In January, California Calls, the California Tax Reform Association, and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE) kicked off an intensive research project to examine the disparities in commercial property taxation caused by Prop 13. The research team will analyze property tax data from key Counties across the state to build a long term research design which will determine the amount of money lost due to tax loopholes and lagging commercial property reassessments. The process will also involve dozens of stakeholder interviews to explore solutions and determine interest in this issue. We launched this effort on January 30 when we convened over 20 organizations to give feedback on the research design and interview process.  Based on this research, California Calls and our allies will craft a multi-year strategy to win reform of this critical piece of the budget revenue problem, most probably targeting 2016.

For over 30 years, conventional wisdom has held that you can’t touch Prop 13. California Tax Reform Association executive director and California tax expert, Lenny Goldberg, answers some common questions about how California taxpayers feel about taxes now and what needs to be done to fix our tax system.

In short, what is Prop 13 and why does it need to be amended?

Proposition 13 is the tax measure which determines how our property is assessed and at what rate property taxes are paid, and which provides super-majority vote requirements for many taxes.  It provided a huge cut in property taxes in 1978, and has restricted taxation in California ever since.

Voter anger and anxiety helped pass Prop 13 in 1978. What is different about our political and social climate now that could make amending it possible?

In 1978, homeowners were faced with housing inflation that increased property taxes beyond what was reasonable for California’s families. Prop 13 was not about widespread anti-tax anger, though it was interpreted that way.35 years later, many do not even know about Prop 13, particularly how much it benefits commercial property.  Citizens are now becoming more aware of how deep cuts to education, infrastructure and public safety are affected by the property tax limitations of Prop. 13.

What exactly needs to be amended in Prop 13?

Two things:

1.  The assessment of commercial property. The provision of Prop 13 which provides for re-assessment on change of ownership has proven to be inapplicable to commercial property which is held in many complex ways and which does not need protection the way homeowners do.  The system is loophole-ridden and bad for economic growth and new development, with huge windfalls and vast under-taxation for large corporate property holders.

2.  The super-majority vote requirements. The 2/3 vote required for taxes at the local level or in the legislature provides a deep bias against any taxation—it requires 2 “yes” votes for 1 “no” vote.  Amending it is more likely to occur at this point for local taxes voted on by the people, than for state taxes voted upon by the state legislature.  A measure to change the legislative vote requirement failed by a substantial margin in 2004.It is also important that while reforming Prop 13 by making corporations pay their fair share and restoring democracy with a simple majority vote, any tax reform must protect homeowners.

How could amending Prop 13 benefit the average Californian voter?

Re-assessing commercial property will benefit cities, counties, and schools by bringing in substantial revenue to hire teachers, maintain roads and keep our neighborhoods safe. Changing the local vote requirements will improve the functioning of local democracy and generate revenues for necessary services.

How did Prop 13 change the national landscape in regards to taxation and the role of government?

The interpretation of it was that voters in California were fed up with taxes and government, leading to the idea that there was a “tax revolt” and to President Reagan’s claim that government is the problem, not the solution.  So it ushered in an era of anti-tax, anti-government sentiment which has lasted for about 30 years, but is changing now.

Lenny Goldberg is the Executive Director of the California Tax Reform Association and owner of Lenny Goldberg and Associates, a public interest consulting and lobbying firm in Sacramento. He has been involved with every major tax legislation and tax initiative campaign in California for the past 25 years.  In addition to being considered the leading expert on Prop 13 and taxes in California, he also has spent the last 25 years working on statewide policy around energy, privacy, housing and human services. You can find his research at www.Caltaxreform.org.

The California Calls’ strategy of ongoing organizing of new and occasional voters is working!

In three years, California Calls has built a grassroots base of supporters who had a major impact on the November 2012 election through their increased participation.  One of the results of more Californians exercising their right to vote was the passage of Prop 30 with 55% voter support.  Thanks to California’s voters, the Cal State Universities and community colleges will enroll more students without tuition hikes, and school districts across the state are restoring programs and issuing fewer layoff notices.

