The power this election cycle is in the self-funded campaign and this year those candidates who dominated the airwaves contended with a very different electorate. Bruised by the economic downturn, did the gamble of this strategy pay off? Also interesting were the propositions; many fueled by California’s massive deficits, took aim at politics as usual. Let’s take a look at the results from yesterday’s primary.

PRIMARY RESULTS
The Democratic women had an amazing day with Debra Bowen winning her re-election bid and San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris leading the way in the Attorney General race. While CALIFORNIA LIST supports Democratic women running for statewide offices, it is interesting to note that this election had more women running in the Republican race including Meg Whitman, who won the Republican bid for Governor and Carly Fiorina who will be facing off against Barbara Boxer for the Senate seat. In fact, women across the country enjoyed a fruitful day.

• New Mexico will elect its first woman governor (since both major party nominees are women).
• Maine, California, and South Carolina could elect their first ever woman governors.
• Republican women top the ticket in California, winning nominations for Governor and U.S. Senate.
• Iowa is one of only four states that have never sent a woman to either the U.S. Senate or the U.S. House of Representatives, but they could elect its first woman senator.
In California, due to term limits, the legislature stood to lose the following number of women in 2010:

4 in the Assembly (3 Democrats and 1 Republican)
2 in the Senate (2 Democrats)

In addition, we may lose both Anna Caballero and Mary Salas if they win their Senate races in November. This brings the total loss of Democratic women in the Assembly to five. In addition, in the general election both Assemblywoman Alyson Huber (District 10) and Assemblywoman Joan Buchanan (District 15) will face very difficult races.

Currently, there are seven (four incumbents) Democratic women running in the Senate general elections and 28 (12 incumbents) candidates running for Assembly seats. While some of our female candidates are running in safe seats, we can never assume they will win.

Congratulations to all the women incumbents all of whom won their respective races, including Betty Yee who won her primary in District 1 for the Board of Equalization.

Results are comparative of the women candidate tracked by those who received the highest competitor percentages. Winners are bolded.

EXECUTIVE BRANCH
Women picked up half the nominations in the Executive Branch where they were running. However, Senator Gloria Romero’s race for Superintendent of Public Instruction was such a close three way race that it may be heading to a recount.

Leiutentant Governor
Janice Hahn 34.2%
Gavin Newsom 54.7%

Secretary of State
Debra Bowen 100%
Unopposed

Attorney General
Kamala Harris 33.1%
Chris Kelly 15.8%

Superintendent of Public Instruction
Gloria Romero 17.2%
Larry Aceves 18.8%
Tom Torlakson 18.0%
The top two candidates with the highest percentages move on to the general election in the Superintentent race.

STATE SENATE RESULTS
CALIFORNIA LIST endorsed candidates in the Senate races all won their bid for the November ballot. However, Assemblywoman Mary Salas may be headed to a recount as she faced a very tough race that finished with a mere one point percentage point difference.

Senate District 2
Noreen Evans 58.9%
Tom Lynch 18.7%
Joanne Sanders 14.9%

Senate District 12
Anna Caballero 100%
Unopposed

Senate District 40
Mary Salas 50.5%
Juan Vargas 49.5%

STATE ASSEMBLY RESULTS
The Assembly races finished with the CALIFORNIA LIST tracked women winning 10 out of the 17 races to make it to the ballot in November. In the coming days we’ll be looking at what this means in regards to holding onto the current percentage of women serving in Sacramento and whether we can begin to reverse the decline of Democratic women serving in our state legislature.

