On March 4th, I moderated a Campaign Finance Reform forum in City Council Chambers featuring some of the leading campaign, political and election reform experts. The panel included Kathay Feng, Executive Director, California Common Cause; Robert Stern, President, Center For Governmental Studies, Ron Kaye, former editor of the Los Angeles Daily News, Xandra Kayden, League of Women Voters; Trent Lang, California Clean Money Campaign; LeeAnn Pelham, Executive Director Los Angeles City Ethics Commission and Jim Sutton, attorney and noted election law expert. The forum discussed whether Los Angeles should change its campaign finance laws, especially in light of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling that lifted a ban on corporate and union donations to individual candidates. I plan on taking the main points discussed at the forum to the City Council’s Rules & Elections Committee as part of an effort to place Campaign Finance Reform on the Council’s agenda. In the near future, I may hold additional forums on other important issues like Instant Run Off Voting.
If you missed it, you can watch the rebroadcast on Ch. 35 on Thursday March 11 at 8:30 p.m. and Saturday March 13 at 2 p.m. or you can watch it online HERE.
