California Gubernatorial Election Could Be Key Policy Race

Buena Park, California -- With Arnold Schwarzenegger on his way out of office this year, California will have a new leader. While it did provide several laughs on a national stage, I doubt there will be an influx of more than 500 actors and social elites making a run at this year's seat. But it will still be a highly watched election.

While there is very little publicity outside the state, this race will have some definite national implications. There are many key issues on the horizon and the new governor will be at the forefront of these policies. From gay marriage and illegal immigration to a huge deficit and even the legalization of ferrets, there are a lot of problems that will need to be solved. With California being such a big state, it is often looked to when it comes to policy reform. This means that the immigration issue and several other topics could be a base for national policy on these issues. The incoming governor may end up deciding how things are done as far away as Main. Here are just a few of the things that the new governor will have to face.

Illegal Immigration

This is one of the biggest topics across the nation right now. With the new law in Arizona, most of the country is voicing an opinion on this issue. This is one area that California can have a huge impact on the national policies. Many of the candidates are already using this as leverage in the primary, and the issue will only get worse. California is expected to show the rest of the country how to deal with this, since aside from Arizona, Texas and California have the biggest problem with it. Texas is waiting to see what happens in California so they can decide whether to mimic Arizona or the Golden State.
The wait will have to go on though, since Schwarzenegger is on his way out and it is too late for a major policy change from his camp. There is nothing that he can do in the short time that he has left. This means that his replacement will have to move very quickly to get anything done on this issue. With the rest of the nation and two countries waiting to see what we do out here on the left coast, this issue will likely take center stage from the election and the candidates will have to have their law drafted well before election day. The people will want to see exactly how the new comer is going to deal with it and all the other issues will possibly take a back seat to this hot topic.

Gay Marriage

The sad thing about this issue is that illegal immigration will trump it when it comes to voters opinions this year. The immigration issue is such a huge topic right now that no one is focusing on the other things that will come about in the next four years. The ban on gay marriage has been under fire for the past two years in this state and was even allowed for a brief stint. The LGBT community has a huge impact in this state and in the major metropolitan areas. With a very large portion of three of the nation's top ten cities, they will have a rather loud voice at the polls. They have been winning more and more voters to their cause and, in the very near future they may even have enough of a voice to get the governor to act on this issue.

The voters have so far denied this issue to pass, but a governor that is open to this idea may be able to act internally to legalize same sex marriages. This is one other issue that can have national implications. There are many states out there that are beginning to teeter on the sanctity of marriage issue and with a major state like California approving it, more states may follow. There is also the possibility that this could have national impact. If a major state like this one were to approve gay marriage, it may travel to the Supreme Court where there will need to be federal laws to govern what a marriage is.

There are enough people in California that oppose this to put up enough of a fight against this issue. It is very plausible that it would be decided in DC. If this is the case, the governor will be forced to take a stance either way and amend the state constitution to define what marriage is. This can be a very touchy subject that is still set to erupt once the immigration issue calms a bit.

Enormous Deficit

The California deficit is near to rivaling the national shortfall with each passing day. This is one issue that can shape the future of the state. What happens now will decide the future of our children and could even decide whether California remains intact as a state. There are some groups that would have it divided to North California and South California. While this would solve several problems, including the deficit, it would drastically change the shape of our future and leave the federal government with the current debt. For several years now, California has been losing money at a rapid pace. Everyone has their own idea of where to make cuts. These usually fall into a few categories. The most commonly cut programs are health care, welfare, transportation, and education.

Health care is already a monster problem here and the federal plan that Obama created is a joke for the poor and working class. With the large welfare numbers that California has always posted, making cuts here could put a serious burden on the state and make the homeless rate skyrocket. The transportation problem is legendary all over the world and even people in Djibouti and Zimbabwe know not to drive in California during rush hour. With the state being towards the bottom in education and posting some of the lowest scores on proficiency tests, education cannot be cut any more than it already has been and actually needs to be increased. With no place to make cuts, the solution could either make or break this great state. Something has to be done to the budget immediately and the incoming candidate will be responsible for California being broken apart and collapsing, or solving the problem and flourishing.

Education

The education problem here in California is getting worse every day. With a large portion of high school students unable to pass their final exam for graduation, they are being put back into school. This increases the burden on the teachers and puts the schools over capacity. This causes the students behind them to get a shortened education and they fail the tests. It is a vicious cycle that needs to be stopped. While illegal immigration is the largest reason for this problem, it does not stop there. There are several issues that hang on this topic.

There have been some recent court cases concerning home school and this has also become an issue that could have national implication. Several states look to California when drafting their home school laws. These rules have come under fire from some groups. There is going to be a huge battle between homeschoolers and teacher's groups over the way the current laws read. Since the laws from California are watched across the country, this could set a standard for federal laws. Obama has stated that the education system does need to be national revamped and the use of charter schools will be given more credibility. With California being one of the largest customer bases for charter schools, the laws that this governor makes could find their way into national law books.

Legalization of Ferrets

While this may not have national implications and it is not even likely to be solved in this term, the legalization of ferrets has been a pivotal issue in recent history. This may sound like a joke, but it is not. There are several groups and organizations that devote a lot of time, money, and effort into this issue. While I am one of the many pro-weasel people in this state, I do not see any governor solving this problem. For a true solution, they need to draft a law, sign a petition to get it on the ballot, and then pray that it passes.

While this is not an issue for the governor, it does have a large impact on the race. For the past three candidates to win the office, they were pro-ferret. Whether this is a coincidence is still yet to be proven, but there are tens of thousands of people that will vote this issue. With a group this large, going pro-ferret can certainly tip the polls in your favor when the race is close. It is thought that since Arnold was ferret friendly and got the ferret vote, it was the weasel that got him the office.

There are several issues that will need to be handled in the upcoming term. These issues could easily shape not just California, but the entire nation. This is one race that will need to be closely monitored. The sad thing is that the candidate that has the most favored immigration plan will take this election, regardless of their stance on other issues.

Had the Arizona law not happened until after the election, the issues would be more closely monitored. With the law being passed though, the only thing that will really be discussed during this race is immigration. This issue has moved to the front of the line and may overshadow the many other things that need to be addressed. While these other issues will come up on occasion and will be minor debate topics, they will become minor issues. At least this leaves the possibility of another impeachment once the immigration problem is solved.