Assembly District 3
Christina Billeci 48.0%
Michael Harrington 52.0%

Assembly District 9
Lauren Hammond 18.9%
Roger Dickinson 35.2%
Kevin McCarty 35.0%

Assembly District 11
Susan Bonilla 100%
Unopposed

Assembly District 21
Yoriko Kishimoto 28.3%
Rich Gordon 37.9%

Assembly District 23
Nora Campos 72.0%
Patricia Martinez-Roach 28.0%

Assembly District 28
Janet Barnes 35.3%
Luis Alejo 52.3%

Assembly District 30
Fran Florez 56.6%
Pete Parra 43.4%

Assembly District 33
Hilda Zacarias 100%
Unopposed

Assembly District 35
Susan Jordan 38.6%
Das Williams 61.4%

Assembly District 36
Linda Jones 61.6%
Maggie Campbell 12.8%
Shawntrice Watkins 25.6%

Assembly District 47
Holly J. Mitchell 43.7%
Reggie Jones-Sawyer 37.5%

Assembly District 50
Carmen Avalos 30.6%
Ricardo Lara 43.6%

Assembly District 53
Kate Anderson 11.8%
Betsy Butler 26.7%
James T. Lau 17.8%
Diane Wallace 4.2%

Assembly District 70
Melissa Fox 74.8%
Mike Glover 25.2%

Assembly District 74
Crystal Crawford 100%
Unopposed

Assembly District 76
Toni Atkins 100%
Unopposed

Assembly District 79
Pearl Quinones 33.6%
Ben Hueso 47.3%

Now that the primary is behind us, we can concentrate on supporting the women who will be facing tough races in November. Please help CALIFORNIA LIST support our women with your membership contribution today. Together we can make a difference!

As the primary election has unfolded this season, I keep hoping the Democrats become more passionate. In the Republican primary, gubernatorial candidate Steve Poizner has ratcheted up his campaign and is running aggressively against Meg Whitman and her millions of dollars. Whoever wins the Republican Senate primary is anyone’s guess, but the passion on the “other” side is palatable. Look what happened yesterday in Arkansas, Kentucky, and Pennsylvania - the election results demonstrated how uncertain things are politically. Living in California we feel “safe” as Democrats. Could what happened in other states happen here?

The importance of this primary is that it sets the stage for the 2010 November election.

Nationally and locally, Democratic victories are important. This is an important election year. In California, we are facing astronomical budget challenges, so we must choose wisely at the polls and elect Democrats who can turn our state around. We can’t afford to be complacent. Have we been lulled into a sense of false security by our victories last November? We need to set ourselves up to persuade people to elect Democrats in the general election.

CALIFORNIA LIST is more passionate about electing women with each passing election cycle. We understand that women are still the primary caregivers and that the driving issues facing Californians — certainly all Americans - continue to be the economy, education, health care, and employment. If women are not seated at the bargaining table, who will represent our women that are over 51 percent of our population?

CALIFORNIA LIST’s endorsed candidates are women who are running on the Democratic principles that are the bedrock of our society. Currently only one woman serves in our Executive Branch of government, Secretary of State Debra Bowen. Secretary Bowen is running for re-election this year. Hoping to join her in an Executive role are the following candidates:

San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris, candidate for Attorney General, believes that fighting crime includes both punishment and affirmatively preventing crime.

Superintendent of Public Instruction candidate Senator Gloria Romero believes in offering affordable, abundant education.

Candidate for Lieutenant Governor Los Angeles City Councilwoman Janice Hahn believes being a loyal champion in the fight to improve the quality of life for working men and women.

These women are passionate about their beliefs and we need to match their passion and support their campaigns…because this is when the campaigning can really get ugly.

In addition to supporting the candidates mentioned above, there are many qualified women running for both the State Senate and Assembly. You can visit our website at www.californialist.org/candidates to see the Democratic women running in this primary. Then please donate today to the candidates of your choice via our secure online website or on our Act Blue page at www.actblue.com/page/calistcandidates. Online giving is best because the funds are available immediately to the candidate’s campaign.

Your contribution of $250, $100, $50, $25 will help uphold the passion, persuasion, and principles of democracy and give women candidates the vital resources to win.

When you contribute to CALIFORNIA LIST candidates, every dollar of your support is sent directly to the candidate’s campaign, giving an instant surge of financial support and making an immediate impact. Please support the CALIFORNIA LIST endorsed candidates now.

