San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan is currently placed seventh among candidates in the latest poll of California’s governor race.
That’s an ignominious 12 points behind the option, “someone else.” But that hasn’t stopped him from landing prominent national media appearances, including an interview with Jon Stewart on the Daily Show. The comedian noted that Democrats across the country were pushing to raise taxes without adequately explaining to voters how the money would be spent.
“For Democrats, it’s always been interesting that they’ve had trouble connecting the money that they’re asking to raise through taxes to the value it’s providing to taxpayers,” Stewart said. “I think too often, the politicians haven’t connected that money to real value. I don’t think people trust that that money will be spent responsibly or have any efficacy.”
Stewart did not appear impressed with the online “dashboards” that Mahan created as mayor to track San Jose spending, and his larger question is a good one. Across the country, states controlled by Democrats spend far more than their Republican-run counterparts, and voters should ask: “What do we get for our money?”
The three most populous blue states are California, New York, and Illinois. In 2024, they spent $11,482, $11,822, and $10,996 per resident, respectively. The three most populous red states are Texas, Florida, and Georgia, which in 2024 spent $4,621, $5,586, and $6,833 per resident, respectively. The biggest blue states spend twice as much per resident as red states do.
What do blue state residents get in return?
Certainly not higher economic growth. In 2024, California’s economy grew at a rate of 3.21%, slightly higher than the national average but well behind Texas’s 3.95% and slightly lower than Florida’s 3.28%. Meanwhile, Georgia (2.65%) outgrew both New York (2.6%) and Illinois (1.6%).
High-spending Democratic states aren’t delivering better schools either. According to the 2024 Nation’s Report Card, California eighth graders fared no better than those in Texas or Georgia in math, while Georgia’s eighth graders outperformed the counterparts in California and New York and were much the same as Illinois eighth graders. Texas and Florida fourth graders, meanwhile, outperformed California, New York, and Illinois in math.
Democratic states are also failing to maintain basic infrastructure. The American Society of Civil Engineers 2025 Report Card for America’s Infrastructure notes that while Texas, Florida, and Georgia received seemingly unimpressive Cs for their roads, New York and Illinois got a D+ and California only a D.
There is one area where blue state spending has resulted in a consistent, measurable outcome: health insurance. Thanks to Medicaid expansion funded in part by the Affordable Care Act, California, New York, and Illinois have uninsured rates far below those in Texas, Florida, and Georgia.
But before blue states pat themselves on the back for this, they should ask what those numbers mean for actual health outcomes. Various studies have found no impact on health outcomes from expanded Medicaid access. Others have shown that Emergency Department use rises thanks to Medicaid expansion, but this is the opposite of what Obamacare proponents promised.
You can see the results of Medicaid expansion in the average wait times patients endure before seeing a medical professional after first arriving in an emergency room. According to the best Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services data available, the average wait times for emergency care in California, New York, and Illinois are all significantly higher than those in Texas, Florida, and Georgia.
Most voters are not ideologues. They do not believe bigger government is always good. They want results for the money politicians spend before they agree to give more. Right now, blue state spending is failing to deliver better results. More spending generally produces worse results. Schools aren’t better, roads aren’t better, and Medicaid expansion has produced nothing but longer ER wait times.
Mahan and the Democratic Party need something better than online dashboards to convince skeptical purple- and red-state voters to raise taxes.
