Proposition 15: California Fair Elections Act

From Mobilize the Immigrant Vote

What is Proposition 15 - The California Fair Elections Act?

If approved, Prop 15 will create a voluntary system for candidates for Secretary of State to qualify for a public campaign grant with strict spending limits and no private contributions. Each candidate demonstrating enough public support will receive the same amount. Participating candidates will be prohibited from raising or spending money beyond the grant.

The public campaign fund would be comprised of voluntary contributions and $350 annual registration fee on lobbyists, lobbying firms, and lobbyist employers. This would raise about $1.7 million a year to go into the fund for California Secretary of State candidates in 2014 and 2018. To access this funding, a candidate for Secretary of State would have to first gather signatures and $5 fees from at least 7,500 registered voters. The $5 fees are deposited in the Fair Elections Fund. Funding sources would total over $6 million every four years.

Importantly, Prop 15 will also eliminate the prohibition on local jurisdictions from enacting publicly financed electoral campaigns.

MIV Analysis

Proposition 15 could open doors for many local candidates with good ideas but few resources. By abolishing existing law that prohibits all city and county governments in California from adopting fair election laws, Prop 15 could make running for office immediately more accessible at the grassroots level to immigrants and working class communities of color. In states where campaign finance laws have been fully implemented, many more minority and women candidates run for office and voter turnout is higher. Candidates have more time to focus on the issues because they don’t devote so much time to raising money. They are less beholden to special interests and lobbyists who raise a high percentage of their campaign funds. It is appropriate that the first state pilot election be the Secretary of State, since that office controls the integrity of elections and should not be influenced by special interests.

Key Supporters & Opponents

Supporters of Prop 15 include the California Clean Money Campaign, the California Nurses Association, the League of Women Voters of California, the Sierra Club of California, the American Association of Retired Persons, the Planning and Conservation League, California Church IMPACT, Common Cause, State Senators Loni Hancock and Mark Leno, and Assemblymen Warren Furutani and Jim Beall.

Opponents of Prop 15 include the Institute of Governmental Advocates, the California Chamber of Commerce, the California Fair Political Practices Commission, the California Department of Finance, the Los Angeles Police Protective League, and California Professional Firefighters.

Recommended Vote

YES