CALIFORNIA LIST is a grassroots fundraising network of members modeled after EMILY’s List working to elect pro-choice, Democratic women to the California state government. Please join CALIFORNIA LIST today!

The one, the only…the first: Margaret “Midge” Costanza.

Midge Costanza speaks at the CALIFORNIA LIST luncheon honoring Lynn Schenk in 2006.
Midge at the march in Washington, D.C. for the first national march for Lesbian and Gay rights in 1979.

There is lots of talk recently about the “first woman who,” especially with Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi, the first woman ever to hold that position, navigating the passage of the recent historic health care legislation. Thank you, Speaker Pelosi! Unfortunately, one of our women of many firsts, Midge Costanza the former Assistant Advisor for Public Liaison for President Carter, passed away Tuesday.

Midge started her career in New York when she volunteered on W. Averell Harriman’s campaign for governor in 1954 and soon became the Monroe County, New York Executive Director of Robert F. Kennedy’s Senate campaign in 1964. In 1973, Midge ran for an at-large seat on the Rochester city council, becoming Rochester’s first councilwoman in a landslide. Upon her appointment in the Carter administration, Midge was nicknamed “the President’s window to the nation,” consulting with a wide array of groups. Midge caused controversy when she invited fourteen National Gay Task Force leaders and gay rights activists to the White House at the height of Anita Bryant’s “Save Our Children” campaign.

Moving to San Diego County in 1990, Midge coached candidates for office in public speaking, serving as the Coordinator for Barbara Boxer’s winning United States Senate race in the Year of the Woman in 1992, and served as Manager for Kathleen Brown’s unsuccessful gubernatorial candidacy in 1994. California Governor Gray Davis appointed Midge as a liaison for women’s groups and issues. Midge became a Professor at San Diego State University in 2004 and was working with the Political Science and Women’s Studies departments of San Diego State and the Political Science department of the University of California, San Diego to develop the Midge Costanza Institute, where we know her legacy will live on.

Eight years ago, when I founded the CALIFORNIA LIST, Midge and her dear friend, Lynn Schenk, also a ‘first’ having served as the first woman Chief of Staff for Governor Gray Davis, were early supporters of the CALIFORNIA LIST. Throughout Midge’s life, she always supported women by mentoring women, advocating for women, and supporting those who worked for women’s rights.

Recently, I asked my daughter Elizabeth if she would like to meet Gloria Steinem, who was speaking at an event here in Los Angeles. She responded, “Who is Gloria Steinem?” I was so surprised! However, to her credit, Elizabeth serves as Secretary on the Executive Student Government for her university and is running for president next year. She is not afraid to stand up for what she believes and has the confidence that she will win. I believe it is because women like Midge Costanza, made it possible for Elizabeth to dream and have the confidence that she can reach that dream. I also believe that we all need to do a little more to make sure that the next generation understands upon whose shoulders we stand.

We are fortunate to “stand on the shoulders of giants” and it is because of women like Midge that women have seen many of our dreams come to fruition. Those dreams continue to thrive with women like Los Angeles Councilwoman Janice Hahn who is running for Lieutenant Governor and San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris who is running for Attorney General for California. If elected, they would both be women “firsts” to ever hold those positions in California.

It is our hope that there will be seconds and thirds, leading to a time when we no longer have to count how many women versus men are elected or serve in board rooms. Until that time arrives, we will hold onto Midge’s memory and message, and keep striving to move forward to women’s parity.

SAN DIEGO CANDIATE FORUM

At our recent Candidate Forum held in San Diego, CALIFORNIA LIST and Run Women Run, a local women’s group in San Diego, co-hosted the event for the women running for local and statewide office. There are many women running for office in San Diego, which I can only believe is another gift given to us by women like Midge, who worked tirelessly as a social and political activist and we be forever known as a lifelong champion for LGBT and women’s rights.

Assembly candidate Toni Atkins for District 76 with Los Angeles City Councilwoman Janice Hahn, candidate for Lieutenant Governor.

(l-r) Laura Fink, San Francisco District Attorney Kamala Harris,
candidate for Attorney General, and Jeanette Laurence.

