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COALITION CHALLENGES FOR SOCIAL JUSTICE PROP 36 SURVEY FINDINGS
Poll after poll in California shows voters are likely in favor Proposal 36the ballot measure to reinstate misdemeanor penalties for certain drug and theft-related criminal charges.
The Public Policy Institute of California found that nearly three-quarters (73%) of likely voters say yes to Proposition 36. A UC Berkeley Institute for Government Studies the survey found a more modest 60% in favor.
California’s criminal justice pendulum appears to be swinging back toward “tough on crime.”
But is it real?
One group opposed to the ballot measure – the Million Voters Project – claims pollsters are ignoring crucial demographics in California: low-income people, young people, people of color and the formerly incarcerated.
The coalition says its volunteers have spoken to a quarter of a million voters across the state about Proposition 36, “from San Diego, Inland Empire, Orange County, Central Valley, Los Angeles, Sacramento and the Bay Area.”
They speak to voters in English, Spanish, Vietnamese and Korean in an effort to reach low-propensity voters (those who don’t typically vote in large numbers) who often ignore traditional campaigns.
“Research shows that direct voter contact, such as the conversations MVP candidates have with voters, is key to increasing turnout,” said a statement from the Million Voters Project, citing a New York Times opinion column from Lisa Garcia Bedollaprofessor of education and political science at the chancellor’s office UC Berkeley.
So what does the Million Voters Project hear from these communities?
According to a statement from the group, 69% of voters surveyed said they oppose Proposition 36.
“Once voters hear about this initiative, they will change their minds. Let’s heal our people and move California forward,” he said Tinisch Hollins of coalition member Californians for Safety and Justice in a statement.
De Bij contacted PPICs Mark Baldassarewho oversees that organization’s investigations, to discuss their methodology.
Baldassare said that if there were underrepresented groups in the sample size of 1,646 California voters included in the most recent survey, the polling firm Ipsoswho the PPIC works with, works with the PPIC to weight the survey to provide representation.
Baldassare said California voters tend to be older, wealthier and more likely to be homeowners than the population at large, “and that is just a reflection of who votes in California, and may not have anything to do with our sample or methodology.”
“We are doing everything we can to ensure we use the best possible methods,” he said.
This comes at a time when the institution of political polling is undergoing something of a crisis of confidence – a lack of confidence shared by Karla Zombrodeputy director of the Million Voters Project.
“Less than two weeks after the election, the polls no longer matter. It’s about who votes. We leave nothing on the table,” she said in a statement.
I’ve reached out for comment, Mayor of San Jose Matt Mahanwho campaigned in favor of Prop. 36, told The Bee in a statement: “Polling consistently shows that the vast majority of Californians support Proposition 36 because they can see the worsening epidemic of drug overdose deaths, homelessness and shoplifting in our state. with my own eyes.”
Mahan added that the ballot measure gives cities the tools they need to protect small businesses and hold serial thieves accountable while giving people the treatment they need, and that hundreds of nonpartisan local elected officials have endorsed the measure.
“It is time for Sacramento politicians and their political allies to listen to us,” he said.
Election day is Tuesday, November 5. Voting began earlier this month.
SPACE RESEARCHERS URGE FCC TO STUDY ‘MEGA CONSTELLATIONS’ SATELLITE
Billionaire SpaceX CEO Elon Musk is busy suing the California Coastal Commission for stopping his company from launching more rockets along California’s central coast.
Meanwhile, 120 astronomy, astrophysics and space experts have traveled to the Federal Communications Commissionwhich asks the agency to investigate the effects of “mega-constellations” of satellites (such as Musk’s Starlink network) on space, the atmosphere and the environment.
“We must look before we leap,” the space scientists warn in the letter to the FCC Space agency Chief Julie Kearney.
“We should not rush to launch satellites on this scale without being sure that the benefits justify the potential consequences of launching these new mega-constellations and then re-entering our atmosphere to burn up or create debris,” wrote the scientists. . “This is a new frontier, and we need to save ourselves a lot of trouble by making sure we move forward in a way that doesn’t cause major problems for our future.”
The letter notes that Musk’s Starlink network has launched more than 6,000 satellites and now accounts for more than 60% of all satellites in Earth’s orbit.
“We are in a short window where we can avoid making a mess of space and our atmosphere, rather than spending decades cleaning it up. The new space race does not have to cause enormous waste of space,” the letter concludes.
You can read the letter here.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“The game has begun, Governor Hochul! While I respect the Yankees’ storied history, California knows how to win championships. As a proud San Franciscan, you won’t hear me say this often, but this year: Go Dodgers!”
– California Governor Gavin Newsom, in a statement announcing his bet with New York Governor Kathy Hochul, where the governor of the losing team in the World Series – with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the New York Yankees – will buy the memorabilia of the winning team must show for a day.
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