In California, a small city declared itself a "republic". It objected to the state's requirement for children's vaccination

The city also refuses to comply with other requirements of the state or federal government if, in its view, they exceed its "constitutional rights".

In the US state of California, the Oroville City Council voted overwhelmingly to declare itself a "constitutional republic," reports Fox8.

As a result, the city authorities decided to stop complying with the anti-epidemic requirements introduced the previous day by the state authorities. 

Supporters of the "constitutional republic" told journalists that they were particularly upset by California's requirement that children aged 12 and older be vaccinated against COVID-19 to attend school. 

However, even after this vote, schools in Oroville will still be regulated (and largely funded) by the state.

According to the declaration, this means the following: "Any administrative orders of the State of California or the federal government of the United States that excessively exceed or clearly violate our constitutionally protected rights will not be enforced by the city authorities of Oroville against its citizens."

Oroville Mayor Chuck Reynolds said that it "changes nothing." "It is simply a reminder to people of what government we live under, and that they really do have personal choice and freedoms," Reynolds said.

Oroville is not the only city in California trying to push back against the state's COVID-19 policies. Earlier during the pandemic, two cities decided to ignore Governor Gavin Newsom's order to close some businesses, the Los Angeles Times reports. As a result, they lost part of their state funding.

The desire to secede is not unique to California. The Washington Times and a USA Today columnist noted a 2020 trend, observing that rural areas in "blue" states (sympathetic to Democratic Party candidates) are often the ones that "want to leave." 

Several counties in Virginia said they want to join their more conservative neighbors in West Virginia, but Adam Dean, a history professor at Lynchburg University, called the prospect of approval from the state legislatures and Congress "highly unlikely."

Some residents of Southern Oregon and far Northern California have also tried for nearly 80 years to create the 51st state of Jefferson. But, as the New York Times reports, creating a new state would require the approval not only of California and Oregon, but also of Congress.

The publication speculates that theoretically, city residents could take up arms and go to war to fight for independence, which would cause a civil war. But since cities have no armies of their own, the military could easily take control of even a large metropolis, let alone Oroville with a population of 20,000.