On the California Majority Report Speaker Nunez’ spokesman Steven Maviglio criticized Common Cause and their Democratic allies on the Voters First redistricting initiative. Maviglio promises a critique of the initiative’s “problems” in the future, while focusing his current criticism on the initiative’s funders: “If you go to the Secretary of State’s website, www.ss.ca.gov, you’ll see… Continue Reading
Category Archives: Rose Report
State Senator Abel Maldonado (R-15) Unopposed By Democrats
State Senator Abel Maldonado (R-15) represents as close to a competitive district as exists in California (Democrats outnumber Republicans 40% to 37% in registration, and John Kerry won the district in 2004, 53% to 46%). The Senator must be a happy man now that no Democratic candidate filed to run against him this November. The… Continue Reading
Voting Rights Act Case To Affect California Congressional Districts
Yesterday, the US Supreme Court agreed to hear Bartlett v. Strickland, a Section 2 Voting Rights Act case with potentially major implications for California’s African American members of Congress. The North Carolina case poses the question whether a group that constitutes less than 50 percent of a district’s population can state a vote dilution claim… Continue Reading
Supreme Court Rules Open Primary Constitutional UPDATED
In a 7-2 surprise, the US Supreme Court ruled in Washington State Grange v. Washington State Republican Party that Washington’s open primary law is constitutional. This opens the door to an expected revival of California’s open primary law. Expect drafting and fundraising to start in many corners of the state within 24 hours! UPDATE Dan… Continue Reading
Dr. Ralph Rossum on Tribal Sovereignty
From Hsin-Yin Lee’s article in the Washington Times: …Ralph Rossum, a government professor at Claremont McKenna College in California, argued that the Constitution protects tribal sovereignty. He said in the Sacramento Bee that the Supreme Court should intervene and “repudiate [lower courts’] departures from clear and controlling precedents, and perform its historic role of protecting… Continue Reading
Douglas M. Johnson on Portantino's "Punishment"
From Alison Hewitt’s article in the Pasadena Star-News: Doug Johnson, a fellow at the Rose Institute for State and Local Government at Claremont McKenna College, said punishment was the likelier of two explanations for the move. “It’s a question of whether, are they punishing him, which is probable, or is there some early supporter of… Continue Reading
Roy Ashburn Proposes Reform
Senator Ashburn proposed a Constitutional Amendment to lump a number of political reforms, including redistricting, into one package. Sen. Ashburn has been a long advocate of redistricting reform and was an author of SCA 3 in 2006, the reform measure that passed the Senate but was held up in the Assembly. The LA Times article… Continue Reading
Common Cause/League of Women Voters Support Redistricting Reform
The California Progress Report has a letter by Joanne McKray, a State Board Member of Common Cause and active in the California League of Women Voters. Part of the message is here, the rest below the fold. Gerrymandering is a long-standing tradition in US political history. It is not a time-honored one, because it makes… Continue Reading
City of Pasadena Endorses Voters FIRST Act
Steven Cischke’s article in Pasadena Now reports on the Pasadena City Council’s vote in support of the Voters FIRST initiative. Nesting was a big issue during the vote and the relevant section is below: The districts are to respect communities such as neighborhoods, cities and counties; be compact and, where possible, be nested so that… Continue Reading
Utah Reform Effort Blocked By GOP
The Salt Lake Tribune’s Jennifer Francis has an article focusing on a rookie legislator, Rep. Rebecca Chavez-Houck, and her attempt to reform the Utah redistricting process: The other bill smothered in Rules would have created an independent redistricting commission to replace the highly partisan fight that now occurs in the Legislature every 10 years. The… Continue Reading