Don’t forget that Reagan came out of California, and in fact the fruits and nuts had elected him Governor before that. So California is certainly not all bad.
The difference between California 1972 and California 2012 are striking.
Reagan wouldn’t be elected Governor if he were to reincarnate and run today.
That was the California of 30 years ago. Things have changed for the worse since then. Where it went horribly wrong I can’t say, but it has gone horribly wrong none the less.