President Barack Obama and former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney hail from the more moderate wings of the Democratic and Republican parties. Still, the stakes do seem high for California in this year’s election, both in the national election and in the races closer to home. Whichever party controls the White House and Congress could have a profound influence on a number of policy fronts with huge implications for Golden State residents. California has more residents on Medicaid than any other state. More than 8 million people, or more than one in five Californians, get their care through the program. At $14 billion, it is the second biggest expenditure in the state budget, after only K-12 education. So any major changes coming from Washington would be of significant interest here according to a report on www.healthycal.org.