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Proposition 32 would increase the statewide minimum wage to $18, and has the potential to change lives for California's working-class communities, a longtime laborer says.

The minimum wage ballot measure, Proposition 32, will hurt California businesses and local governments, increase costs for consumers and fail to improve affordability, argues a Sacramento business owner.

California voters will soon decide whether to reclassify certain theft and drug penalties under Proposition 36. A formerly homeless man who misused drugs and was arrested for theft believes the ballot initiative will rightly restore accountability and compassion.

This fall, California voters will decide whether to reclassify certain theft and drug penalties under Proposition 36. If more people end up in prisons under the stricter laws, some worry it could eliminate funding for key rehabilitation programs and increase recidivism.

Barriers to voting disproportionately impact marginalized members of California's communities. Voting is a privilege, and one that people with access should exercise.

Every voter has their own reasons for casting a ballot — nonvoters do, too, they just might not realize it yet. By hearing from first-time voters about their passion, disaffected voters might find a reason to participate this fall.

As a DACA recipient in San Diego completed her citizenship ceremony, she thought of "the community that poured into the cup of this once-undocumented Mexican girl with big dreams."

For a formerly incarcerated person, the opportunity to vote for the first time is filled with mixed emotions. After years of disenfranchisement, voting is an act of empowerment.

Even if young voters are disillusioned with the American democratic process, they need to participate in our elections and support climate change protections and advocates, writes a Eureka teen.

Advocacy groups fight for causes that matter to their communities, demonstrating what is possible when people come together, writes a teen first-time voter.