Political Geography of the State of California - Essay Example

The largest known cities within the State of California include San Diego, Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Jose, Long Beach, Oakland, Sacramento, and Fresno. The highest point in California is Mount Whitney, which is at the height of 4, 418 meters above sea level. The Death Valley that is at 86 meters below sea level is the lowest point in the whole State of California.

Political Geography of the State of California

California bears overwhelming political importance in the whole United States of America. California is the most densely populated state with a total population of over 37 million people. This population gives the state its deserved political significance with America. The State of California experiences division of its population along racial, religious, economic, ethnic, and cultural lines. Importantly, the latest political division of the population of California has shifted the traditional North-South partisan to East-West partisan arrangement (Lawrence 8). Initially, the North divide supported the Democratic Party while the South divide supported Republican Party. The support of the South for the Republican Party, which is also pro-war attributed to the existence of the defense industry in the region. In the new political alignment of the regions, the Coastal region that has a dense population supports Democratic Party while the less populated interior region supports the Republican Party. According to Lawrence, the additional political significance of California relates to the fact that it bears the highest number of Electoral College votes that stands at 55 (13). Since 1992, Democratic Party has managed to win three out of the five presidential elections.

Population Geography of the State of California

According to the census of 2009, California is the most populated state in the USA with over 39 million residents. About 7.3% of the human population in California consists of illegal immigrants. The largest proportion of the population in California clusters in the three major cities that include the Oakland Bay area in San Francisco, Los Angeles, Central Valley, Sacramento, San Diego, and Stockton (Briney).

Economic Geography of the State of California

The economy of California pegs on many sources of livelihood that range from entrainment, processing industry, technology to other natural resources like oil, cement, sand, and gravel. The state has many industries that focus on processing farms and agricultural products, which generates revenues as well as provides employment to a section of the population. The Silicon Valley also defines an important region in California considering its domination by high-tech companies that produce important computer software and hardware. Apart from the Silicon Valley, South Carolina also hosts many high and low-tech companies that make the region stand as the largest manufacturing region in the whole USA.

California hosts many entrainment industries that specialize in the production of motion pictures, television films, and other entertainment-related content. In fact, California has global recognition for the production of Hollywood and Burbank entrainment materials. Tourism also defines part of the economic drivers in California. Tourism sites in the state include and are not limited to Sea World, Disneyland, the numerous attractions in San Francisco, entertainment-dominated Los Angeles, Yosemite Falls, Pacific beaches, and the giant sequoia trees, which attract millions of tourists every year. The general economic activities in California contribute an average of 13% to the GDP of the whole USA.

Agricultural Geography of the State of California

The State of California practices most of the agricultural activities taking place in the United States of America. California leads other states in the production of vegetables and fruits like lettuce, carrots, broccoli, onions, tomatoes, strawberries, and almonds. The most valuable crops within California include cotton, grapes, flowers, and oranges. California also leads other states in the production of dairy products (Starrs and Peter 14)). The agricultural viability and productivity of the State of California are related to its good soil, long growing season, and abundance of rain. Irrigation of dry land as happens in areas like Imperial Valley and San Joaquin Valley is another factor that makes California appear as a viable and productive agricultural land.

Urban Geography of the State of California

California has many urban centers that include and are not limited to Torrance, Pomona, Pasadena, El Monte, Downey, Norwalk, Compton, Hesperia, Redding, Santa Monica, Westminster, Chico, Roseville, Concord, Salinas, and Concord (Briney).  

Cultural Geography of the State of California

The interior region of California that includes the Inland Empire, North Carolina, and the Central Valley adopts a very conservative social structure and is less diversified. The region is more evangelical and the population there practices extensive agriculture.