Who is California’s New Electorate?

The expanding electorate – growing numbers of young voters, people of color, and low-income voters – was critical to Prop 30’s passage. Through our sister organization, the California Calls Action Fund, we managed an impressive “ground game” in the six weeks before the election to turn out these voters and insure the margin of victory. We identified 293,583 voters who committed to vote “yes” on Prop 30. Out of those supporters, election data show that 80% of them turned out to vote compared to the statewide average voter turnout rate of 71%–a full 9% higher!  These voters made up 3.36% of the total vote for Prop 30.  California Calls’ long-term supporters—voters we have engaged over several years in education on tax and fiscal issues– also voted at a higher participation rate of 77%, contributing over 6% of the total votes in support of Prop 30.

Bay Area Shows Whole Lotta Love for Voting

The Bay Area is California’s progressive epicenter, consistently showing the highest support rate over any other region of the state.  California Calls’ supporters contacted leading up to November 2012 in Santa Clara, Alameda and San Francisco voted 7%-13% higher than voters in those same counties. In the 6 weeks leading up to the election, grassroots leaders from the flatlands of Oakland to the suburbs of San Jose talked to nearly 60,000 Bay Area supporters in their neighborhoods. The Bay Area program led by our Anchors Oakland Rising, Working Partnerships USA, and San Francisco Rising was conducted in 5 different languages – English, Spanish, Chinese, Tagalog and Vietnamese.

Immigrant Voters Grow Power in The Central Valley

California Calls Anchors in the Central Valley have been busy for the last 3 years organizing immigrants to have a more powerful voice in their communities. By registering over 3,000 new voters, collecting over 4,000 vote by mail applications and using bilingual scripts along with immigrant and first-generation American grassroots leaders to contact new and occasional immigrant voters, California Calls was able to turn out immigrant voters at a rate that ranged from 12-16% higher in Fresno, Kern and Tulare counties. Central Valley Anchors, the Dolores Huerta Foundation and Communities for a New California, are continuing to build the power of immigrant communities by organizing parents and youth around national immigration reform and changing local school discipline policies that disproportionately impact students of color.

The Inland Empire Strikes Back!

The Inland Empire has grown twice as much as the rest of the state since 1990, as an influx of people moved to the region seeking the California Dream of getting a good job and buying an affordable home. With the economic downturn, however, many people have lost their homes and communities are scarred by falling property values and blighted, bank-owned homes. California Calls’ Anchors are fueling a surge in optimism among residents, turning out voters they talked to in November 2012 at a rate 6-9% higher than the average voting rate in the rest of Riverside and San Bernardino. “We are engaging people in communities whose voices are typically not heard,” exclaimed Pastor Briggs, a leader of Congregations Organized for Prophetic Engagement, to The Press Enterprise. “Our strategy is to tap into marginalized communities, increase turnout and expand the electorate.”

Your Vote Made the Difference In Ventura

Data show time and time again how the most important elections boil down to a handful of votes. In Ventura County, Prop 30 squeaked by with just 1,788 votes.  A strong get-out-the-vote program focused on the final four days of phoning and door-knocking to return to supporters and get them to the polls is critical in such close races. Thanks to over 100 hardworking grassroots leaders, California Calls’ supporters had an 85% turn out rate compared to 77% countywide. Marcos Vargas, Executive Director of Central Coast Alliance for a Sustainable Economy, explained to the Ventura County Star, “These were voters that most campaigns are not engaging. We spoke to people who had never had someone knock on their doors, who had never been called. They were happy that someone was interested in them regarding an election.”

Young Angelenos Get Engaged

Long-term, grassroots organizing in low-income communities with people of color and young voters has sparked an electorate in Los Angeles that is ripe for progressive policy change. As a result, young voters ages 18-24 who have been contacted by California Calls in the last three years voted 12% higher than other LA County voters their age. Voters in the 25-34 age group who were contacted by California Calls turned out a full 15% higher than those who were never contacted by California Calls. Community Coalition, Inner City Struggle and ACCE-LA are keeping these young voters and future voters engaged in LA by working on a wide range of education issues in South and East LA. Organizing efforts are focused on reforming school discipline policies, making sure graduates have the requirements needed to enter college and getting community members invested in making their neighborhood schools better. LA Anchor SCOPE is focusing on economic justice and organizing efforts on a local revenue campaign.

