Why divide California in the first place? Why not just have the whole state secede from the Union as you once campaigned for?

• California is a deep blue state but that doesn’t mean that California has only democrats. In fact, there are more than 5 million registered Republicans in the state. Most of them live in the inland and northern counties, thus the division of California that we propose greatly reduces the number of Republicans that would be pulled out of the United States, largely against their will, to live in a newly created country that is even more left-wing than the current state of California in which they live. 

  Additionally, there are many US military installations and facilities in California. By surgically divorcing the San Francisco Bay Area and the immediately surrounding regions from the country, leaving the rest of California in the United States, most of these facilities remain unaffected by the partition. Even though some US military facilities are within the proposed borders of Pacifica, such as those near Monterey, the fewer there are, the less complicated pulling off a CalExit will be.

  Also, much of California is federal land that has been managed by federal agencies funded by the collective tax revenue from taxpayers in all fifty states. For the entire state of California to secede is to deny 300 million Americans access to the national parks, natural resources, and historical sites their taxes have helped maintain. The Partition of Pacifica from California does not include large swaths of federal land, greatly making CalExit less complicated to pull off.

  Finally, the overlying mission with CalExit 3.1 is to kick off the national divorce process. Indeed, this ballot measure is the first national divorce ballot measure in the country and seeks to demonstrate how a national divorce can achieved. Not by dividing the country into red states and blue states, but drawing the lines altogether. 

How were the lines drawn?

• The lines were drawn largely along ideological lines, resulting in a country where more than three-fourths of the population are democrats. However, voting history was not the only factor taken into consideration. We also tried not to break up cities (even if the cities had clear ideological divides) and other highly interconnected areas.We also took existing transportation infrastructure into consideration, which is why some heavily Democrat cities may be on one or another side of the border. To the extent possible, we additionally tried to avoid creating an overly jagged border, even if it meant disregarding a particular district’s voting history to do so.

Will American citizens be able to visit Pacifica? Will Pacifiers be able to visit the United States?

• Firstly, what a demonym for the inhabitants of Pacifica! To answer the question, both US citizens and citizens of Pacifica will be free to travel to and from each country. Pacifiers will be allowed to enter the US because they will still be US citizens (they won’t lose their US citizenship as a result of the partition or secession). US citizens will be allowed to visit Pacifica just as they’re allowed to visit Canada or Mexico.

What is the process for realizing this plan? What needs to be done?

• First, we need to file our ballot measure and request a title and summary from the California Attorney General’s office. Then, once that hurdle is cleared, we will have six months to collect nearly 900,000 valid signatures from registered voters in order to qualify the initiative for the 2024 ballot. Once qualified for the ballot, the work begins to convince the voters of California to approve the measure at the ballot box.Once passed by the voters of California, the governor of California will be required to submit a formal letter to the state legislatures of the 49 other states informing them of the results of the referendum and requesting that each state’s legislative branch draft and approve a joint resolution, where applicable, granting Pacifica consent to secede from the Union.

  As we’ve discussed in Our Philosophy, secession does not require authorization from Congress or a constitutional amendment. Consent of a majority of state legislatures will suffice and once 25 state legislatures approve their respective resolutions, Pacifica declares its independence from the United States.