CalExit is making the rounds on social media. Is #CalExit real and is it really happening? As thousands of Americans take to the streets to protest Donald Trump’s victory, #CalExit has taken over Twitter. People have been tweeting out the hashtag in support of California leaving the United States.
CalExit has been a thing for years, but it heated up on social media Wednesday night. Californians are unhappy about Trump’s surprise victory in the U.S. presidential election and are calling for independence for California. A whopping 5.5 million (61.5%) Californians voted for Hillary Clinton against Trump’s less than 3 million (33.3%) votes in Cali.
If #CalExit is indeed going to happen, it would make California the world’s sixth-largest economy. According to last year’s data by the International Monetary Fund, it would place California ahead of France, India, Italy and Brazil. In fact, GDP growth in California between 2014 and 2015 was far more rapid than in other states.
Californians funding CalExit and calling for secession
As #CalExit is heating up on social media, it can be seen that the YesCalifornia movement attracts thousands of Californians. Hyperloop One co-founder Shervin Pishevar even announced on Tuesday night that he would fund a legitimate campaign for CalExit. Pishevar’s tweets were backed by other prominent business figures, including the former CEO of Cheezburger, Ben Huh, and entrepreneur Dave Morin, both of whom could inject loads of money into the campaign.
A website called YesCalifornia, which calls for California’s secession from the U.S., has already been created. The website is currently accepting donations to sponsor CalExit. YesCalifornia’s website announced that their CalExit referendum would be about Cali “joining the international community.” The site also says that Californians have “a big decision to make” and cited the U.K.’s Brexit vote.
CalExit supporters are calling for a 2018 ballot measure that would set a date for a CalExit referendum, in which voters would vote for or against California seceding from the U.S. YesCalifornia lists nine key reasons why California should leave the U.S., including taxes, immigration and claims that the state’s economy would allow California to live an independent life on its own.
Thousands of Californians take to the streets to protest Trump
There have also been Texas secession movements in the past. While #Texit could also become a thing following Trump’s surprise victory, it’s not as promising as CalExit. In fact, Trump received more than a million more votes in Texas than Clinton on Tuesday. If #Texit actually happens, it would make it the 10th biggest nation by GDP, ahead of Canada and South Korea.
According to August polls by Public Policy Polling, #Texit would be supported by 40% of Texans, but only if Clinton would havve been elected the new president on November 8.
The CalExit movement is making the rounds on social media, as many Californians protest Trump’s victory. High school students in the San Francisco Bay Area stormed off school grounds to protest Trump’s win. Protests against Trump were formed at UCLA and UC Irvine. It all went down peacefully. It wasn’t so peaceful in Oakland, however, where police arrested people for disobedience and vandalism during their anti-Trump protests.
California has been pro-Democrat since 1970, so it’s no wonder CalExit has become a thing after Republican Trump won the presidential election. California has voted in favor of a Democratic majority in both chambers since 1971. The state has also been electing Democrats to the U.S. Senate since 1992.
Is CalExit even possible? Could California secede from the U.S.?
But is it legally possible for California to secede from the U.S.? According to the YesCalifornia website, there is a way.
In order to make CalExit happen, two-thirds of the House of Representatives and Senate should approve a proposed constitutional amendment. If approved, the amendment would then be sent to each state legislature to be either rejected or accepted. Under Article V, amending the Constitution requires at least two-thirds of the votes from the House of Representatives and Senate.
Then, at least 38 of the 50 states would need to accept the amendment for it to be adopted. Amendments have been made only 17 times in U.S. history, excluding the Bill of Rights. It should be noted that today’s Senate and Congress are both Republican-dominated. So do the math yourself.
CalExit is the new Brexit?
David A. Carrillo, executive director of the California Constitution Center at the University of California, Berkeley Law, discussed the chances of CalExit happening. Carrillo said there is “no legal basis” for this to be accomplished. In his interview with ABC News, Carrillo wasn’t very optimistic about the YesCalifornia campaign.
“The U.S. Constitution (A4s3) has a procedure for adding new states or subdividing existing states–both require Congress to consent. But there is no procedure, at all, in the U.S. constitution for a state to secede,” Carrillo said.
Carrillo noted that even California’s own Constitution (A3s1) states that it “is an inseparable part of the United States of America, and the United States Constitution is the supreme law of the land.” Carrillo went on to say that other states have made attempts to secede from the U.S. in the past, but they were fruitless. So he says it’s “extremely unlikely” that CalExit actually becomes something like Brexit.
Protests against Trump across the U.S.
But Californians will surely keep pushing for CalExit, as they’re clearly not happy with Trump’s presidency. On Wednesday night, hundreds of protesters stormed Los Angeles City Hall chanting, “¡Si se puede!” (“yes, it’s possible” in Spanish). The majority of those protesters were Latinos. During his presidential campaign, Trump made a series of anti-immigrant comments which inspired many Latinos to vote against him. In fact, the margin was quite huge; 79% of Latinos voted for Clinton, while only 18% for Trump.
Thousands of activists took it to the streets to protest against Trump’s victory and chant “Not my president!” In New York City, people are no less frustrated about Trump’s presidency. According to police estimations, thousands of people gathered outside New York City’s Trump Tower on Wednesday to protest Trump’s controversial positions on immigration and law enforcement.
Nearly 4.2 million (58.8%) New Yorkers voted for Clinton on Tuesday. Trump, meanwhile, was less popular in New York City, with nearly 2.7 million (37.5%) votes.