San Diego Voters on the Border of Progressive Change

The electorate in San Diego, the historic home of anti-tax and anti-immigrant sentiment dating back to former Governor Pete Wilson, is rapidly changing. 80% of San Diego’s low-income voters contacted by California Calls voted in November compared to 66% of low-income voters countywide. “Mobilizing voters is not a guessing game; it is a science. We are harnessing new technology and new strategies to motivate an emerging electorate that is already the margin of victory in close races and could soon become a driving force in political agendas,” states Christopher Wilson, Alliance San Diego’s Civic Engagement Director.

• We’ve grown from 9 organizations in 3 counties to 31 organizations based in 11 counties.
• We’ve identified 576,000 supporters of a progressive tax and fiscal agenda, and have turned out a high proportion of unlikely voters to the polls.
• We’ve built collaborations with over 80 organizations, unions and statewide networks.
• We’ve contributed to a strategic shift in the California electorate resulting in progressive policy change.
• And last, but not least, we helped pass an increase on the income tax of the wealthy through Prop 30.

Looking ahead to 2016, the following are four goals California Calls will focus on:

1. Building a Formal Power Base of Voters Over nine civic engagement cycles, California Calls has identified 576,000 people who agree with our vision of tax fairness and updating Prop 13. Our work in the coming months will be to transform these supporters into an identifiable political force who consistently vote based on a set of values and a policy agenda – a progressive version of a “tea party voter.” We will be exploring the best strategies to transform this group into a more formal voter base throughout 2013.
2. Tackling the Third Rail: Commercial Property Tax Reform. Even with the windfall of new revenue from Prop 30, it is not enough to offset the budget bloodletting that our communities have sustained over the past several decades. A critical piece of the puzzle to generate more revenue lies in commercial property tax reform, one of the pillars of Prop 13. Over the next six months, California Calls, the California Tax Reform Association, and the USC Program for Environmental and Regional Equity (PERE) will engage in intensive research to examine the disparities caused by this dysfunctional system in several regions of the state, and interview 100 stakeholder organizations, including potential non-traditional allies, to explore the best solutions to this problem. Based on this research, California Calls and our allies will craft a mutli-year strategy to win reform of this critical piece of the budget revenue problem. California Calls will also be engaging allies in discussions on other needed reform towards crafting a strategic agenda for 2014 and beyond.
3. Effective Implementation of Prop 30. For the first time in more than a decade, California does not face a budget deficit. Governor Brown has proposed significant increases in funding for education, and slight increases to health and human services. Despite this, budget battles are expected, which will pit advocates who want to restore services against Republicans, who although weakened and fewer in number, will use their power to call for more cuts. We will closely monitor and engage in these battles as they arise and keep a watchful eye on the implementation of Prop 30.
4. Changing the Story about Government and Taxes Prop 30’s passage wedged a crack in the dominant anti-tax narrative, and indicates a growing willingness among Californians to raise taxes for education and critical services. Over the next few months and years, we will continue to fine tune our strategic narrative to restore faith in government. Sharpening our framing and messaging is key to building a powerful voting bloc in support of long term progressive tax and fiscal reform.

California Calls November supporters made up 3.36% of the yes on Prop 30 vote. Voters California Calls has been engaged with from the past three years made up 6.18% of the yes vote.

Governor Jerry Brown’s recent budget proposal, which sets aside significantly more funding for education this year, is a direct result of Californian’s calling for a more visionary budget that begins to fund our state’s future. By voting “yes” on Prop 30, California voters signaled their willingness to put a stop to the cuts and to require the wealthy to pay their fair share in taxes.

