America’s most liberal cities and states have shifted their policies to the right in recent elections, as crime and homelessness remain large issues in Democratic strongholds.
Left-wing policies in blue states like California and Colorado and cities such as Portland, San Francisco, Los Angeles and Oakland were rejected by voters last week, with voters passing anti-crime ballot measures and ousting liberal district attorneys and mayors. Some of the policies voters supported include tougher drug penalties, harsher prosecution of criminals by district attorneys and more funding for law enforcement.
“I think people are realizing that it’s not a good idea to cut millions upon millions of dollars from your local police department’s budgets, [and] it’s not a good idea to publish lists of crimes that you’re no longer going to prosecute,” Zack Smith, senior fellow at the Heritage Foundation, told the Daily Caller News Foundation. “And so what you’re seeing is politicians who formally supported those positions are starting to walk back some of their most radical previous policies.”…