California Election Information 1996

This list of sites is being compiled by the League of Women Voters of California as a service to voters. Our intent is to find the most useful, specific sites on the Web to help you make informed decisions on November 5.

Note: Because this page was getting so large, it's now divided into two!

About the Election

Special California Election Sites

• California Online Voter Guide provided by the California Voter Foundation. Covers all elections and ballot issues from Presidential down to the California Assembly. Included are:
  • California Journal's analyses of the California propositions and races. "An invaluable source of news on California government and politics".
  • plus District Maps, Election Links, and California Public Libraries with Internet Access.

California Newspapers with Special Online Election Coverage

• The Los Angeles Times: Politics & Polls.
• The Orange County Register Election '96 with Online Voter Guide.
• Sacramento Bee's Special Election Coverage
• The San Jose Mercury News Voter Link.
• San Luis Obispo County Telegram-Tribune Election '96.
• Santa Rosa Press Democrat Redwood Empire Election '96.

[Send us an E-mail to request the addition of another California major newspaper with special coverage.]

Issues

• Campaign Finance - a special issue
  • "Late Contribution Watch" from the California Voter Foundation. An online service that tracks last-minute contributions made to California candidates and ballot measures
  • FEC Info Home Page. Presidential and congressional campaign finances--an easier-to-use look at the official Federal Election Commission data.
  • Center for Responsive Politics: Follow the Money. A nonpartisan, nonprofit research group specializing in the study of Congress and particularly the role that money plays in its elections and actions.

• Project Vote Smart's Issue Information. For over 30 hot issues, links to papers, articles, or organizations. Excellent research sources.
• Getting into Issues from the League of Women Voters U.S. To help you decide how you feel about the issues so you can judge the candidates' positions for yourself.
• Issues '96. "A collaboration by The New York Times on the Web and National Public Radio focusing on the issues in this fall's election campaign".

Political Parties

Each list contains links to the official party page.

• Political Parties in California from the California Voter Foundation.
• Official Statements of Purpose as submitted to the CA Secretary of State by each party.
• U.S. Political Parties. An extensive annotated list from Project Vote Smart.

On Voting -- from the League of Women Voters

• Election '96: Election Coverage by the League of Women Voters of the U.S.. Includes:
  • Results of comprehensive League study on differences between voters and nonvoters. Why don't people vote?
  • Get Out the Vote. How to encourage voter participation in your community.

• The LWV Smarter Voter Guide. The League's page on "Power the Vote" sponsored by the Ladies' Home Journal and the LWV.

• LWV "VoteWise" on MSNBC's Decision '96. How to make smart choices when you go to the polls.

Live Online Election Night Returns

• California from the CA Secretary of State.

• AllPolitics

• PoliticsNow
  • Presidential
  • Senate
  • House

• CBS News. (Very fast).

Other Election Sites

We've found these sites to be useful and informative -- you can spend hours browsing!! Listed alphabetically except for the first.

• Jefferson Project. "Comprehensive directory to politics on-line. If it's political and on-line, it's listed here, from mailing lists to web pages, from the grassroots to the White House." Perhaps the most comprehensive list we found--which is why it is first in this list!
• Citizens '96 Election Survival Guide. A unique, interesting look from PBS at subjects like dissecting a campaign ad, analyzing the presidential debates, "why should I care" about all this anyway? Heavy on the graphics, but you can turn them off without loss of content.
• Congressional Quarterly's American Voter '96. CQ's goal is to provide "clear, complete nonpartisan coverage of Congress, politics and issues in government".
• Kids Voting USA. (Turn off graphics before going to site). "Students (K-12) go to official polls, with parents and guardians in tow, and cast their own ballots in their own polling booths on the same issues and candidates as adults do." The League of Women Voters supports this project.
• Netizen. Only on the Web, produced daily by HotWired, with comments on the media as well as the campaign. Discussion groups.
• PoliticsNow. "The latest political news from ABC News, The Washington Post, National Journal, Newsweek, and The Los Angeles Times on the race for the White House [and] Congress and beyond."
• Rock the Vote. For young voters.
• Showdown '96. An issues-oriented Presidential election and national politics site.
• Yahoo's 1996 Election List