The results are not accidental. In fact, they demonstrate that grassroots organizing works! Our strategic efforts to change the California electorate helped pass Prop 30.The expanding electorate – growing numbers of young voters, people of color, and low-income voters – was critical to Prop 30’s passage.

The GOTV campaign by our California Calls Action Fund was concentrated in the last six weeks leading up to Election Day. We identified 293,583 voters who committed to vote “yes” on Prop 30. Out of those supporters, election data show that 80% of them turned out to vote, making up 3.36% of the total vote for Prop 30. In addition, California Calls has been educating infrequent voters for three years about tax and fiscal reform — and even though we couldn’t reach everyone in the last six weeks — the data show that 433,000 of these infrequent voter supporters actually voted — making up 6.18% of the “yes” on Prop 30 vote. The initiative passed by a 5.37% margin — meaning our supporters made the difference!

The percentage of California Calls cumulative supporters (from the past three years) who made up the total Prop 30 yes vote by county.

Just as remarkably, key groups of historically under-represented constituencies voted at even higher margins: State turnout for African Americans was 67% but from California Calls’ supporter base, 85% of African Americans voted. Sixty-three percent of Latinos voted statewide but from California Calls’ supporter base that number rises to 77%. Among young voters age 25 to 34, 72% of California Calls’ supporters voted, compared to 57% state turnout. Overall, California Calls’ organizing efforts increased voter turnout by 8-15 percent above the statewide average.

People of color made up 45% of the electorate in 2012, compared to 37% of the electorate in 2008. California Calls’ organizing effort this fall yielded an 11 to 18 point increase in people of color turnout.

Last year, California Calls Action Fund took the lead in working with Reclaim California’s Future, a coalition made up of nine statewide networks and unions, to build a get-out-the-vote program of unprecedented scale. The overall “Yes on 30”campaign, which included all of the aforementioned groups, contacted one million voters and identified more than 800,000 yes on Prop 30 voters.

On November 7th, 2012, we won a major tax reform battle and delivered the margin of victory for Prop 30. This was not an accident but rather the result of our thoughtful strategy and years of preparation. Check out our brand-new Victory Video, which celebrates our historic win and our first step in a longer battle to fund education, services and California’s future.

California Calls Countdown: Top 20 Plays of Progressive Change in 2012

20: San Francisco Rising Joins California Calls

Our uniqueness is that we connect the vibrant organizing of local grassroots groups into collective power capable of winning statewide change. In February, San Francisco Rising became our newest anchor. California Calls now has 16 anchors in 12 counties: Alameda, Fresno, Kern, Tulare, LA, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego, San Francisco, Santa Barbara, Santa Clara and Ventura.

19: Growing Public Support for the Millionaires Tax

In just three months, anchored by California Calls, the California Federation of Teachers, the Courage Campaign and ACCE – all as part of the Millionaires Tax Coalition — gathered 592,000 signatures and continued to build broad public support, as demonstrated in five public opinion polls.

18: Talkin’ Taxes: 78,000 Surveyed About Revenue Initiatives

Through door-to-door canvassing and a sophisticated predictive dialing system, California Calls volunteers, organizers and paid team members made one-to-one contact with 78,000 new and occasional voters to talk about tax equity over a three-week period in March. Many community groups also used the opportunity to discuss a significant policy campaign in their local area and to identify supporters.

17: A Historic Agreement with the Governor

Earlier in the year, pressure had been mounting on California Calls and our allies to stand down and support Governor Brown’s revenue initiative. After a compelling presentation by the principals of the Millionaires Tax Coalition to the Democratic Legislative Caucus in March, Assembly Speaker John Perez and Senate Leader Pro Tem Daryl Steinberg initiated negotiations between the coalition and Governor Brown. The agreement resulted in a more progressive and winnable merged measure, which raised 90% of its revenue from a tax on the wealthy.

16: A Powerful Pivot

Immediately following the agreement with Governor Brown, 37 organizations regrouped as Reclaim California’s Future and pivoted plans to qualify the merged measure, which needed 807,615 valid signatures in just one month.

