A key part of California Calls’ strategy is to expand, strengthen and collaborate with a broader ecosystem of local and state organizations working to change the face of the electorate and build the power needed to advance social and economic justice. California Calls, PICO California and USC PERE have joined forces to expand integrated voter engagement into new communities across the state.
Over the last year, our organizations have worked closely with over 50 of the California Endowment’s Building Healthy Community (BHC) groups in areas of the state experiencing rapid demographic changes from conservative strongholds to communities with a large concentration of young, immigrant, African American, Asian and Latino populations.
Based on the growing interest in integrated voter engagement by BHC, six groups were chosen to receive support with building their voter engagement capacity: Community Water Center, Fathers and Families of San Joaquin, Hmong Innovating Politics, Khmer Girls in Action, Latino Health Access and Mid-City CAN.
Working with these groups, California Calls and PICO California will design and implement a multi-year capacity building program that will include training on integrated voter engagement including data management and analysis, technical assistance, and planning and implementing a series of actual voter engagement programs.
The first civic engagement programs with the BHC Project will launch in the fall of 2017 around issues including youth services, environmental justice, health education and farmworker empowerment.