Michelle Burton, President of Run Women Run, with Bettina Duval, President of CALIFORNIA LIST. Thank you Run Women Run!

State Senator Christine Kehoe from District 50, with Abby Silverman Weiss, Program Committee Chair for Run Women Run.  Senator Kehoe was one of the first candidates supported by CALIFORNIA LIST.

Join CALIFORNIA LIST now and help us to continue the work of electing women who will carry the torch lit by women like Midge Costanza.

This year is especially important. California has serious budget difficulties. While traveling this past week, someone asked me if California was going to default on our debt?! Clearly, California is in trouble and everyone knows it.

Tough decisions are on the table regarding how to fix California including how to fund education, how to save our state universities, and how to continue vital services for those in need. Now, more than ever, we have to remain steadfast in our resolve to elect individuals who will best represent our needs. For CALIFORNIA LIST, we believe that this means electing more women.

A recent study released by the University of California at Davis showed that women are not at the bargaining table in business.

The same is true in politics.

But why worry about having more women at the table? Because, women bring to the table their own personal experience and reflective empathy towards issues that men probably do not always experience. For example, woman’s health issues are different. Women are still the primary caretakers for themselves, their families, and their parents. And now for the first time, women make up a majority of work force.

I believe that having more women working will change the paradigm in the boardroom and by sheer numbers there will be more women at the table in business. But I’m not so sure about politics. Working, having a family, and achieving balance in a woman’s life is a journey.

Nonetheless, no matter how difficult the process, CALIFORNIA LIST remains true to our mission to elect women to state government.

SAN DIEGO CANDIATE FORUM — JOIN US

CALIFORNIA LIST is excited to be partnering with Run Women Run — San Diego’s premiere women’s group, to present a Candidate Forum spotlighting some of the statewide executive candidates along with senate and assembly candidates from San Diego. Thank you to Run Women Run for their hard work in organizing the Candidate Forum.

Visit the Run Women Run website to sign up to attend today. You can also help our candidates raise the vital funds needed to run and win by donating to their campaigns now through our secure website.

CALIFORNIA LIST SALINAS CANDIDATE TRAINING

On Saturday, February 20, CALIFORNIA LIST conducted our candidate training program in Salinas with over 30 women in attendance. Thank you to Susan Markham, Senior Strategist of The Campaign Workshop for conducting the training. A special thank you to Pris Walton and Vinz Koller of the local Monterey area Democratic Clubs for making this such a huge success.

Thank you to Pris Walton, President of the Carmel Area Democratic Women’s Club,  for helping to organize our training.
 
 Assemblywoman Anna Caballero, for District 28, (with Trainer Susan Markham of  The Campaign Workshop) welcomes the participants during breakfast.
 
 (l-r) Salinas City Councilwoman Janet Barnes, Monterey County Supervisor Jane Parker, Founder, CALIFORNIA LIST, Bettina Duval, former Carmel Councilwoman and author Beyond Superwoman, Karin Strasser Kauffman, spoke about running for office at a panel discussion during lunch.

You can make a difference by joining CALIFORNIA LIST. Your contributions will help us to continue our vital work as we build a pipeline of candidates and women policymakers who will represent all of us with an equal voice.  Together we can make a difference.

Across the nation advances in women electeds have virtually flat-lined. The number of congressional women remains a stagnant 20 percent. According to the Inter-Parliamentary Union, elected women in the United States is ranked 87th in the world, tied with Turkmenistan in that category behind Bolivia, Mauritius, and Greece.

In California, we rank sixteenth in the number of woman compared to other state legislators. Our State legislature has totaled a mere 33 female members for two consecutive election cycles.

Local governments having shrinking numbers of women including the Los Angeles City Council where the loss of Janice Hahn and Jan Perry to term limits may find a council in 2012 comprised solely of men. How can a city of almost four million people, 51 percent being women, effectively represent those citizens without a single female legislator? As we move into the New Year, we must begin again to reverse this downward motion and dream big in 2010.