15: Prop 30 Qualifies

In just four weeks our powerful alliance, along with Reclaim California’s Future, collected thousands of signatures to help qualify the merged measure. On May 9, more than 1,470,000 signatures were submitted to qualify the Schools and Local Public Safety Protection Act of 2012 for the November ballot.

14: Gettin’ Out the Vote in the June Primary

On May 15, 1,000 California Calls leaders began phoning and door knocking to educate and inspire 126,953 new and infrequent voters to get to the polls on June 5. The daily and volunteer organizers surveyed Californians about what motivates them to vote, and distributed a non-partisan voter guide on the June 5 State Ballot Initiatives.

13: Growing Movement Collaboration

California’s tax and fiscal dysfunction has traditionally pitted social justice advocates against each other, simply to defend their pieces of the shrinking pie. Reclaim California’s Future united the different sectors of the social justice movement in a focused effort to pass Prop 30. Over the summer, the coalition constructed a coordinated field program and a parallel campaign to inspire new and infrequent voters typically overlooked by traditional campaigns.

12: Training the Next Generation of Leadership

Throughout the year, California Calls trained scores of staff and grassroots leaders through monthly trainings and regional meetings focused on civic engagement, power analysis, community organizing and media. During six regional “Camp Calls” trainings in September, over 500 first time volunteers along with veteran activists learned how to craft their own personal “elevator speech” on progressive tax reform and how to recruit more volunteers and community residents for the Fall campaign. By November 6th, California Calls deployed over 2,500 grassroots leaders—our largest mobilization to date—in a coordinated outreach campaign to new and unlikely voters across the state.

11: Reclaim California’s Future Launches the Largest Community-Led program

Reclaim California’s Future, a broad coalition of community groups, faith based organizations, educators, and unions, launched the largest ever community led field program in California’s history, focused on delivering the margin of victory for Prop 30 by educating and inspiring infrequent voters to vote on Election Day. Since the battle was going to be close, the coalition planned to turn out 3-5% of the winning vote for Prop 30 –representing 250,000 ballots cast — through a sustained, systematic and powerful statewide field campaign in 23 counties.

10: A New Level of Community/Labor Collaboration

The November Program represented a new level of coordination between labor and community in California. Statewide California Calls and our allies divided turf, shared research and messaging, shared funding and collectively reported each night. By Election Day, all of the Yes on 30 ground efforts had contacted 1,372,042 voters and identified over one million supporters.

9: Prop 30 Drops in the Polls

Prop 30 had enjoyed majority support in polling since April but suffered in the face of over $100 billion in attacks from our opposition during the month of October. The dropping support underscored the importance of our field efforts to deliver the winning margin.

8: Students Galvanize for Prop 30

Students throughout California held rallies, registered voters and mobilized students to vote yes on Prop 30. Los Angeles high school sophomore Bianca Vasquez made a compelling argument for Prop 30 and was chosen as the winner of the California Calls/Courage Campaign Video Contest in November. Watch the Video >

7: Governor Brown Campaigns with California Calls

Speaking to an energized crowd of over 300 grassroots leaders and students, Governor Brown rallied phone bankers and walkers in the East LA office of InnerCity Struggle stating, “I believe we can pass Prop. 30.”

6: Unprecedented Scale

After five weeks of intensive phoning and door knocking, 2,600 daily team members and volunteers identified 295,000 new and occasional voters who committed to vote yes on Prop 30 and no on Prop 32. In the days leading up to Election, California Calls contacted over 20,000 voters per day in 13 counties based out of 16 get-out-the-vote centers. We contacted more voters in the six weeks leading to the November election than in our previous eight civic engagement programs combined.

