California (AMPU)

Unlike in OTL where California was annexed and colonized by the US, this timeline saw Alta California remain a Mexican province all the way into the early 20th century. The region had been slowly colonized by pioneers from Mexico, along with a handful of Americans working in the timber industry in the Redwood forests, but its population didn't see the meteoric rise that the Southwest saw in OTL without the help of immigration to the United States. In the early 20th Century the Californian Revolution, led by Poncho Villa successfully broke the region off from Mexico. The newly formed Republic of California had a troubled start, but the mineral wealth of the new nation made it easy for the cozy up to its northern neighbor, the Untied States. The relationship was mutually beneficial as the US got to take advantage of California Gold, Silver, Oil, and Timber without having to bother with the state's turbulent internal politics.

During the Great War, California was a significant ally of the United States, building ships shortly after the Japanese attacks on Anchorage, and providing the raw materials the US needed to fight the Japanese. A contingent of California Volunteers even joined the US military in the Pacific campaign. By the end of the War the nation saw an economic and population boom. The coast became a hub of industry and trade while the interior supplied the raw materials to make it all possible. The US served to guarantee its security, and the country was all too happy to position American radar and early warning installations in its territory. By the 21st Century, California stood with a population of 35 million (still mostly hugging the coasts where it had easy access to trade with the US) and was the world's 10th largest economy. Immigration during and after the Great War gave the country a more diverse society, with Filipino and Chinese refugees contributing to the nations' demand for labor, while American settlers in the English-speaking Shasta state continued to impose a social problem. By the 1990s there were serious calls for Shasta to leave California and join the US, and the measure was only defeated by a margin of 5%.