Pro-Equality Voters Across California Energized Ahead of Historic Election
73% of Equality California members* have already voted, compared to 51% of registered voters statewide*. LGBTQ+ voters and their allies throughout the state are especially energized this year with so much at stake in this election for the LGBTQ+ community and the diverse communities to which LGBTQ+ people belong.
Equality California, the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ+ civil rights organization, and aligned political action committees have contacted over 429,000 Equality California members registered to vote in the Golden State and more than 602,000 additional California voters identified as supporters of LGBTQ+ equality by mail, phone calls and nearly 211,000 text messages, urging them to support pro-equality candidates for federal, state and local offices, as well as statewide ballot measures endorsed by Equality California. Equality California Votes, an independent federal super PAC aligned with the civil rights organization, and Equality California Political Action Committee are running digital ads in key Congressional, state and local races, as well as general get-out-the-vote ads on the popular gay dating app Grindr in Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego Counties. Last month, Equality California Institute released a PSA encouraging voters to cast their ballots narrated by LGBTQ+ actor and advocate Billy Porter.
Equality California endorsed 161 candidates at the local, state and federal levels in 2020, including 44 openly LGBTQ+ candidates, who are among an historic wave of openly LGBTQ+ candidates running across the country. The organization and aligned state and federal political action committees have spent over $1.5 million in total to educate, energize and mobilize members and pro-equality voters in key races throughout the Golden State:
- Equality California Political Action Committee has spent over $1.1 million on direct mail, text messages, digital ads and paid phone calls supporting pro-equality candidates for state and local offices, including Sen. Scott Wiener in SD 11, Asm. Susan Talamantes Eggman in SD 5, Chad Mayes in AD 42, Chris Ward in AD 78, Asm. Todd Gloria, who is running for mayor of San Diego, and Christy Holstege, who is running for re-election to the Palm Springs City Council.
- Equality California Votes has reported spending over $130,000 on direct mail, text messages, digital ads and paid phone calls to turn out pro-equality voters in support of pro-equality candidates in the state’s battleground Congressional districts, including Christy Smith in CA-25, Ammar Campa-Najjar in CA-50, Rep. TJ Cox in CA-21, Rep. Gil Cisneros in CA-39, Rep. Harley Rouda in CA-48, Rep. Katie Porter in CA-45 and Rep. Josh Harder in CA-10.
- Equality California has spent over $200,000 educating members about pro-equality statewide ballot measures, including Propositions 14, 15, 16, 17, 18 and 25 — and opposing Proposition 20.
For a complete list of Equality California’s endorsed candidates, visit eqca.org/elections.
*As of 8:00am PST on November 2, 2020, Political Data Inc. early voter data shows 309,795 of the 425,798 Equality California members registered to vote in California have cast a ballot in the November 2020 general election. As of the same time, Political Data Inc.’s 2020 Ballots Returned Tracker shows 11,236,035 Californians of the 22,033,688 registered voters statewide have cast a ballot.
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Equality California is the nation’s largest statewide LGBTQ civil rights organization. We bring the voices of LGBTQ people and allies to institutions of power in California and across the United States, striving to create a world that is healthy, just, and fully equal for all LGBTQ people. We advance civil rights and social justice by inspiring, advocating and mobilizing through an inclusive movement that works tirelessly on behalf of those we serve. www.eqca.org