Man behind 2028 "Calexit" bid says movement for California to secede gaining traction
Of the 50 stars on the American Flag, star number 31 became California's in 1850. Nearly 200 years later, there is a growing push for that marriage to end, from people who believe California and America have drifted too far apart.
"Everybody thought I was insane when I proposed this originally and everybody said it was going to go nowhere," said Marcus Ruiz Evans, from Fresno.
Ruiz Evans spoke to CBS News Bay Area as he is advocating for California to secede and become an independent nation, in what has become known as the "Calexit" movement.
"I think California values are completely different from American values, and they've been that way for a long time," he said.
Every day, Ruiz Evans has conversation after conversation working to raise awareness to his cause – sometimes with people who are on the same page, other times with those who have vastly different political views but are eager in exploring the same reality in their respective states.
"We're working with conservative secessionists to show that we can come to an agreement. I've talked to Texans, New Hampshire, Florida, Louisiana, a little bit out of Vermont – the attitude is, 'Look, I don't want your values and you don't want mine. I don't want you telling me what to do, and I don't think you should tell me what to do,'" he said.
For Ruiz Evans, the mission is personal. He says his mom moved from Texas to California as a young woman.
"She came here and was treated with equality and respect – so were my aunts," he said. "If they didn't leave Texas from racism, I wouldn't have been born."
He is passionate, with strong feelings towards the current Trump Administration and the state of the Union.
"I think when you have insurrections and you have one half of the country say that's cool, and then elect a president who led the insurrection, yeah, you're already there," he said. "Every four years, do you want to go through this fear that you're going to lose access, as you know it, to clean air, clean water, clean land, less pollution, safe places for transgender, undocumented immigrants not having to live in terror, et cetera."
But Ruiz Evans says the idea for the movement actually came to life well before President Trump was first elected in 2016.
"I got the idea in 2007," he said.
But with Mr. Trump winning a second election, where more than 77,000,000 Americans voted in favor of putting him back in the Oval Office, Ruiz Evans said the Calexit movement has gained new and significant traction.
"We think we've gotten to the point where it doesn't work," he said. "There are people out there who will respond to California as a nation."
That traction was amplified, he says, after the devastating wildfires in Southern California.
"Donald Trump, when he said, I don't know if I want to give federal assistance to you guys because I don't really like you and your politics, and he wanted to play games when people are dead, homeless, and beside themselves after a natural disaster – I think that caused such a wide divide that he can never heal it," he said.
There is potential that Californians will get a chance to vote on this idea. If proponents can gather signatures from 546,651 registered voters by July 22, Californians will see the question: "Should California leave the United States and become a free and independent country?" on the 2028 ballot.
"We think we can get it," Ruiz Evans said.
But there is a catch. If it were to wind up on the ballot and voters were to approve it, it wouldn't actually mean California secedes. It would create an official commission to study California's viability as an independent nation.
"It doesn't make secession automatically happen. You can't do that. That's illegal," Ruiz Evans said.
That rule comes from the 1869 Supreme Court ruling of Texas v. White. In a 5-3 decision, the Court ruled states do not have the right to unilaterally secede. But there is a line from the majority opinion that Ruiz Evans points to, that he believes reveals a legal pathway forward.
Justice Salmon P. Chase wrote: "The union between Texas and the other States was as complete, as perpetual, and as indissoluble as the union between the original States. There was no place for reconsideration or revocation, except through revolution or through consent of the States."
"Texas v. White literally says consent of the states. Consent is not defined. Only the Supreme Court can define that," Ruiz Evans said.
His belief is that with the current Republican supermajority, a consensus could be reached.
"We're looking at an entire Republican regime," he said. "They have the power, alone, to vote us out."
Prof. Henry Brady, an expert in Political Science and Public Policy at UC Berkeley, doesn't believe a California secession can or will happen. However, he says economically speaking, the state could likely sustain itself.
"There's probably no way it really can secede, but if it did, California could survive on its own," Brady told CBS News Bay Area. "California is one of those states in which the taxes we pay and the benefits we get in return are roughly equal. So, we pay to the federal government about the same as we get back. So, leaving the union, we'd probably be just fine in that regard."
California does have the sixth largest economy in the world.
"We're an enormously important part of the nation because we produce so much gross national product," he said. "To lose California, despite its 'wokeness' that bothers Mr. Trump, would in fact, be a problem for the United States."
While it would be damaging to the United States to lose California, Brady argues California would suffer as well, even though it could theoretically sustain itself.
"I think that in the end, you'd find that in fact economically, we'd be worse off if we left the United States," he said. "I think it's an example of what happens when you have a lot of stuff going on in a country like we do right now. A group decides well, maybe the answer to the problem is to get away from the United States because we could do it better if we did it on our own."
Brady does believe this is somewhat of an inflection point, however.
"I think right now, the state of California has to think of using every lever it can to make sure that it gets a fair deal with the new administration, and so far the signals haven't been good," he said.
Erin Gil, a second-generation farmer from Morgan Hill, also believes the country has reached an inflection point.
"I see more of a divide of have-nots and haves," he said. "We're at one of those junctions in history that a conversation is being forced."
Gil, too, thinks there are big issues that the state and nation are facing that need solving.
"Agriculture really doesn't get the respect it deserves in California, about how many people it feeds," he told CBS News Bay Area. "California has its own issues, in terms of the cost of living and the wages that we're able to provide."
However, he is representative of many Californians who understand the divisive issues at hand, but thinks the idea of secession is simply not an option.
"I can't envision the United States without California," he said. "California will do better being a part of the United States versus apart from it. I welcome more discussion and more debate, and that's what I think will bring more balance to how California develops."
Gil disagrees with the Calexit movement, but does say he sees value in the conversation unfolding.
"It's an out of the box conversation, but it will bring in a lot of conversations and a lot of dialogue in terms of why California, what is its future, what should it be, what can it be, and what position does it play within the United States as a whole," he said. "Maybe with a good conversation between political leaders or leaders with business or industry – we can actually solve some of the problems that we're facing."
Although there are divisive issues that exist and need to be addressed, Gil says his family roots run deep in California and he has no plans of leaving.
"We'd like to stay here. We like where we are at," he said. "California is a place worth trying to protect and leave better than how you found it. It's definitely changing, there's a lot going on, but I think there is a value to what California is and what California brings to the quality of life."
If Calexit were to succeed, Ruiz Evans says cooperation between California and the United States would be essential for both nations.
"Putting up walls between America and California would be disastrous for both of our economies," he said.
He knows the idea may sound drastic, but believes the divided times call for radical measures.
"They're totally right – this is extreme. This is radical," he said. "We had an insurrection led by a president, he got away with it and became more popular. If that doesn't tell you what times we're in now, there is nothing I can tell you."
