News


San Francisco Election Alert

August 2021 Even though 2021 is supposedly an “off” election year, San Franciscans are likely to be asked to vote several times between now and the June 2022 regular statewide election.   Voting for Governor on September 14. At Governor Newsom’s request, the State Legislature amended state law in order […]


Possible Los Angeles Mayoral Election

August 2021 With Mayor Garcetti on his way to becoming Ambassador to India, a vacancy is expected to occur in the Mayor’s office and the political wrangling over a successor will officially begin. If the U.S. Senate confirms Mayor Garcetti’s ambassadorship:   •  Council President Nury Martinez will become Acting Mayor until […]


Vote Requirement for Local Tax Initiatives

April 2021 A quick update on the legal wrangling over the vote requirement for citizens’ initiatives seeking to increase local parcel, gross receipts and other taxes – in short, special tax increases placed on the ballot by citizen initiative require approval of a majority (rather than two-thirds) of voters, subject […]


Recall Fever

March 2021 As you certainly have heard, proponents of the effort to recall Governor Newsom claim to have submitted more than 2.1 million signatures as of last Wednesday’s deadline, well over the 1.5 million needed to qualify the recall for the ballot. Given these numbers, and that the validity rate of […]


New Campaign Contribution and Gift Limits

December 2020 A new state law effective January 1, 2021 (but originally enacted in October 2019) creates “default” campaign contribution limits for all cities and counties which do not already have their own limits. The new law requires all cities and counties without their own contribution limits to adopt the current […]


Navigating Close Elections

Knowing Your Campaign’s Rights And Options Can Make All The Difference      Every election, candidates and ballot measure campaigns find themselves in close races, where a few votes can make the difference between victory and defeat. Campaigns in these circumstances must navigate the ballot-counting process as the Registrar’s office finishes its official […]