5: Organizing Works

By Election Day, Reclaim California’s Future had contacted 666,202 voters, and identified 490,344 as supporters. We estimate that our supporters represent at least 5.6% of the yes votes on Prop 30. The victory demonstrates that sustained and serious grassroots organizing can prevail over those spending millions of dollars on TV ads and campaign mailers. Watch the Video >

4: Immediate Relief for Californians

Prop 30’s passage prevented “trigger cuts” to close the state budget gap, with $6 billion in new revenue. Children in K-12 public schools complete this school year, rather than end three weeks early. Teachers will be spared additional furlough days and salary cuts. Parents will not be faced with additional child care expense from a shortened school year. Individuals with developmental disabilities and their families will be spared a $50 million cut that would have drastically reduced health services. California colleges and universities announced tens of thousands of new enrollment seats and tuition rebates.

3: The Future of California is the Changing Electorate

November 2012 is the second election in which young people and people of color increased their share of California’s electorate. The California Calls strategy of ongoing sustained organizing of new and occasional voters is working. After nine civic engagement programs, California Calls has now identified more than 576,000 supporters of tax fairness. We are now working to turn this voter power into lasting change.

2: A Crack in the Dominant Anti-Tax Narrative

Since 1978, conventional wisdom said that Californians are loathe to raising taxes. With Prop 30’s passage, many declare a new precedent is being set for the nation. Raising taxes on the wealthy and fully funding education and services is clearly growing in acceptance.

1: Commercial Property Tax Reform – Our Next Step in Creating an Equitable California

California is the only state in the nation that does not regularly re-assess commercial property values, leading to a loss of critical revenue for our state. Starting in 2013, California Calls plans to begin a series of systematic discussions with our long-standing allies, as well as with other non-traditional strategic constituencies who we think could become part of a winning coalition to tackle the “third rail” of California’s chronic budget and fiscal crises: Prop 13.

Early in the night when only absentee and early votes were reported,some feared we might lose. The tide began to turn when the reports came in from counties where California Calls anchors were working to get voters out. The numbers crept up as the ballots came in from our strongholds in Los Angeles, the Bay Area and the Central Coast. And the “No” margins began to shrink in San Diego, the Inland Empire and the Central Valley.

Since April, polls had us well shy of the 60% support that conventional wisdom says you need to win a statewide initiative. For weeks we hovered just above 50%. And a mere five days before Election Day, the latest Field Poll had us at 48%.

So how did we pull it off? What happened? How did we overcome a seemingly insurmountable gap? The answer is remarkable, and quantifiable. And ultimately quite simple.

Organizing works. The ground game that dozens of community organizations and labor unions developed and executed delivered the victory. It was the direct result of the sustained and tireless effort to broaden the electorate by reaching out to new and infrequent voters. One by one and block by block, our organizers and volunteers contacted thousands of young, new and unlikely voters in in Latino, African American and Asian American neighborhoods.

The story of Tuesday’s breathtaking Prop 30 win is all in the margin of victory.

Exactly 9,218,597 Californians cast their vote either for or against Prop 30.

Nearly five million people voted “yes on Prop 30” in support of increasing taxes on the wealthiest Californians to fund schools and services.

To win, we needed 50% + 1 or 4,609,300 yes votes.

Prop 30 won by a 3.9% margin of only 357,740 votes. Click here to view our preliminary analysis data.

In the weeks leading up to the election, thousands of neighborhood leaders made phone calls and knocked on doors to encourage their neighbors to vote. We contacted over 415,000 voters and identified more than 320,000 who supported Prop 30. If even only 55% of those “yes” voters went to the polls, we turned out 173,906 yes on 30 votes.

Do the math—that’s 3.5% of the total yes votes in the state and 48% of the margin needed for 50%+1.

Even more impressive, when you include the results of our allies from Reclaim California’s Future coalition, we contacted a combined 666,202 voters, and identified 490,344 as supporters. Again assuming that only 55% of them voted, combined efforts turned out 269,689 yes on 30 votes – 5.4% of the yes on Prop 30 Total.

The vast sums of opposition money spent against us is sobering. A small handful of wealthy backers poured nearly $100 million into efforts to defeat Prop 30. But we prevailed. Investment in building the capacities of local grassroots organizations, a diverse and committed coalition, an unprecedented ground game, and multi-faceted coordination among community and labor produced this victory, proof of the capacity and power we’ve built over the past three years.

