Chris Nichols

PolitiFact California Reporter

For the past dozen years, Chris Nichols has worked as a government and politics reporter at newspapers across California. Most recently, he covered the Capitol for the San Diego Union-Tribune. Previously, he worked at the North County Times in Escondido; the Lodi News-Sentinel and the Sonora Union-Democrat.

He is a native of sunny San Diego and long-suffering fan of the San Diego Padres and Chargers – but only if they stay in America’s Finest City. After obtaining his bachelor’s degree from UC Berkeley, Chris left California to earn his master’s degree from the Columbia Graduate School of Journalism in 2004, but quickly returned home after realizing his heart was in the Golden State, not the Big Apple.

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Stories by Chris Nichols

Dialysis Industry Raises $99 Million To Defeat California’s Prop 8
October 15, 2018
Have you seen, heard or read a Prop 8 ad? They’re hard to miss. The proposition dealing with kidney dialysis centers is the most expensive one on the November ballot. So who’s spending the money and why?
Fact-Checking Claims About California’s Rent Control Measure Prop 10
October 11, 2018
There’s a flood of ads about California’s rent control measure Prop 10 on TV, radio and social media. But which claims are true? PolitiFact California fact-checked some of the most common ones.
Fact-Checking Gavin Newsom’s Record ‘Solving’ Homelessness In San Francisco
October 8, 2018
At Monday’s gubernatorial debate, Republican candidate John Cox attacked Democrat Gavin Newsom over San Francisco’s struggle with this human crisis. PolitiFact California explored the claim that Newsom really failed to "solve the problem at all."
Will California’s Rent Control Measure Prop 10 Really Have ‘No Effect On Homeowners’?
October 5, 2018
A claim by the Yes on 10 campaign in a recent TV ad has fueled questions over how homeowners will fare should the measure pass in November.
Ted Cruz’s Misleading Claim: California ‘Is Hemorrhaging Population’
September 28, 2018
Texas Republican Sen. Ted Cruz added fuel to the long-running fight when he claimed California "is hemorrhaging population" in a recent Senate debate with his Democratic challenger Rep. Beto O’Rourke.
Governor Signs Bill To Boost Media Literacy In California Schools
September 21, 2018
The new law requires the state to publish a list of media literacy resources online to help students better evaluate sources of digital information.
TRUE: Nearly Half Of California’s Children Are ‘At Or Near Poverty’ When Considering Cost-Of-Living
September 19, 2018
Gavin Newsom claimed nearly half of California's children are "at or near poverty." PolitiFact set out on a fact check.
PolitiFact California: Apple Offbeat In Claim About ‘First’ EKG Consumer Product
September 14, 2018
During the unveiling of the latest Apple watch in San Francisco this week, the company’s Chief Operating Officer Jeff Williams made a claim that’s been described as "alternative facts" by another Silicon Valley CEO and called into question by recent
John Cox’s Exaggerated Claim: ‘Half The People’ Want To Leave California
September 6, 2018
Does half the state’s population really want to move out? That’s what Republican candidate for governor John Cox claimed in an interview on the Fox Business Network.
PolitiFact California: Does ICE Have Unlimited Authority To Make Courthouse Arrests?
September 4, 2018
How much legal authority does ICE have to make arrests at local courthouses? PolitiFact California explored that topic with experts on immigration law following the recent ICE arrest of an undocumented man inside a local Sacramento courtroom.

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