Beto O’Rourke falls face first into the water while trying to surf off La Jolla.

Joe Biden dons a paper hat to take orders — “I love mine ‘animal style’ too, ma’am” — in an In-N-Out drive-through.

Bernie Sanders, desperate to catch front-runner Biden, packs a bong with legally grown California cannabis — and smokes it. The meme breaks the internet.

For now, these scenes are merely the product of one columnist’s imagination. But in the next 10 months, don’t be surprised if they show up in the reality show we call the presidential race.

Traditionally, California has had little say in picking presidents. Other Americans — out of a commitment to electing steady, even boring presidents — allowed dull states — Iowa and New Hampshire — to drive the process.

But Americans no longer are attached to sober-minded presidents. That cultural shift — in combination with an early California primary (March 3), and an unpopular Republican president — means that the Golden State might well pick the next president.

The process of selection should involve the whole state — because Democrats decided to allocate delegates to anyone who wins at least 15% of the vote in any California congressional district. While more delegates are allocated to districts with more Democrats — which will push candidates to spend more time in Democratic-heavy coastal districts — lesser-known contenders are likely to make hay by going into the state’s interior to pick up delegates, in districts where there may be less competition.

The race will not be easy for anyone, even California’s own Sen. Kamala Harris, who could struggle to meet expectations that she should win her home state. And while California has been represented in the Senate exclusively by women since 1992, it remains to be seen whether it is favorable turf for women seeking the presidency. Yes, Hillary Clinton won the 2008 and 2016 presidential primaries here, but, as a state, we’ve been less inclined to select women to executive positions. California has never had a female governor, and Los Angeles has never had a female mayor.

California is also not fertile ground for a Republican challenger to the president. Republicans here like Trump nearly as much as Republicans nationally.

But it’s not just about the candidates; California is likely to shape the issues of the presidential campaign. Previous presidential races have focused on the economy, health care and national security, but housing and homelessness, as the top priorities of many Californians, will become national issues next year. Other lower-profile issues that divide Californians — like water and high-speed rail — also should become big points of contention as presidential candidates spend more time here. And California teachers’ unions have been asking candidates to back federal regulations to curtail the growth of charter schools as a condition of their support.

Climate change debates — over the state’s policies to curtail it through cap-and-trade, and growing anxiety over disasters like the fire that destroyed Paradise — also could move from California to the national arena. And our state’s commitment to protecting immigrants and their families, regardless of legal status, should shape the race. In California, perhaps more than anywhere else, Biden is likely to face potent attacks from rivals who point to his service in an Obama administration that engaged in massive deportation of immigrants.

But our votes are not the only way that Californians will impact the selection of the president. Despite new methods of online fundraising from small donors, the state’s richest people will have even more power and influence than usual, as candidates grow desperate for funding in such a large field. The struggle for attention also could make the backing of Hollywood figures even more important. Look for next year’s Oscars, which will take place just three weeks before the California primary, to be the most political in history, with perhaps some candidates walking the red carpet to boost their name recognition.

But it is through technology that Californians are likely to have the most impact on the identity of the next president. This cuts many ways. The decisions made by Menlo Park-based Facebook in handling political content will affect Americans’ very perceptions of the contest. And, of course, the other California titans of the internet, including Google and Twitter, could potentially be harnessed by those who mean American democracy harm. At the same time, Facebook and other tech giants are becoming a major issue in the race. Should they be broken up? How do we defend our privacy from them?

There are reasons to worry about a president picked by California. This is a wonderful place of beaches and innovation, but it is also the volatile, crazy state that gave us Proposition 13 and the Kardashians. If we Californians give America a president who reflects our state’s true preferences and character, the whole world may feel as though it has smoked something.

Joe Mathews writes the Connecting California column for Zócalo Public Square. To comment, submit your letter to the editor at SFChronicle.com/letters.