In this special edition of So, Does It Matter? Live!, Jon Fleischman is joined by George Nassar, partner at Public Opinion Strategies, one of the leading Republican polling firms in the country.

George walks through fresh polling data on California’s political environment and explains what the numbers really mean beneath the headlines. Using a series of detailed charts, he breaks down voter attitudes about the direction of the state, Governor Gavin Newsom’s standing with voters, economic pessimism, tax preferences, immigration attitudes, and shifting voter registration trends.

The conversation goes beyond the topline numbers to explore what the data suggests about California’s political trajectory heading into the 2026 election cycle.

This episode marks the first So, Does It Matter? Live! conversation featuring a guest analyst, offering a deeper look at how professional pollsters interpret the electorate and what campaigns should be paying attention to right now.

Episode Highlights

• Why most Californians say the state is on the wrong track

• What the numbers actually say about Newsom’s approval

• Economic pessimism and the affordability crisis

• The tax vs. services debate among California voters

• Immigration opinion trends inside the state

• Central Valley voter registration shifts and long-term implications

• What polling data means for the 2026 political environment

Chapters

00:00 Introduction and welcome

02:10 George Nassar joins the conversation

04:30 California “right direction vs wrong track” trends

09:15 Newsom approval numbers and independent voters

14:20 Economic outlook and affordability concerns

19:40 Taxes, services, and voter priorities

25:10 Immigration opinion movement

31:30 Voter registration shifts in the Central Valley

36:45 What the data means for the 2026 political environment

41:00 Closing thoughts

Find so much more here!