The LAist guide to LA and OC's many voting guides

V oting can be daunting. Even if you’re a person who stays informed about politics and local news, it can be overwhelming. That's where voter guides can help.

LAist's Voter Game Plan is a non-partisan guide that lays out the information you need to understand the positions and issues on the ballot and then evaluate your choices to make sure they align with your values and beliefs. What we don't do is tell you how to vote.

That said, we know it can also be helpful to look to organizations or individuals that you trust to see where they stand on a particular candidate or initiative, and use those endorsements as a guide for filling out your ballot.

That’s where this Guide to LA's Many Voting Guides comes in.

Make It Make Sense: Election 2024 Edition

Every election, such endorsement guides are circulated via email and social media, but it can be hard to keep track of them, let alone get some more context about who made them, where they lie on the political spectrum and what, if any, political agendas the organizations who created them might have. So we’ve scoured Los Angeles voter guides and endorsements that span the political spectrum, and included individuals, publications and non-profit advocacy organizations that create them every election year. Some aren’t fancier than a Google doc. Others are much more polished and strategic.

This is by no means an exhaustive list. But it’s a good place to start. The guides are divided into three broad categories, and overall they lean liberal, as Los Angeles overwhelmingly does . If we missed a list or a source you think is important, let us know at the end of this article and we may add it, or include it in future guides to guides.

If you embrace the term 'progressive'

Ben Bram

This guide takes several progressive endorsements and compares them side-by-side in a handy spreadsheet. It’s unique in that it makes it easy to see what the majority of left-leaning orgs think, and will save you time if you need a progressive cheat sheet. Ben Bram is not a politician or a journalist — he’s actually a Grammy-winning vocal arranger, producer and engineer who specializes in contemporary a cappella. (He’s a vocal arranger for Pentatonix, and worked on Pitch Perfect, Glee and The Voice ). He started making this guide in 2022 when he became engaged in local politics. “Organizations and individuals were doing tons of excellent research, writing detailed guides, but I also knew that there would be many voters who wouldn't take the time to look through them,” he said in an email to LAist, “I wanted to create a simple at-a-glance guide to make it easier for people to vote for progressive candidates and measures.”

Knock LA

Knock LA started as a Medium blog in 2017 when members of Ground Game LA , a grassroots community organizing group, decided to start their own news outlet for alt-weekly style coverage of the topics they cared most about, like police misconduct, labor abuse and the housing crisis. They are a self-described horizontally-organized publication, meaning they try to make all major decisions by group consensus, and they don’t accept funding from advertisers or “any source that may influence [their] coverage.” The Knock team writes that their voter guide is a “labor of love for a better Los Angeles.” The group says that this election could “help decide the paths of our region and our state for years to come.” If you feel strongly about “building and preserving affordable housing, stopping planet-destroying emissions, reimagining public safety and getting people off the streets and sustainably into shelter and housing,” this is your guide.

Move Left LA

This Google doc guide was created by Kris Rehl , a TV/comic writer and organizer with LA Street Care , which is an “abolitionist mutual aid collective.” That should give you a good idea of where this guide comes from politically — Rehl, who uses they/them pronouns, says they see politics through the lens of working with the unhoused and views the housing crisis as a “microcosm of the dysfunction and corruption in LA politics.” They created this exhaustive guide independently (and when I say “exhaustive,” I really mean it — it’s 95 pages long!!!). The guide covers every race and measure on the ballot with explainers, links, candidates statements and other resources to get involved in local activist groups. It goes especially deep on city council member candidates, which is overlooked by larger media organizations. If you’re a left/progressive voter who believes that dark money makes it hard to get clear information about elections — and you want to get involved in local activism/politics, this guide is for you.

Olga's November 2024 Voter Guide

It’s another Google doc guide created by a politically active, progressive entertainment industry person! This time the creator is Olda Lexell , a comedy writer and board member at Streets For All , a transportation organization that advocates for green, sustainable solutions for getting around L.A. Lexell has also volunteered and worked for campaigns like Bernie 2020 and Healthy Streets LA . If you’re into transportation policy and progressive politics, but want some weird animal pics dispersed throughout your guide for comic relief, Lexell is your person. Her guide reads like texts your politically savvy college friend sends to the group chat, with lines like “everyone in this race sucks, leave it blank.”

LA Forward

LA Forward is a political organizing group working to grow and support a progressive base in almost every L.A. City Council District. Their guide breaks down the races and offers up details about why a particular candidate has earned their endorsement. They host a Progressive Campaign Leadership Academy to recruit and train a diverse cohort of Los Angeles County residents to be the next generation of candidates and campaign staffers, along with a Judicial Leadership Academy that helps social justice-oriented attorneys run for seats as Los Angeles County Superior Court judges.

East Area Progressive Democrats

The EAPD meets every month at a coffee house in Eagle Rock and started in late 2013 to fight for more progressive representation. With more than 1,100 members, they call themselves the largest Democratic club in L.A. County and California. You can get a good idea of their political views from their own about page: “We believe that our elected officials need to understand that they work for us, not special interest groups. We also believe that money has polluted and corrupted our political process and until campaigns are publicly financed our democracy will continue to erode.” The group is led by Hans Johnson , an organizer who specializes in coalition strategy and environmental activism. Their endorsements are short and to the point.

La Defensa

This group describes themselves as “femme-led and abolitionist.” They are also affiliated with The La Defensa Justice PAC , which is dedicated to supporting progressive judicial candidates for L.A.’s Superior Court. The group is led by mostly women of color who are immigration and social-justice minded. Their guide is a nuanced one with candidates tagged with a hearty "endorsed," a more tempered "recommended" or “meh,” or a "harm reduction" label, which indicates that while the candidate doesn't earn the group’s endorsement, they are seen as the best alternative.

