California’s Central Valley used to be a pass-through for presidential candidates. Now, it’s seen as a key campaign stop.
So far, 2020 contenders have focused their travels on the San Joaquin Valley, which accounts for the lower two-thirds of the Central Valley and is home to roughly 4 million residents. About 1 in 5 live below the poverty line. Six of its eight counties are majority Latino. Political engagement has typically lagged, although a surge of Democratic activism in 2018 helped unseat two House Republicans.
“When you go to the Central Valley, what you’re saying is everyone in this state is important,” Villaraigosa said — not just people who live on the coasts, but also “people who work with their hands, work in the fields, put the food on the table.” The three Democratic candidates who have visited so far have demonstrated their eagerness to venture into often-ignored territory.
“Every night I watched the evening news to see what the level of the aquifer was. And there was more and more anxiety as it went lower and lower,” he said in an interview. “So I understand the concerns in places like Fresno that rely tremendously for their economy and their basic survival on whether they have enough water.”
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