The country's two most controversial governors are gearing up to battle it out on stage with job growth and crime, and the number of people fleeing California for Florida is expected to be the night's hot topic.
On Thursday, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and California Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) will duke it out as the Democratic-run state faces ongoing homelessness and crime issues.
According to data, more Americans are moving out of California and calling red states home, with more than 340,000 people moving elsewhere in 2022.
On the contrary, Florida gained about 250,000 residents during the same year. The number of people moving from California to Florida has skyrocketed since the COVID-19 pandemic, with the annual net migration from Newsom's turf to the sunshine state tripling from 2019 to 2022.
Data also found that those moving from California to DeSantis's state are average and wealthier due to state taxes and a lower cost of living. The average household income for people moving from California to Florida between 2020 and 2021 was roughly $200,000, while the households that moved from Florida to California made just $90,000, according to tax return data from the IRS. Meanwhile, the average income among California households that remained in the state was only about $103,000.
Erin Friday, a Democrat and an activist for Protect Kids California, criticized Newsom's job performance, saying that people, including fellow Leftists, are sick of his lies and not putting children and families first.
"This man put men into women's prisons. This man has said that he wants schools to lie to parents… when their children are suffering from gender dysphoria. We've had enough of Gavin Newsom. It's time for him to go," Friday told Fox & Friends First.
The parent believes that Newsom will not respond well when he is bombarded with questions about crime and homelessness during the debate. Friday slammed his progressive policies for being the reason she can no longer go to crime-ridden California areas such as San Francisco.
"He's been fighting homelessness for more than a decade," the Democrat said. "He fought it as a mayor of San Francisco and failed. He spent $800 million over the last couple of years in fighting homelessness, and our streets are covered with human feces. People are sleeping on the streets, shooting up. I mean, it's abysmal. I can't even go to San Francisco anymore. It's just so dangerous."
Meanwhile, Florida mom April Carney praised DeSantis's work as governor, applauding his work in schools and educating children.
"We are expanding our African American studies curriculum. We are expanding civics. We're teaching our children to love their country and realize they can also have the American dream. I think he can try and spin it any way that he wants to. At the end of the day, we are succeeding when it comes to educating children. We are number one in the country when it comes to public education," she said.