Recently, I saw a woman jogging ahead of me wearing a T-shirt that read, “Run in feet, Dream in miles,” which seems to me so applicable to the work of the CALIFORNIA LIST - for both our organization and the candidates we work with. Eight years ago we founded the CALIFORNIA LIST. Our growth has been steady, consistent, and strong. Our dream of electing women to California State government has become a reality. Isn’t there so much to do?

This past year, after it became clear who the women candidates running for office were, we understood that our challenge is to find more women to run for office on all levels. In the 2010 Democratic primary, for every woman candidate for office there are at least 3-8 men running. We believe that it has become easier for women to run for office, but we need more women to run. More women candidates in every election will keep them competitive; especially in primaries. This election cycle we have already identified 31 pro-choice, Democratic women who are willing, ready and anxious to cross the finish line and win.

Please visit our website at www.californialist.org/candidates to read about all the candidates we have spotlighted for the 2010 election cycle. Donate online to any of the women candidates campaigns or you can give directly to CALIFORNIA LIST with a membership contribution.

Your contributions will help us to identify, train, and run qualified women candidates.

As I have traveled throughout California over the past eight years, there have been moments of highs and lows, just like a marathon. Sometimes when I was out pitching the importance of electing women, I needed to be reminded why I was out there in the first place. That reminder is you, our supporters, our partners and our legislators, always cheering us on as we continue to run the race in feet and hope that our dream comes true. Thank you! I look forward to continuing our journey together in 2010 and beyond.

UPCOMING PLANS

As we sprint into the New Year are immediate plans include hosting a several events in February and March designed to support both the mission of CALIFORNIA LIST and our 2010 candidates.

• Three Candidate Forums, in San Francisco, San Diego, and Los Angeles to introduce candidates to voters and donors.
• Email and snail mail solicits on behalf of CALIFORNIA LIST and our candidates.
• A series of one-day Candidate Training Sessions designed to identify and prepare future women candidates thinking of entering the election pipeline on any level.

UPCOMING ONE DAY TRAININGS

Salinas
Saturday, February 20; 8:30am to 5:00pm
The Steinbeck Center
One Main Street; Salinas
In partnership with Carmel Area Democratic Women’s Luncheon Club, Democratic Women’s Club of Santa Cruz County, Monterey County Democrats, and Salinas Valley Democratic Club

Baldwin Park
Saturday, February 27, 8:30am to 5:00pm
Baldwin Park Arts & Recreation Center
14403-B East Pacific Avenue; Baldwin Park

If you or anyone you know may be interested in attending an upcoming Candidate Training Session contact lsanow@californialist.org with your preferred attendance location. A registration form will be sent via email to anyone interested in attending either training session.

As you can see, 2010 finds CALIFORNIA LIST lacing up our running shoes to conquer the political hurdles ahead to elect more women in California. Please join or renew your membership today by clicking the link below — your support will help CALIFORNIA LIST and our candidates cross the finish line as winners.

In California, our summer began with one of the biggest budget battles in the history of California. The mounting deficit wrought massive cuts to many state services. How the cuts will affect us remains to be fully realized, but one thing is clear - those cuts will affect every Californian.

I have not written a newsletter in awhile because I am at a loss for words with the state of our State.  The bottom line is simply that I really have not known what to write.  While the unemployment rate continues to increase, new home “for sale” signs pop up in the neighborhood almost daily, and our local shopping district loses one business after another.  With this kind of economic climate, to encourage equality (equal representation in government) somehow doesn’t appear to be an immediate concern, but it remains of vital significance.

In my heart I understand that Annie’s future, as a Californian, and young women like her remain an important and intricate part of our future.

Reading the Los Angeles Times a few days ago, I learned that California’s jobless rate reached a fresh post-World War II high in July, climbing to 11.9 percent, a sobering reminder that California is in dire straits. Another article in the Los Angeles Times reported that the job losses are highest among men with one in four men in California joining the ranks of the unemployed.  Women are faring better and so far have retained a higher employment rate than men.

