Environment Wins on June 3rd

Battlegrounds are set for November 4th general election

In the wake of overwhelming victories in the June primary elections, California voters will have the opportunity this November to achieve once-in-a-decade gains.

See a map of our priority districts.

The June 3rd primary was a tremendous victory for environmental protection — one that sets the stage for an unprecedented opportunity to net four pro-environment legislative seats this November and to bring us to the brink of a two-thirds majority in the State Senate.

92 percent of CLCV-endorsed candidates won on June 3rd, and California voters delivered twin victories for the environment and homeowners by passing Prop 99 and defeating Prop 98.

Said CLCV Southern California Director David Allgood: “This was a low-turnout election, so CLCV and allies targeted carefully, invested strategically, and worked very hard to get out the environmental vote.”

CLCV's endorsed candidates won key victories in numerous districts, including:

Former Assemblymember Fran Pavley, a returning environmental champion, won her primary in SD 23;
Jerry Hill defeated Gina Papan, the candidate backed by special interests fighting against environmental priorities, in AD 19;
Marty Block won his primary in AD 78;
former CLCV Board Member John Pérez won his primary in AD 46 to succeed retiring former Speaker Fabian Núñez;
former LALCV (Los Angeles League of Conservation Voters) Board Member Bob Blumenfield won a surprisingly large victory against a tough field in AD 40.

Allgood says these election results illustrate two truths of California politics — voters’ strong support for pro-environment policies, and the effectiveness of CLCV’s unique and proven campaign strategies: “We can’t wait for Washington to take action on important environmental issues. With these victories, we hope that California will continue to drive the national environmental agenda.”

District races:

In 2008, 39 out of the 120 seats in the Assembly and the Senate are up for grabs. With each election cycle, term limits force out important bill authors, key committee chairs and other top lawmakers.

After meticulously researching and assessing races around the state, CLCV has identified a number of key races this year where our involvement and investment can make the difference. See our primary election endorsements and results and a map of our priority districts for November.

Several of our targeted races offer the opportunity to replace legislators who voted against the environment 90 to 100% of the time last session. Also among our endorsements are environmental champions Fran Pavley and Hannah-Beth Jackson, who are campaigning to return to the legislature.

Flip seats:

For the first time since the 2001 redistricting, we have the opportunity to flip four anti-environmental seats in the legislature and gain four pro-environment votes.

CLCV has crunched the numbers in several heavily contested seats where we have the best opportunity for environmental gains. These districts suffer from poor air and water quality but have historically been represented by legislators with appalling records on the environment. Our campaign plan calls for early investment and organizing in these areas in order to identify likely supporters now and get out their votes for solid pro-environment candidates in June and November.

CLCV’s electoral strategy is proven.

In the most recent legislative election in 2006, we mounted successful campaigns against well-financed anti-environmental challengers in key races around the state, which turned around twelve anti-environment votes. And, eleven additional freshman endorsed by CLCV earned perfect scores. Read about our recent successes on the CLCV blog.

CLCV’s targeted strategy and effective organizing turns your contribution into hard results. Thanks for helping us deliver votes for the environment.