to rationalize and respond to something that is inherently unpredictable. 📝 Dan Walters 📷 Jules Hotz

Surveys show an age gap across the top issues on California’s ballot, including taxing billionaires and requiring IDs to vote. But while Gen Z makes up 30% of the state’s eligible voters, they are far less likely to vote... 📸 Larry Valenzuela

A clever solution or a confusing gimmick? Like it or hate it, almost everyone has questions about Proposition 37. Here are a few of the big ones — with the best available answers. 📸 Martin do Nascimento

The science research institute that would likely receive $4.2B in public taxpayer money if voters approve Prop 38 this November had only three employees as of last month — far fewer than the 51 staffers it planned to have hired 📸 Brian van der Brug

You’ll see an El Nino-sized set of propositions that could flood the housing construction and science research components of the California economy with $44 billion of bond spending if the measures pass. 📸 Jules Hotz

California is leaning into the rehabilitative potential of sports. On Sept. 30, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the Second Chance Sports Act, directing the state’s prison system to come up with a plan to expand sports programming. 📸 Brian L. Frank

Opinion | California has a once-in-a-generation opportunity to fundamentally change how the state supports local public schools. 📝 Heather Hough 📸 Miguel Gutierrez Jr.

Both Democratic candidates for insurance commissioner have promised not to take campaign donations from the industry that one of them will soon be regulating. Despite that, insurance money has seeped in. 📸 Fred Greaves

Surveys show an age gap across the top issues on California’s ballot, including taxing billionaires and requiring IDs to vote. But while Gen Z makes up 30% of the state’s eligible voters, they are far less likely to vote... 📸 Larry Valenzuela

Proposition 45 is intended to make it easier to build. But some pro-housing groups worry it will only lead to more sprawl. 📸 Larry Valenzuela

Californians are voting on 14 ballot measures, including propositions on taxes, voting, healthcare, housing and the environment. It's a lot to take in, but we're here to help.

If Proposition 3 looks familiar, it’s because this is the third time the income tax measure has appeared on California ballots. But this time might be the last. 📸 Florence Middleton