This reminds us why equality is a pertinent issue. The loss of a man’s earnings makes it hard for middleclass families to make ends meet because the average female worker earns just 78 percent of what a man earns in a similar occupation. Two income families are a necessity, especially here in California, and in many cases families cannot subsist on the woman’s wages alone.  Lack of equality in pay is not only discriminatory, but today women’s wage deficiencies may mean the further erosion of the middle class family.

This is the relevancy that many miss on the surface of feminist fight for equality.  Women’s rights are important to our families, our economy, and the future of our nation.  Electing women is one way to ensure that the rights of women are protected.  We need more women to run and win.

Where are all the women leaders of tomorrow? California is facing a crisis in the feminist fight for equality.  Only 33 women currently serve on our state legislature and just six women have ever held an Executive Branch office.  Each election cycle we lose more women to term limits and the pipeline of new women leaders has slowed to a trickle.   There are many reasons, but research shows women are choosing not to run because of the daunting hurdles facing our female candidates.  Raising huge amounts of money to run a viable race, making personal sacrifices, and all too often they are forced to defend themselves from gender based biases from their opponents. 

Unfortunately, the pipeline for future women leaders is dwindling on every level.  City councils, supervisory boards, and boards of education are all reporting fewer numbers of women running and winning locally. Watching Rep. Chu being sworn reminded me once again how important it is to elect women at each level of government.

One bright spot this summer was the election of Dr. Judy Chu to Congress. Together with family, friends and staff, we watched Dr. Judy Chu being sworn in as the Congressional representative for California District 32 on Thursday, July 16.  Congratulations to Representative Judy Chu!  And congratulations California - we are fortunate to have such an experienced, dedicated elected official representing our state in Congress, especially during these difficult times. 
 
ON THE HORIZON

With the primary for 2010 less than a year away, CALIFORNIA LIST is busy working to identify, train, and support candidates to help them run and win.  We held our first candidate training in Sacramento on June 18 with a luncheon reception beforehand.  Although in the fight to close the budget gap, many of our elected women and men turned out to greet the candidates who came to the training.  It was a great opportunity for our candidates.

Thank you to all who came to support the women who are beginning their campaigns on the road to Sacramento.

We have four more training seminars planned with the next scheduled to be in East Los Angeles in October.  Please contact CALIFORNIA LIST Administrator Lisa Sanow at  lsanow@californialist.org if you have any suggestions where we should hold the Los Angeles training session.

HELP US BUILD OUR NETWORK FOR WOMEN CANDIDATES

Early in the spring we held five house parties hosted in the homes of members and friends.  We are looking for volunteers who would like to host a party in the spirit of activism.  Renee Brown Holt is coordinating these community gatherings throughout California where we can come together and talk about what we call Pink Collar Politics: 2010 Election Preview. It’s an opportunity to share ideas and meet some of the local elected officials and 2010 candidates.

Would you be willing to host a small get-together and help us begin to identify, support and elect Democratic women to state office? Please contact me at bduval@californialist.org  to receive more information on this exciting and fun opportunity.

Now is the time for action!  An infusion of member support will help the CALIFORNIA LIST rebuild our resources and continue our important work, so please renew as soon as possible. 

Sitting with Rep. Chu’s family, friends and staff, we reminisced about her background. She has long been a fierce public servant and she understands the importance of navigating the electoral pipeline. From my perspective, as an advocate to build the pipeline of future leaders, her story is important.

Rep. Chu began political life in her San Gabriel neighborhoods, but she’s no typical valley girl! During her more than 20 years as a public servant, Rep. Chu has served on the Garvey School District as a Board member, was a three term Mayor of Monterey Park, was elected to the California State Assembly, and was elected to the Board of Equalization where she served as Chair. Rep. Chu has fought to protect working families, end discrimination, save healthcare, protect the environment, protect women, protect consumers, improve education and worked to close special interest tax loopholes. Now she has distinguished herself as the first Chinese American woman to ever serve in Congress winning her seat with 62% of the vote in the March special election. With her background, we can all rest assured that Rep. Chu will bring her passion, commitment, and integrity to represent our State in the Nation’s capitol.