Courage California

A non-profit organization with over a million members, according to their website, Courage California’s mission is to “defend and extend economic justice, human rights and corporate and political accountability.” Their endorsements take into account the organization’s own knowledge and research as well as other recommendations from “leading progressive organizations.”

California Working Families Party

This one is a little different in that it’s a third party that sometimes runs their own candidates through Democratic Party primaries or on their own. The California Working Families Party was founded in 1998 by a coalition of labor unions. They describe themselves on X/Twitter as “a progressive grassroots political party building a multiracial, feminist movement of working people to transform America.” Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders called the party “the closest thing to socialism” in 2016, although they officially endorsed U.S. Sen. Elizabeth Warren when she ran for president in 2020. Their endorsements are straightforward, and include candidates up and down the state, so you'll need to sift through a bit to find Los Angeles. They also cover races in several other states, including Arizona, Colorado and Texas.

Leyla's 2024 CA General Election Voter Guide

Leyla Farah is a self-described political junkie, tech nerd, travel addict and author of the book Black, Gifted and Gay . Her guide is on Medium and is delivered with a healthy dose of cynicism. It includes personal recommendations sprinkled with fun little disclaimers like “Our political system is a giant turducken” and "All candidate qualifications being equal, I’ll pick the non-white, non-guy, non-cis, non-straight (you get where I’m going with this) candidate every time."

Democratic Socialists of Los Angeles

The local chapter of Democratic Socialists of America , the DSALA supports a “multiracial working class” and reforms like Medicare for All, defunding the police and the Green New Deal. They say they aren’t a political party or a non-profit, but rather “a socialist organization,” according to their website . This group's voter guide endorses candidates who are registered DSA members and other candidates who might not call themselves socialists, but have “planks of their platform we believe will materially benefit the working class of Los Angeles.”

If you embrace the term 'moderate'

Los Angeles Times

The L.A. Times’ editorial board endorsements can be categorized as left-of-center but not as left as the progressive guides listed above. The editorial board is made up of journalists who meet three times a week to discuss and debate the issues that affect L.A. and California. Their recommendations are based on candidate interviews, conversations with policy experts and independent reporting: “We strive to take into account different perspectives, particularly if they don’t align with our own, to inform our views,” the board’s mission statement reads. The board abides by several guiding principles including fighting climate change, preserving land/natural ecology, holding government and corporations accountable, and addressing economic inequality, which they say has become a statewide emergency. You can read the full mission statement and see who the board members are here .

Los Angeles County Democratic Party

The L.A. County Democratic Party describes itself as the largest and most influential local Democratic Party in the country. This local chapter of the Democratic party is run by seven elected members who are chosen from each state Assembly district of Los Angeles County during presidential primaries — and serve as the official governing body of the LACDP. The slate of endorsements go deep, from federal, to state, to local to the Los Angeles Community College District. You can find the Orange County Democratic Party guide here .

Planned Parenthood Advocacy Fund Project

The political arm of Planned Parenthood bills itself as a non-profit, non-partisan organization involved in grassroots organizing, education campaigns and electioneering. Their mission is in line with Planned Parenthood writ large, according to their about page: “to improve the quality and affordability of reproductive and sexual health care, protect and expand services that prevent unintended pregnancy and sexually transmitted disease and ensure continued access to safe, legal and confidential abortion care.” Accordingly, they endorse candidates based on their stance on family planning and women's health.

If you embrace the term 'conservative'

Election Forum

This is a guide for evangelical Christians who say they're fighting for conservative values locally. Election Forum is a national nonprofit with wings in Nashville and Los Angeles, led by conservative political commentator and author Craig Huey . Their guide “will help you cut through the rhetoric, election propaganda and biased media coverage of the campaigns” by evaluating candidates based on their views on crime, government spending, and the Bible, according to the group’s website.

The Republican Party of L.A. County

The L.A. GOP is chaired by Timothy L. O’Reilly, a lawyer in Long Beach. In his statement on the organization's website, he says the chapter is "not an issue or policy debating society. Our policies and positions are established in our party platform." Their goal is simple : to register Republican voters and support Republican candidates. O’Reilly adds that “We live in a place that is too beautiful to leave to the radical leftists” and that “woke and progressive ideas have always led to the enslavement of the individual.” If that rings true for you, this is the straight-ticket Republican guide you’ve been looking for. You can find the Orange County Republican Party Voter Guide here .

The Orange County Register

The Register's Voter Guide goes deep on Orange County candidates, of course, as well as candidates whose districts straddle Los Angeles. It also does an in-depth job on races and measures that cut across the state. This one leans more “guide” and less “endorsement” in that each candidate is offered the chance to fill out a questionnaire where they answer questions about “the future of AI, the state of the economy and its impacts on Orange County and what the most important issues are today.” (You can also check out LAist's OC Voter Game Plan for an overview of Orange County races as well.)

Election Forum

Reform California

Carl DeMaio leads this group with the goal of “taking back our state from far-Left politicians and special interests.” DeMaio served one term in the San Diego City Council, hosts a conservative news radio show and is an enthusiastic Trump supporter. The organization believes that the Democratic party domination in California has become extremist and ineffective. Reform's "Plain English" voter guide endorses candidates that “‘pass the test’ on these crucial criteria: opposing taxes, fighting crime, improving schools, addressing homelessness and securing the border,” according to the group’s website.

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