Newsom: Expect 'Sharp Drop' in Minority College Admissions

Expect a sharp drop in Black and Latino admissions across the nation, California Democrat Gov. Gavin Newsom said Thursday, following a 6-3 Supreme Court ruling ending race as a major consideration by institutions of higher learning.

Newsom, speaking at a press conference, cited California's own ending of affirmative action for college admissions in the 1990s.

"The impact that had on Black and brown communities was profound," Newsom told reporters. "For those that are wondering what's going to happen in their states, they only have to look to California to know exactly what's going to happen. You're going to see a significant decline in African American and Latino admissions in institutions of higher learning."

The Hill, reporting on Newsom's words, cites a 2020 report by the University of California, Berkeley that California's most selective public universities had an almost 40% drop in the "underrepresented minority" category in 1998 after the ban took effect.

Newsom told reporters he was "frankly unsurprised" by Thursday's decision, saying he believes the current conservative-leaning court "wants to bring us back to a pre-1960s world."

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