Press Release
Angelenos Overwhelmingly Approve Redistricting Reform for LA
Over 70% of Los Angeles voters agree — it’s time for fair maps and a more representative City Hall
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Media Contacts
Ariana Marmolejo
Regional Communications Strategist (West)
amarmolejo@commoncause.org
Press Release
California Common Cause Executive Director Jonathan Mehta Stein Selected as a California 100 Commissioner
Mehta Stein will be one of 26 commissioners bringing their expertise to California 100, a new statewide initiative on long-term planning and visioning for California’s future.
Press Release
Advocates File Amicus with California Supreme Court, Letter Urging Extension of Redistricting Deadline
Today, redistricting reform proponents, civil rights groups, and grassroots organizations from across the state filed an amicus letter in support of the California Citizens Redistricting Commission's emergency motion asking the California Supreme Court to extend the Commission's redistricting deadline in light of unprecedented Census delays.
Press Release
NEW REPORT: How California Expanded Voter Access in 2020 During a Global Pandemic
After record voter turnout for the November 2020 elections, more than 360 voter suppression laws to limit access to the ballot box have been introduced by legislators in 47 states. Against this backdrop of voter suppression, a new report from California Common Cause shares another story: how California moved swiftly to strengthen access to the ballot in the 2020 general election during the pandemic.
Press Release
New Report: Cities Tripled Voter Turnout by Moving Election Date
Synchronizing City, State and Federal Elections Improved Civic Engagement
News Clip
How California moved to the future of voting during a pandemic
Yet Asemanfar said her group’s Election Protection Program has observed perks with the early voting period, including the ability to fine-tune technology and fix errors without the crush of voters around. It’s also a chance for local groups to turn out the vote by holding community events around vote centers, she said.
“We just need to acknowledge that it’s a new model, and a lot of voters are learning about it for the first time,” Asemanfar said. “There are a lot of conversations taking place for what the next steps...
“We just need to acknowledge that it’s a new model, and a lot of voters are learning about it for the first time,” Asemanfar said. “There are a lot of conversations taking place for what the next steps...
News Clip
Inglewood caps campaign contributions at $100,000 to avoid new state law
“Campaign finance is a constant game of cat and mouse. As soon as states and cities institute campaign finance laws, bad actors try to circumvent them,” California Common Cause campaign finance consultant Sean McMorris said. “They’re essentially rolling out the red carpet for moneyed interests and saying we don’t care what anyone thinks.”
News Clip
Assemblyman Appoints His Mother to Fresno Agency Board. Is it Nepotism?
Sean McMorris, a policy consultant with the non-partisan good government group California Common Cause, said the move raises questions. “In general, it is frowned upon and viewed as unethical when an elected appoints a family member or a close friend or relative to a position,” McMorris said.
News Clip
Millions of Californians returned ballots early, but some polls still saw long lines
Jonathan Mehta Stein of Common Cause California described Riverside County as “a mess,” early in the evening, saying voters were waiting 45 minutes to two hours at about 10 locations. Voters in Riverside were still in line after 8 p.m.
News Clip
A few glitches, but election day has generally gone smoothly in California
Even those who were registered found themselves delayed by other problems, including an “antiquated” check-in process to ensure they hadn’t voted twice — something every county must do this year, but that only Riverside did by hand, said Jonathan Mehta Stein of California Common Cause.
News Clip
Here’s what we’ll know — and what we won’t — on election night in California
In California, mail ballots can arrive up to 17 days after the election (though they still have to be postmarked by Nov. 3).
So how to approach the evening? “Patience, patience, patience,” said Jonathan Mehta Stein, executive director of Common Cause California, a nonprofit focused on election transparency and democracy. “We’re trying to tell everybody that a long vote count means we’re doing everything we can to count every eligible vote,” he said. “It’s a feature, not a bug, of our democracy.”
So how to approach the evening? “Patience, patience, patience,” said Jonathan Mehta Stein, executive director of Common Cause California, a nonprofit focused on election transparency and democracy. “We’re trying to tell everybody that a long vote count means we’re doing everything we can to count every eligible vote,” he said. “It’s a feature, not a bug, of our democracy.”
News Clip
CNN talked to poll monitors in CA, FL and GA and our policy manager Kiyana Asemanfar was featured observing a vote center at LA Harbor College
CNN talked to poll monitors in CA, FL and GA and our policy manager Kiyana Asemanfar was featured observing a vote center at LA Harbor College.
News Clip
SCCOE Trustee Joe DiSalvo Used Public Resources to Solicit Campaign Contributions
Sean McMorris, a consultant with good government agency California Common Cause, says the state law “is clear that public resources cannot be used ‘for campaign activity, or personal or other purposes.’ While using a government email account for re-election fundraising might fall within the minimal use exception in the law, depending on the circumstances, it likely violates the letter and certainly the spirit of the law,” he said. “That said, many would agree that an elected official using their government email to fundraise for...