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CVF-News

CVF-News is a free, electronic newsletter featuring news and updates about the California Voter Foundation's projects and activities.

California Voter Foundation Receives $100,000 Grant from Craig Newmark Philanthropies to Support the Election Community Network

January 26, 2023

The California Voter Foundation (CVF) announced today that it has received a $100,000 grant from Craig Newmark Philanthropies to support its continuing leadership of the Election Community Network, a nonpartisan, nationwide collaboration of academic, nonprofit, government and philanthropic leaders working to support and protect U.S. election officials and election administration.

While the 2022 election was relatively peaceful, the threats against election officials and their staff have not subsided, and many political leaders continue to perpetuate false election security claims that fuel unfounded conspiracy theories and election denialism. According to the U.S. Department of Justice, election officials and their staff reported receiving over 1,000 threats in 2022.

The Power of the Vote - Close 2022 California Contests

By Kim Alexander, December 8, 2022

Hi Folks,

Today's CVF-News shares the research our Program Manager Samantha Abelove has been conducting for the past several weeks on vote counts in California's closest legislative, congressional and Los Angeles mayoral races.

Incredibly, today, exactly one month after Election Day, there are still some contests that are too close to call. Many of the close contests we were watching have been decided, but it's notable that we have just one day left for counties to complete and certify their results in the 30-day California canvass period.

Support Democracy by Giving to CVF for Giving Tuesday!

November 29, 2022

Dear Friends,

This week we are celebrating Giving Tuesday along with nonprofits across the world! We hope you will join us by donating to the California Voter Foundation and supporting our work to protect our democracy. Contributions can be made to CVF via credit or debit card using PayPal or by check.

Here’s a quick look at how CVF protected our elections this past year:

Monitor Close CA Races & Vote Counts with CVF's Tracking Sheet

By Kim Alexander, November 16, 2022

Hi Folks,

The November 8th election is behind us but ballot counting continues across California. Many observers are watching the count closely since the balance of power in the House of Representatives is still undecided and several congressional contests in California remain too close to call. In addition, contests for the state legislature, Mayor of Los Angeles and many other local contests across the state remain undecided.

News Roundup: Long vote counts, drop box access & 11/7 Election Hero Day

By Kim Alexander, November 3, 2022

Hi Folks,

The November 8th Election Day is rapidly approaching. Millions of Californians have already voted and millions more will return ballots or vote in person in the coming days, with many ballots returned via secure drop boxes operated by county election offices.

This shift to the widespread use of vote-by-mail ballots has led to increasingly longer vote counts. In this newsletter, we share some new CVF research findings that illustrate just how much longer vote counting now takes as the number of ballots cast as vote-by-mail ballots has ballooned.

We also looked at voters' access to secure ballot drop boxes across California's 58 counties. The good news: today, over 99% of California voters have access to a 24-hour drop box where they can return their voted ballots. More findings are below from CVF's survey of drop box access throughout California.

Introducing CVF's Nov. 2022 California Online Voter Guide!

October 12, 2022

Hi Folks,

The November 8th election is rapidly approaching and we are excited to share CVF's new California Online Voter Guide!

As California voters, we have enormous power to decide how our state is governed. But with all this power comes responsibility. And mystery. And confusion. And disinformation.CVF's voter guide is a starting point to help Californians feel confident when voting. A few of my favorite resources to help sort out propositions include CalMatters' 2022 Voter Guide, the FPPC's Top Ten Donors lists, and Voters Edge.

More details below and a big thanks to all the government agencies, news organizations and nonprofits that make reliable voting information publicly accessible and available to voters online.

CVF's Peace at the Polls CA Briefing - recording and resources available

October 6, 2022

For nearly two years, the California Voter Foundation has been working to address the rise in threats and harassment of election officials and their staff. We were very pleased that Gov. Newsom signed SB 1131 last week to enact new privacy protections for election workers and poll workers. According to the Department of Justice’s Election Threats Task Force, there have been over 1,000 threats received by election workers and reported to the FBI nationwide in the past year, with at least 100 rising to the level of a prosecutable threat of unlawful violence.

Gov. Newsom signs bill to protect the safety of California election workers

September 27, 2022

Sacramento, Calif. – Legislation to address the rise in harassment towards election workers was signed into law yesterday by California Governor Gavin Newsom.

Senate Bill 1131, authored by Senator Josh Newman (D-Fullerton) and co-sponsored by the California Voter Foundation and Brennan Center for Justice, protects California election workers by providing them with the option to keep their home addresses confidential. The bill includes an urgency clause and goes into effect immediately.

“Threats to democracy is the number one issue on the minds of U.S. voters right now,” said Kim Alexander, President of the California Voter Foundation (CVF), citing results from NBC News’ August and September public opinion polls. “SB 1131 gives democracy’s frontline workers the ability to protect themselves and their families from harm.”

Bill to safeguard private information of election workers passed by California Legislature

September 1, 2022

Sacramento, Calif. – Legislation to address the rise in harassment of election workers was approved by the California State Legislature yesterday. Senate Bill 1131, authored by Senator Josh Newman (D-Fullerton), will protect workers in California by providing them with the option to keep their home addresses confidential. The bill is co-sponsored by the California Voter Foundation and Brennan Center for Justice. It includes an urgency clause and has until September 30, 2022 to be signed by the Governor.

Protecting election officials, legislative round-up & FOCE 2022

August 31, 2022

Hi Folks,

With the Legislature's last day of session happening today (and the wee hours of tomorrow morning as well) this edition of CVF-News highlights CVF's legislative activities and last month's Future of California Elections conference, where CVF hosted a panel on addressing voting challenges for housing-insecure Californians.

We have also been keeping busy working on addressing threats to election officials and their staff. To help those working to promote peace and security in U.S. elections, CVF has begun tracking stories via our Protecting Election Officials in the News page and have added a Resources for Supporting Election Officials section to our web site highlighting initiatives and tools being provided by caring folks across all sectors.

A few of my favorites are Pam Fessler's Telling our Story via the Elections Group, the Carter Center's Taking Care of Yourself to Serve Others wellness guide, the new Committee for Safe and Secure Elections chaired by former Orange County Registrar Neal Kelley, the Election Infrastructure Initiative to provide federal funding support to local and state election offices, De-Escalation Tools from Princeton's Bridging Divides Initiative, and Building a Resiliency Network from Over Zero.

We are also very close to getting SB 1131/Newman out of the legislature and on to Gov. Newsom's desk. This bill if enacted into law will immediately allow election workers and other California public employees to enroll in Safe at Home to keep their personal information private. More about that below, as well as some reflections and photos from last month's Future of California Elections conference,

I had a wonderful time introducing our new staffer Samantha Abelove to all of CVF's colleagues and friends and spending time with folks in person again. It was a great reminder of the strong community of democracy advocates we have in this state and nation and gives me hope in these challenging times.

-- Kim Alexander, President & Founder, California Voter Foundation

CVF at Future of California Elections Conference in Burbank, July 25, 2022 - L-R: Program Manager Samantha Abelove, Board Chair Cathy Darling Allen, President Kim Alexander, Board Member Mindy Romero, and Vice Chair Susan Roth.

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