Is Yes on 22 says shortchanging USPS? + Latino voter turnout + New affirmative action poll
Good morning! It’s Wednesday, believe it or not!
FIRST UP — According to the California Secretary of State’s Office, more than 4.3 million Californians have now returned a vote-by-mail ballot.
IS YES ON PROP. 22 SHORTCHANGING THE US POSTAL SERVICE?
Via Jeong Park...
The No on Prop. 22 campaign says the initiative’s proponents may have shortchanged the U.S. Postal Service of more than $1 million.
The Yes on 22 campaign spent more than $3.5 million between July 1 and Sept. 19 on postages for mailers to millions of Californians, using the rates reserved for a nonprofit organization. The nonprofit rates are about 30 to 50% less than those for the stamps for regular mails.
But the Postal Service regulations don’t allow political organizations to use nonprofit postages. Party committees are the only exception. The No on 22 campaign says its opponents should be considered as political organizations and should not be allowed to pay the nonprofit postage rates.
“It’s outrageous but not surprising that the app companies that are going to the mat to keep shortchanging workers would shamelessly rip off the postal service,” the No on 22 campaign spokesman Mike Roth said.
The Yes on 22 campaign spokesman Geoff Vetter said in an e-mail that the campaign is not a political organization under the IRS definition. IRS defines political organization as working to influence an election of a candidate, not a ballot proposition, he said.
“501(c)(4) non-profit/social welfare organizations are eligible for nonprofit postal permits, including organizations, like the Yes on 22 campaign, that participate in ballot measure advocacy,” he said.
The Postal Service has yet to respond to a request for comment.
The Yes on 22 campaign has spent about $190 million to push for the ballot measure, a mammoth sum compared to more than $10 million the opponents have spent. The initiative would decide whether gig workers for companies such as Uber, Lyft, DoorDash and Instacart should be considered as employees or independent contractors.
CAMPAIGN TO BOOST LATINO VOTER TURNOUT ANNOUNCED
Via Kim Bojórquez ...
A national civic engagement organization that aims to boost Latino voter turnout this presidential election announced on Monday a $1.5 million ad campaign in multiple states.
Mi Familia Vota will run television, radio and digital ads in California and other battleground states with a high density of Latino voters like Florida, Arizona and Nevada. The ads will run in both English and Spanish languages until Election Day on Nov. 3.
One 30-second ad targets Latina voters, a tactic used by political strategists to mobilize Latina mothers who are oftentimes influential and act as the head of the household.
“I’m the heart and the muscle. The caregiver. Mother. The breadwinner. And I’m here to show you what I’m capable of and fight for what I’m worth so I can keep my family safe because I will be heard, visible, represented,” the female narrator of the ad says. “I will vote.”
Another Spanish-language ad critiques President Donald Trump’s response to the coronavirus pandemic by visualizing the president losing a soccer match against Latinos.
While California is not a battleground state, it is still home to approximately 7.9 million eligible Latino voters — the highest share of Latino voters in the nation, according to the Pew Research Center.
The Latino vote may prove critical in key congressional races, such as the rematch race between Democratic Rep. TJ Cox and Republican former Rep. David Valadao.
FLIP A COIN ON PROP. 16
Support for Proposition 16, the ballot measure to restore affirmative action in California, has been upgraded to “coin toss” status in a new poll.
The survey, from David Binder Research, found that 45% of likely voters are in favor of the ballot measure, while 45% are opposed. The remaining 10% are undecided, the survey found.
Among those who have already voted, 59% said they support the measure, according to the survey. It has strong support (65%) from Democrats, but less from independents (39%) and Republicans (9%).
The firm spoke with 600 likely voters in English and Spanish by phone and online between Oct. 17 and Oct. 19, and the poll has a margin of error of 4%.
Still, this marks an improvement in the ballot measure’s support, compared to polling done by the Public Policy Institute of California in September, which found that just 31% of likely voters would vote “yes” for the measure.
“This new survey proves that as voters learn that Prop 16 is about combatting discrimination, they support it. And it shows without a doubt that we can win this fight for racial and gender equality,” Yes on 16 campaign manager Andy Wong said in a statement. “We’ve said from the beginning that our biggest hurdle is the intentionally misleading language that the architects of California’s ban on affirmative action put in our state Constitution.”
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“BE VIGILANT IN YOUR PLAN TO VOTE—I’ve been a permanent ‘vote by mail’ voter for 5+years. Never had a problem. This year my ballot hasn’t shown up. Just called registrar & they said it was likely ‘lost by USPS.’ Sending new one. Will vote in person if it doesn’t show up. #Vote
- Ann O’Leary, Gov. Gavin Newsom’s chief of staff, via Twitter.
Best of the Bee:
California Republicans refuse to hand over information about who used their unofficial ballot drop boxes. Now, state Democratic leaders are taking them to court, via Lara Korte.
Tulsi Gabbard, a Hawaii congresswoman and former Democratic presidential candidate, is now attached to the 351st Civil Affairs Command, based in Mountain View, the Honolulu Star-Advertiser reported Sunday, citing military officials. Gabbard served 17 years with the Hawaii Army National Guard before taking the Bay Area assignment, via Darrell Smith.
California public health officials released COVID-19 reopening guidelines for theme parks and stadiums on Tuesday, and it appears that major theme parks like Disneyland and Six Flags won’t be reopening any time soon, via Andrew Sheeler.