2020 Elections

In these final days before the election, we’ve been checking in with locations around the Bay Area with the lowest voter turnout rates. We’ve gone to Richmond, East Palo Alto, West Oakland, and today we go to San Francisco's Bayview-Hunters Point district to hear what’s being done there to engage voters.

Measure Z is causing debate in Alameda. It would repeal a rule in the city’s charter that limits the density of housing. But some say more dense housing would hurt the island.

We are listening to our audience to cover the issues that matter most to you this election season. This story is one example, and please share your own questions here.

We recently got a question from a listener about California’s Proposition 22. That’s the proposition that would allow app-based transportation companies to treat their workers as independent contractors, not employees. This applies to Uber and Lyft, as well as delivery companies like DoorDash. 

California is one of just three states that requires people convicted of felonies to finish parole before they can vote. Prop 17 would change that, and grant voting rights to nearly 40,000 Californians on parole.

In the final weeks before the election, we’re checking in with five locations in the Bay Area with the lowest voter turnout rates. Today, we go to East Palo Alto, a city with a 62% Latinx population. This year they are voting for city councilmembers and on Measure V, an affordable housing tax on hotels. 

Nearly every election you'll see a bond measure on San Francisco ballots. It’s always the first proposition listed, and it's a way to fund what the Board of Supervisors or the mayor deem essential city services, like earthquake safety, school repairs, or park maintenance. 

This is a 2-minute summary of what’s on the ballot. Click here to listen to them all.

Sonoma County Measure P would expand oversight of the County Sheriff. The current oversight office was established in 2015 after 13 year old Andy Lopez was killed by a sheriff's deputy in Santa Rosa. This year, killings by police have motivated five California jurisdictions to put changes to law enforcement oversight on the ballot.

Ten candidates are vying to fill four seats in November’s election for the San Francisco School Board. We’ll delve into the most pressing issues the school district faces and hear how candidates say they’ll meet the challenges ahead. 

We’ll also get an update on San Francisco's tightening budget from Mission Local's Joe Eskenazi and find out how darkened theaters have inspired local actors to revive the old-fashioned radio drama.

Guests:

Sonoma County Measure O would impose a special sales tax — an additional .25 percent — to fund a wide range of local mental health services.

This is a 2-minute summary of what’s on the ballot. Click here to listen to them all.

Late last year, the Richmond City Council directed the city manager to explore ways of bringing in more tax revenue.   

You’ll see the fruits of those efforts on the ballot, in the form of Measure U.  

On today’s Binah, we feature a special program on the 2020 Elections and the Jewish Vote, featuring political scientist and author Dr. Steven Windmueller, who shares a nonpartisan election analysis designed to educate about the diverse and significant roles Jews have played and continue to play in American politics. 

In the final weeks leading up to the election, we’re checking in on five locations in the Bay Area with the lowest voter turnout rates: Richmond, East Palo Alto, Bayview, Fairfield, and West Oakland. Today, we're going to Oakland.

This is a 2-minute summary of what’s on the ballot. Click here to listen to them all.

Measure X is a sales tax measure that’s expected to generate $81 million dollars a year for the next 20 years. If it passes, sales tax would increase by half a percent on most goods, but not on necessities like food and medicine. That would bring Contra Costa’s sales-tax rate up to around 10 percent.

This is a 2-minute summary of what’s on the ballot. Click here to listen to them all.

Oakland Measure S1 is a police reform effort for voters in Oakland. Those behind the measure see it as a path to independent oversight of the Oakland Police Department. They say it would increase accountability, community safety and public trust. 

We are listening to our audience to cover the issues that matter most to you this election season. This story is one example, and please share your own questions here.

In these last couple weeks leading up to the elections, we’re talking to people in Bay Area neighborhoods with the lowest voter turnout. Today, we go to the City of Richmond in Contra Costa County.

The movement to lower the voting age is spreading across the country, and on this November's ballot, Bay Area voters will decide whether 16- and 17-year olds can vote in various state and local elections. 

This is a 2-minute summary of what’s on the ballot. Click here to listen to them all.

Oakland Measure RR asks voters to remove a $1,000 limit on fines received for violating ordinances. This includes rules against misdemeanors like illegal dumping, vandalism, and excessive noise.

  On this edition of Your Call’s special election series, we are discussing California Propositions 25, 14 and 16.

  On this edition of Your Call, we’re discussing high stakes US Senate races. Even if Joe Biden wins the election, Democrats won’t be able to pass major legislation unless they control the Senate.

In Deep East Oakland, a big city council race is happening. And, the current city council is set to vote on a policy that could change the visibility of homelessness in Oakland.

  On this edition of Your Call’s special election series, we are talking about NAACP California leader Alice Huffman whose consulting firm AC Public Affairs has been paid more than $1.2 million by campaigns funded by corporate proposition campaigns including commercial property owners fighting the tax increase, corporate landlords opposed to expanding rent control and bail bondsmen who want to keep the cash bail system, according to CalMatters.

As Election Day approaches, we're focusing on communities with historically low voter turnout in five Bay Area counties. These 5 areas include West Oakland in Alameda County, Richmond’s Iron Triangle in Contra Costa County, Bayview-Hunter’s Point in San Francisco, East Palo Alto in San Mateo County, and Fairfield in Solano County. 

  On this edition of Your  Call’s special election series, we're discussing California's Proposition 21. According to Ballotpedia, the Local Rent Control Initiative will allow local governments to enact rent control on housing that was first occupied over 15 years ago.

Is the November ballot a referendum on criminal justice reform in California? 

This is a 2-minute summary of what’s on the ballot. Click here to listen to them all.

Right now in Oakland, you have to be 18 years old to vote in a school board election. Measure QQ would give the City Council the power to allow 16 and 17 year-olds to vote in them. To be clear, they don’t have to allow it, but they could. 

  On this edition of Your Call’s special election series, we're hosting a debate about Proposition 22, a ballot measure that would define California's app-based drivers as independent contractors, not employees.

This is a 2-minute summary of what’s on the ballot. Click here to listen to them all.

Berkeley Measure KK would change four things in the city charter. Let’s take them one at a time.