How inflation concerns could doom state’s Proposition 32 to increase minimum wage

A year ago, a ballot measure to raise the statewide minimum wage to $18 seemed poised for an easy win in California, where costs have skyrocketed, affordability is a key concern and many of the state’s biggest cities already require businesses to pay close to that much.

But weeks before California decides on a measure that would do that, voter support appears to have fallen significantly amid heightened concerns about the economy that opponents are stressing, and a relatively quiet campaign in favor of Proposition 32.