ABSTRACT
A recurring question concerning California politics in the 1980s was: Is the Golden State becoming more conservative? As with so many questions about California, the answer is not easy or simple. At first glance the question itself seems a bit strange. Most people, when they think of California, envision a state and people who are innovative, progressive, and-in the minds of some-even a bit “off the wall” in their approach to life. After all, it was Californians who gave the governorship to a motion picture actor with no previous experience in government an action repeated many years later with the election of Arnold Schwarzenegger. And they followed up by electing a governor whose unorthodox style earned him the title of “Governor Moonbeam.” Major experiments from the Progressive era of the early twentieth century to the tax revolt of the late 1970s upheld a tradition of trying new ways of dealing with issues. The fact that in many instances other states followed suit gave California a reputation for leadership that was well deserved.
