Search query: california
California Permanently Adopts Universal Vote-by-Mail, But Ignores Bigger Voting Rights Problem
California is now the largest state to permanently adopt universal mail-in ballot distribution. Governor Gavin Newsom signed the measure into law Monday. While it goes a long way to increase voter participation in the Golden State, public officials are still not doing everything they can to give all voters a level playing field in elections.
California, like many of the other states that expanded access to mail-in ballots as an emergency change in 2020, saw record turnout in November. The state
28 Sep, 2021
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3 min read
Janell Smiley - Educational Challenges and Opportunities in California
Janell Smiley, author of As Long As They Don't Turn into Weirdos, joins Bryan to explore the educational opportunities in California. Her book recounts her family's journey through the process of starting public school plus the how and why she decided to take her kids out and find a different way to do education.
(Originally aired 27Sept21)
27 Sep, 2021
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1 min read
Statewide Coalition Launches to Bring Ranked Choice Voting to California
Could ranked choice voting soon come to the nation’s most populous state? That is the goal of a new coalition that officially launched on Tuesday, September 21.
The California RCV Coalition introduced itself to the public during a public Zoom event at a point when ranked choice voting (RCV) is having a moment. RCV is the fastest spreading voting reform in the country, and coalition members hope California will build on both the popularity and success of reform efforts.
“There has been a lot of
22 Sep, 2021
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4 min read
A Green Argument Against This Recall, But Not Others
The best argument for voting ‘no’ in Tuesday’s California gubernatorial recall election is that voters are denied real choice in who would replace the governor. Clearly the ‘replacement candidate’ field — despite having 46 candidates - is not broadly representative of the electorate for a variety of reasons.
This could be rectified by holding the replacement election on a later date, only if the recall succeeded. That would remove the current disincentive for strong candidates to run from th
13 Sep, 2021
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4 min read
Meghan Butler - Making California a Leader in Plastic Recycling
Meghan Butler, VP/Chief of Staff at Recology, sits down with Bryan to talk about their efforts to make California a leader in plastic recycling. The Recology mission represents a fundamental shift from traditional waste management to resource recovery. They seek to eliminate waste by developing and discovering sustainable resource recovery practices that can be implemented globally.
(Originally aired 10Sept21)
10 Sep, 2021
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1 min read
Do California Elections Need Ranked Choice Voting?
Toppling the Duopoly host Shawn Griffiths is joined by Tom Charron, who is representing a new group called the California RCV Coalition (Cal RCV). At a time when ranked choice voting is having a moment, the group is set to officially launch on September 21 during an online Zoom event that is open to the public. Charron explains why more California cities and the state as a whole need ranked choice voting for their elections and the benefits it would bring to bolstering representation across soci
10 Sep, 2021
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1 min read
Candidate John Cox: Why the CA Recall Should Matter to Independents
John Cox, Republican candidate for Governor of California, joins T.J. O’Hara, host of Deconstructed, to discuss the importance of the upcoming gubernatorial recall vote in California. Mr. Cox was the Republican nominee and runner-up for governor in 2018. He now is involved in a two-step process in pursuit of that same office: (1) Will the current governor, Gavin Newsom, be recalled; and (2) If so, will Mr. Cox be able to defeat the other 45 candidates running for Governor?
Mr. Cox provides the
08 Sep, 2021
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2 min read
Is the California Recall a Partisan Ploy?
It's easy to empathize with Republicans living in California. For a long time, the state has been dominated by the Democratic Party, and Democrats are quite willing to exercise their influence in self-serving ways. No doubt California Republicans feel as though they cannot get a fair shake or even be heard. Unfortunately, this frustration seems to have led some to desperation when it comes to the upcoming recall election for Governor Gavin Newsom.
Most of us were taught that the "founding fathe
07 Sep, 2021
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4 min read
New Report: Congress' Approach to Public Engagement Stuck in 1970s
Editor's Note: This article originally appeared on The Fulcrum and has been republished with permission from the publisher.
Ineffective communication between members of Congress and their constituents has led to a breakdown in trust in government and democratic institutions, a recent report found.
Lawmakers are inundated with constituent messages every day, but they lack the resources and training for how to respond effectively. As a result, most Americans do not feel heard by their repres
02 Sep, 2021
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3 min read
CA Recall Election: Should Newsom Stay or Should He Go?
September 14, 2021 is the day California voters decide the fate of Democratic Governor Gavin Newsom in a special recall election, only the fourth ever held in the US. Absentee ballots were due out by August 16. If you’re not sure what this recall election is all about, or whether you should vote for or against keeping him in office, Represent San Diego has put together this quick reference to provide you with the information you need to make a decision.
The Big Picture
The following articles
26 Aug, 2021
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2 min read