Congratulations Rep. Chu, you are a shining example to the power of the pipeline!

So, where are all the women leaders of tomorrow? California is facing a crisis in the feminist fight for equality. Only 33 women currently serve on our state legislature and just 6 women have ever held an Executive Branch office. Each election cycle we lose more women to term limits and the pipeline of new women leaders has slowed to a trickle. There are many reasons, but research shows women are choosing not to run because of the daunting hurdles facing our female candidates. Raising huge amounts of money to run a viable race, making personal sacrifices, and all too often defending themselves from gender based biases from their opponents.

Unfortunately, the pipeline for future women leaders is dwindling on every level. City councils, supervisory boards, and boards of education are all reporting fewer numbers of women running and winning locally. Watching Rep. Chu being sworn reminded me once again how important it is to elect women at each level of government.

We need more women to run for office. Rep. Chu’s election to serve California in Washington, D.C. confirms the power of the pipeline! Rep. Judy Chu probably never thought she would be working in the House chamber when she first ran for the Garvey School District Board. Today she will cast her first votes as a member of Congress — I encourage women to follow Rep. Chu’s example because when you start small, you can accomplish big things. Congratulations again to Congresswoman Judy Chu!

Debra Bowen
Re-Election Candidate
Secretary of State
State Executive Branch

Debra Bowen currently serves as California’s 30th Secretary of State and is running for re-election. A pioneer in open government reform, election integrity, and personal privacy rights, Debra Bowen became only the sixth woman in California history elected to a statewide constitutional office when she was elected as Secretary of State in November 2006.As the chief elections officer for the largest state in the nation, Secretary Bowen is responsible for overseeing state and federal elections, a role that also requires her to test and certify the voting equipment used in California. Her goal is to ensure that voting machines certified for use in Californians elections are secure, accurate, reliable, and accessible, and every voter’s ballot is counted exactly as it was cast.

In her first year in office, Secretary Bowen commissioned an independent, top-to-bottom review of voting technology, as well as a comprehensive review of the state’s decades-old election auditing standards. Following the top-to-bottom review, Bowen strictly limited the use of direct recording electronic voting machines, and imposed significant security and auditing requirements on systems used in California elections. Secretary Bowen was recognized for her national leadership in election integrity with the 2008 John F. Kennedy Profile in Courage Award^TM, the nation’s most prestigious honor for elected public servants who choose principles over partisanship.

Secretary Bowen is also responsible for helping to carry out election laws and campaign disclosure requirements by maintaining a statewide database of registered voters, certifying the official lists of candidates for each election, tracking and certifying ballot initiatives, compiling election returns, and certifying the election results for all state and federal contests.

Kamala Harris
Candidate for Attorney General
State Executive Branch

Kamala D. Harris, candidate for Attorney General (State Executive Branch), is the District Attorney of San Francisco. A veteran prosecutor, Kamala has dedicated her outstanding legal talents to prosecuting violent crime, combating the sexual exploitation of children and working creatively to improve the quality of life in our communities.

As Deputy District Attorney in Alameda County from 1990 to 1998, Kamala prosecuted hundreds of serious and violent felonies, including homicide, rape and child sexual assault cases. Before being recruited to join the City Attorney’s office, Kamala was the Managing Attorney of the Career Criminal Unit of the San Francisco District Attorney’s office.

Among her many community activities, Kamala is Co-Chair of the Lawyers’ Committee for Civil Rights; President of the Board of Directors of Partners Ending Domestic Abuse; elected member of the Board of Directors of the San Francisco Bar Association; and founder of an SF Museum of Modern Art mentoring program which has served hundreds of young people from the inner city.

Kamala was born in Oakland and raised in Berkeley. Her parents, both professors, were active in the Civil Rights Movement and instilled in Kamala a strong commitment to justice and public service. That commitment led Kamala to Howard University, America’s oldest black university, and then to Hastings College of the Law. Kamala has been recognized many times for the excellence of her work, but most recently, she earned an award from the County Counsel Association of California for her work granting gay couples equal rights in child adoption cases.

