write a 5-7 page memo / paper advising a member of the California Assembly about whether he or she should take an official position on An initiative approved for the ballot in 2020: https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/ballot-measures/qualified-ballot-measures/
please include:
• What is your boss’s political and personal history? How much did he or she win by in the 2018 election, and what office is he or she running for in 2020? What sorts of interest groups or individuals contributed large amounts of money to his or her campaign? What types of programs, causes has he or she advocated in the past?
• What is the geographic, ethnic and political profile of the district? Provide information on where the district is located, what sorts of areas it covers, and its racial / ethnic breakdown. Using the Secretary of State’s reports, tell us what party its voters register with and how the district voted on past initiatives that address similar policy issues? (You will want to focus on initiatives since 2012, when today’s districts came into effect.) Or, use polling information from the Field Poll or PPIC to find opinions on related policy questions by voters who share the partisan or ethnic background of voters in your Assemblymember’s district. Relate relevant district characteristics to the initiative.
• Briefly, how would the new policy or reform that you chose change the status quo? What effects would it likely have on the district or state? How does the proposed initiative address a current policy issue or collective action problem?
• What interest groups are on record or will likely support or oppose the initiative? Who might be the winners and losers if it comes about? Which of these groups are tied to your boss? (Online resources, such as Ballotpedia, often report the formal positions taken by groups for each initiative. The Fair Political Practices Commission posts information about the top donors to campaigns to pass or defeat particular initiatives.)
