The Chico Metro Area is a vibrant and politically active hub in California. The area has long been a stronghold for progressive values, including environmental protection, public education, and social equity. In recent years, the area has become increasingly involved in local political discourse as residents have sought more control over their communities’ futures. Democratic candidates tend to dominate in local elections, winning support from the majority of the population. Recent initiatives on the ballots have included such measures as increasing funding for public transit systems, expanding school choice opportunities, and combating climate change with sustainable policies. The Chico Metro Area is an important part of the larger political landscape in California; its citizens are actively engaged and passionate about making positive changes locally and statewide.
The political climate in Chico Metro Area is leaning liberal.
In Chico Metro Area 49.5% of the people voted Democrat in the last presidential election, 47.6% voted for the Republican Party, and the remaining 2.9% voted Independent.
In the last Presidential election, the Chico metro area flipped slightly Democratic, 49.5% to 47.6%.
The Chico metro area flipped Democratic in 2020, after voting Republican in four of the last six Presidential elections.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index
Chico Metro Area is leaning liberal.
California is strongly liberal.
The BestPlaces liberal/conservative index is based on recent voting in national elections, federal campaign contributions by local residents, and consumer personality profiles.
VoteWord™
Displaying 20 years of Presidential voting, visualized in one word.
Chico, California: R r d r r d
How It Works:
Here at BestPlaces, we were looking at the voting patterns since the 2000 election and realized that we could express the results of each election as one letter. R if the Republican Party candidate won, D for the Democrat and I for the Independent. The six elections (2000, 2004, 2008, 2012, 2016, 2020) would be expressed as six-letter word (R R D R R).
Then we went a little further and added the dimension of magnitude. If the difference of victory was greater than 10 percent, the letter is upper case, and lower case if the difference was less than 10 percent. This allows us to see interesting voting patterns at just a glance.
Here's the VoteWord for Iowa d r d d r. In the last six elections the state has been closely contested, voting narrowly for the Republican Party candidate in 2016 and 2020 after voting for the Democratic Party in 2008 and 2012. Virginia (r r d d d D) has voted for the Democratic Party in the last four elections.
Individual Campaign Contributions in Chico Metro Area
In the last 4 years (2018-2021), there were 16,402 contributions totaling $1,057,652 to the Democratic Party and liberal campaigns, averaging $64 per contribution.
In the last 4 years, there were 3,800 contributions totaling $803,197 to the Republican Party and conservative campaigns, averaging $211 per contribution.
(source: Federal Election Commission)