We won a major statewide effort to get wealthy Californians to pay their fair share. Prop 30 is just the beginning, the first step to course-correcting Prop 13, which has steadily reduced state revenues that should fund education, infrastructure, and a social safety net. California Calls will continue to organize until we have a solid base of half a million supporters who can again prove to be the tipping point in any close race.

Most reporters, pundits, and insiders did not believe we could win. This victory is a testament to our strategy, but equally to the commitment and hard work of our organizers, grassroots leaders, and the new majority of California voters we engaged. See them in action here.

Thank you,
Anthony Thigpenn,
Chair of California Calls

One culprit of our current tax and fiscal dysfunction is Prop 13. This 1978 initiative completely changed the California tax system. It capped property taxes resulting in billions of lost revenue, and further starved the state’s coffers through a two-thirds vote requirement to increase any taxes in the legislature. Immediately after its passage, California lost billions in revenue, and has not been able to recover funding for schools, parks, libraries and other services.

While some homeowners got a needed break on their rising property taxes, the cap on commercial property has been destructive. Huge profitable businesses that own large parcels of land – like Google and Hewlett Packard — pay a tiny fraction in property tax. The lion’s share of property tax is now paid by homeowners, and dramatic disparities exist between similar land parcels. These unexpected consequences result in billions of dollars lost to California’s schools and services every year.

According to Lenny Goldberg of the California Tax Reform Association, “Prop 13 created a situation where some of richest corporations in world are paying a trivial level of state taxes relative to a vastly increased wealth.”

For this reason, California Calls is exploring an ambitious project to research and analyze the commercial property tax in major counties and to document the disparities and problems of the current system. Stay tuned for more details post-election!

Reclaim’s statewide field campaign will make its presence felt in 23 counties and aims to deliver 3-5% of the votes needed to pass Prop 30—over 250,000 ballots. This margin will be decisive in this race, which is tightening each day. Prop 30 has enjoyed majority support in polling throughout the last few months but has suffered in the face of attacks from a rival effort bankrolled by civil rights attorney and heiress Molly Munger and outright opposition funded by her brother Charles Munger.

Older, white, more affluent and conservative voters generally carry the day in California elections. The Reclaim California’s Future Coalition seeks to change this by reaching out to voters that most mainstream campaigns simply overlook. The coalition’s goal is to activate voters who can make the difference in the expected close election on Prop 30. The focus is on African-American, Latino, and Asian-American voters.

“Young voters and people of color are the least likely to vote, but are the most supportive of progressive solutions to fund education critical services and public safety like Prop 30,” said Anthony Thigpenn, Chairperson of California Calls. “To get these voters to the polls, our coalition is mobilizing thousands of volunteers from 80 organizations. We’re working from vote centers in 23 counties in every region of the state and talking to 500,000 new and occasional voters – from Auburn to Escondido. This is an unprecedented effort, the largest community-labor field effort ever put together to turn out 250,000 to the polls in California.”

For more information: www.reclaimcaliforniasfuture.org

The California Calls Action Fund is focused on passing Prop 30. The ballot measure would raise $6 billion in new revenues and put us on the right track toward funding California’s future. With polls showing support for Prop 30 teetering around 50%, the Action Fund is determined to move enough newly registered and infrequent voters to the polls to create the tipping point for winning. California Calls, with a grassroots network of 2,300 volunteers, the infrastructure to make hundreds of thousands of phone calls, and a track record of increasing voter turn-out among communities of color, is uniquely suited to provide this winning margin.

The other target: defeat Prop 32, a ballot measure that claims to be about campaign finance reform but which would silence the voice of working people while allowing corporate, Super PAC and wealthy anonymous donors to dominate the election debate.

Voter mobilization can create a vital tipping point in this election. It’s another step towards a long-term vision of restoring the California Dream by bringing a greater spectrum of voices into the policy debate.