The 2024 Carnegie California Global Affairs Survey reflects Californians’ heightened concerns about ongoing conflicts and critical elections, including in the United States. It arrives at a tense moment in American democracy and during a critical election year for many of the world’s leading democracies.

The mix of legislative measures and citizens’ initiatives offer a window into the health of direct democracy in the most populous U.S. state.

Roughly half of the world lives in countries holding elections in 2024. Carnegie asked a global group scholars to reflect on the role of migration in electoral campaigns. 

Turnout, the top-two primary system, and Proposition 1 all offer insights into voters’ mindsets.

The state’s democracy innovations will be front and center, and some races will be closely watched as early indicators of possible November outcomes.

Subnational jurisdictions are grappling with the tangible impacts that AI is beginning to have. Their efforts provide an important space to learn best practices for policy going forward.

To Push Back, the West Must Invest More in Urban Life

Westward-looking, often aligned with their fellow Americans, and confident in U.S. global engagement, Californians would prefer that the role of their state and local leaders on the world stage be decided close to home.

The state and the Hoopa Tribe are stretching funds from federal, state, and local programs to build public digital infrastructure.

The state’s residents have been eager to be a world leader on a subnational level.

Without federal reform, state and local leaders will need to find innovative ways to cope with migration trends within the bounds of existing inadequate policy.

With big data, California policymakers could improve everything from infrastructure to air quality—but first they need the tools to make use of it