Photo illustration, political cash on the move: IQoncept, via ShutterstockThe Disclose Act, which Gov. Jerry Brown signed earlier this month, passed the Legislature after years of negotiations with labor unions and other interest groups. Supporters call it the strongest campaign money transparency law in the nation, but others say interest groups had too much sway over the bill.
Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders at a Ventura campaign rally two weeks before California's June 7, 2016 Democratic primary. (Photo: Joseph Sohm)The survey, which can be seen in a fully-interactive infographic, polled 851 voters who cast ballots in the Democratic primary election and who in an exit poll told us they had voted for Sen. Bernie Sanders. In this study we look not only at his level of current support among his June 2016 voters, but we also want to know how these respondents view the aftermath of that election and the Democratic Party as a whole.
Assemblywoman Catharine Baker (R-Dublin). (Photo: Screen capture, KQED interview, via YouTube)During a Town Hall meeting in Orinda, one of the most affluent corners of her 16th Assembly District, Catharine Baker (R-Dublin) holds her own, leading the conversation and proudly explaining her votes and positions on the issues to a largely receptive audience made up of mostly older white constituents. “She seems pretty malleable and works across the aisle with Democrats,” said Linda, an Orinda Democrat who did not give her last name. “But, she might have been sugar coating it, because it’s a more liberal audience.”
An illustration of stem cells used in research. (Photo: Billion Photos, via Shutterstock)California’s $3 billion stem cell research agency, which is facing its financial demise in a few short years, has formed a team of its directors to tackle transition planning and examine possible alternatives, including ones that would extend its life. The first meeting of the group of directors is tentatively scheduled for Sept. 18.
Telephone poles with their land-line wires fade into the sunset of a California highway. (Photo: Ethan Daniels.)For decades, polling relied on a strong pool of easily reached voters with a traditional land-line telephone. Before caller-ID became prevalent, nearly every call was answered as long as someone was home. But now more voters are untethered from traditional phones (I haven’t had a land line since 1998), and those who do still have them complain that most incoming calls are from telemarketers.
C. Randal Mills, the 45-year-old CEO of California’s $3 billion stem cell research program, is a man who loves his milestones. A private pilot, he charts his course in the air from one specific point to the next. Three years ago, Mills brought that same sort of navigation to the state stem cell agency.
Paul Mitchell of Political Data and Ruth Bernstein of EMC Research((Photo: Tim Foster) Political Data’s numbers cruncher Paul Mitchell and pollster Ruth Bernstein of EMC Research stopped by the Capitol Weekly office to chat about the results of a new EMC Research/Capitol Weekly poll of the new voters of 2016. Will those voters be back next year?
A March 2016 rally in Los Angeles for Democratic presidential candidate Bernie Sanders. (Photo: Joseph Sohm)History tells us that presidential-year new voters are likely to skip mid-term elections. Will the new voters of 2016 be any different? The answer to that question could have a profound impact on the 2018 elections.
State Sen. John Moorlach, R-Costa Mesa. (Photo: Youtube frame capture)A California legislator has launched an effort to terminate the $3 billion California stem cell agency, which is already set to go out of business in about three years. Republican state Sen. John Moorlach of Costa Mesa said in a video, “It’s time to shut this down….We as taxpayers need some protection.”
A liquid nitrogen bank containing a suspension of stem cells. (Photo: Elena Pavlovich)If you are interested in how the state of California is going to spend its final $800 million or so on stem cell research, you should catch a key meeting next Tuesday in Oakland, which also can be heard online. The session involves the 29-member, governing board of the $3 billion California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM), as the state stem cell agency is formally known.