Campaign Finance

The big money for both sides in the California recall election is coming from the same wealthy enclaves, and not so much from out of state.

Keep track of who is giving money in the Gavin Newsom recall campaign and where it's coming from in this dashboard, which will be updated daily.

Good morning, California. It’s Tuesday, May 4. An incomplete story Even as California appears to be nearing the end of the pandemic, many gaps remain in our knowledge about the past year’s events — raising questions as to the state’s preparedness for potential future disasters. Today — with record-low hospitalizations, a 1.1% positivity rate and […]

While the governor's opponents have burned through most of the money they've collected to date, his defenders have some $2.5 million in the bank.

Just when Gov. Gavin Newsom sheds one political headache, another emerges. A controversial bill that would have banned fracking and other oil extraction methods and prevented gas wells from operating near homes, schools and health care facilities died in the state Legislature on Tuesday — freeing the governor from having to take a stance on […]

You can’t always get what you want, but for special interests in California politics, spending $34 million sure does help. That’s the amount of unrestricted political spending that industries and unions with regular business in the capitol pumped into Legislative races across the state this year. As CalMatters reported before Election Day, the oil industry, […]

Thirty-two weeks after Gov. Gavin Newsom issued the nation’s first stay-at-home order, counties across California are forming coalitions to challenge what they say is prolonged top-down rule from Sacramento. Officials from 12 rural counties gathered Thursday for the “Conference of North State Representatives,” an event aimed at “restor(ing) representative democracy for our citizens.” On the […]

Good morning, California. It’s Wednesday, October 28. Four main groups In less than a week, Election Day will be upon us — wrapping up one of the most expensive campaign cycles in California history. Beyond the nearly $740 million pumped into the campaigns for and against the 12 statewide propositions — a state record — […]

State law caps the amount donors can give to a legislator’s campaign — but these special interests can spend as much as they like mounting their own campaigns to praise or trash candidates. And the money interest groups are pouring into these  “independent expenditure committees” has reached dizzying heights. So far more than $31 million of […]

Gig companies embark on a last-minute spending blitz after a court rules that drivers should be paid as employees and labor groups question campaign tactics.