Noreen Evans
Candidate for Senate
District 2 (Napa, Sonoma)

Assemblywoman Noreen Evans is a candidate for Senate in District 2, currently held by Senator Pat Wiggins, servicing the counties of Humboldt, Lake, Mendocino, Napa, Solano, and Sonoma. Assemblywoman Evans currently represents the 7th State Assembly District, which includes all of Napa County and portions of Solano and Sonoma Counties.

Assemblywoman Evans has four primary legislative priorities: fighting for families and children, protecting our environment, reforming our legal system, and advocating for California’s wine industry. Now in her third term of office, Assemblywoman Evans serves as Chair of the Assembly Budget Committee. In that capacity, she chaired the Budget Conference Committee which forged compromises leading to the final budget proposal. She also works to support the Assembly Speaker’s efforts to modernize and reform California’s budget process. In addition, Assemblywoman Evans is a member of the Committees on Banking and Finance, Governmental Organization, and Judiciary. She also serves on the Joint Legislative Audit Committee. Representing much of California’s premium wine growing region, Assemblywoman Evans has chaired the Assembly Select Committee on Wine for the past four years, where she serves as a liaison between the wine industry and the Assembly.

As a member of the Law Revision Commission, Evans studies intricate legal problems to resolve deficits in our laws and identifies major policy questions for legislative attention. As a member of the Commission on the Status of Women, she also advises the Governor and the Legislature on inequities in laws, practices and conditions that affect women. As a member of the Coastal Conservancy, she works to protect, preserve and restore California’s beautiful coastline.

Prior to her election to the Assembly in 2004, Assemblywoman Evans served two terms on the Santa Rosa City Council, and three years on the Santa Rosa Planning Commission. An attorney by training, Assemblywoman Evans also practiced law for more than twenty years, focusing on civil litigation and appeals.

Assemblywoman Evans has a Juris Doctor degree from the McGeorge School of Law at the University of Pacific and a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government from California State University, Sacramento. She lives in Santa Rosa and has three children: Erin, Joel, and Rachel.

Anna Caballero
Candidate for Senate
District 12 (Merced, Salinas)

Assemblymember Anna Caballero is running for Senate District 12 and is currently serving in the assembly representing District 28. Assemblymember Caballero was elected to serve the 28th Assembly District in November of 2006 and is a strong advocate for public safety, affordable housing, quality health care and education.

Now in her second term, Assemblymember Caballero has been re-appointed as chair of the Committee on Local Government, and as a member of the following committees: Accountability and Administrative Review; Budget; Budget Subcommittee No. 3 on Resources; Water, Parks and Wildlife; and, the Select Committee on Renewable Energy. In recognition of her extensive work to prevent youth violence and gang membership, Caballero has also been re-appointed as chair of the Select Committee on Youth Violence Prevention.

Born to a family of copper miners, Assemblymember Caballero graduated from the University of California San Diego magna cum laude with a B.A. in Sociology, and earned a Juris Doctor degree from the University of California Los Angeles. She moved to the Salinas Valley 30 years ago to work for California Rural Legal Assistance (CRLA). As an attorney, she represented striking farm workers and fought side by side with unions to prevent plant closures.

Seeing the need for legal representation at a price working families could afford, Caballero and two colleagues founded a law firm, Caballero, Matcham & McCarthy, in 1982. The business received many awards, and she was personally recognized by the Salinas Valley Chamber of Commerce with the Athena Award for entrepreneurial excellence. Assemblymember Caballero took a leave from her law practice to serve as the executive director of Partners for Peace, a non-profit organization dedicated to bringing the community together to prevent gang violence, with a focus on literacy, early childhood education, youth employment and empowerment, and providing services to families.

Assemblymember Caballero is also a wife, mother, and grandmother. Her husband, Juan Uranga, is the director of the Center for Community Advocacy in Salinas.