Governor Jerry Brown addresses students at Sacramento City College and talks about the importance of Prop 30 to education and the community college system.

This Election year we need your help to defeat the deceptive Prop. 32 that would rig elections for corporate special interests, pass Prop 30 to stop the cuts to education and local public safety, and Win Back the House to give President Obama a Congress that will work with him, not against him. You can help Democrats win big in California by joining the thousands of activists across the state making calls for our Get Out The Vote program Today. Visit www.battlegroundcalifornia.com to learn more.

Francisco “Frankie” Perez is a High School senior with big dreams and even greater ambitions. When he was 6 years old he and his family left Mexico for California and for a better life. The family first settled in Compton, in South Los Angeles, and for Frankie the shock of a new country and a new way of life was something he had to get used to quickly.

Fast forward 12 years later and Frankie is a star Battleground California volunteer, a strong student active in leadership council, and gearing up for college – provided he’s given that opportunity.

In order for Frankie to be able to achieve his dream of attending college in state without having to pay out of state tuition, there needs to be immigration reform. He’s also concerned about the rising cost of college and increases to college tuition that impact all students attending California’s public universities.

He is volunteering to make sure that he and future generations of California public school students have a chance.

As Frankie says, “I want to see a change and if I want to see a change I have to act, I can’t just sit back. I want Proposition 30 to pass because from my own experience I know that schools need more books, more teachers and students need a better shot at graduating and going to college.  I want President Obama to be reelected because he stopped the deportation of Dream Act students like me and he needs four more years to see immigration reform all the way through.”

For Frankie being complacent is not an option because his future depends on what happens on November 6^th.

We’re happy to have star Battleground California volunteers like Frankie in our corner. There’s a lot at stake in California this year and volunteers like Frankie are working hard to give everyone a shot at a better and brighter future here.

But we need your help.

To volunteer at your local battleground office, visit www.battlegroundcalifornia.com and sign up today.

Election Day is right around the corner and we need your help. Sign up to volunteer and help us defeat the deceptive Prop 32 which promises to permanently rig elections in favor or corporate special interests, pass Prop 30 to stop cuts to schools and local public safety and Win Back the House so President Obama can have a Congress that will work with him, not against him. Visit www.battlegroundcalifornia.com and sign up today!

Lauren Hunter is a 19 year old College sophomore from Bakersfield California. She recently moved to the Bay Area eager and ready to conquer Berkeley’s prestigious Political Science program. For Hunter, her love of politics started back at home in Bakersfield.

“I come from a fairly conservative town and my views were in the minority. It was then that I realized how important it was to be vocal about my opinions and views because if I never spoke up then my opinions would never be considered,” explained Lauren. With that great lesson in tow, Lauren set out on path to make political advocacy her future life’s work.

Lauren ended up volunteering with the California Democratic Party’s Battleground California campaign thanks to a flyer she got at a College club and internship fair. She signed up on www.battlegroundcalifornia.com/volunteer and began volunteering almost right away.

Some may wonder why a college student would spend her free time volunteering for a campaign. Well for Lauren that’s a no brainer as she explains, “I wanted to volunteer because I’m interested in the state propositions, I think in a big election year it’s easy to gloss over them, so I got involved to educate voters on all of the propositions and the candidates of course. In particular supporting the passage of Proposition 30 is important to me because it directly affects my fellow students and me. If prop 30 is not passed then we will see a huge tuition spike and college is already difficult to afford these days.”

For Lauren the best part of volunteering was something she was afraid to do at first. “I really love being able to talk to voters and informing them about what’s on the ballot this year. However when I first started I was really nervous to call voters but after the first phone call it has been great to talk to people. I never thought I would enjoy it so much and it’s made me realize how important it is to inform voters about the issues,” said Lauren.

California Democrats are lucky to have a volunteer like Lauren on our team!

If you’re interested in volunteering at your local Battleground office visit www.battlegroundcalifornia.com/volunteer to sign up today.

In the last couple of years the Ventura County Democratic Central Committee (DCC) has become a force to be reckoned with. Extensive voter registration drives over a period of a few years have turned Ventura into a Democratic county but they aren’t stopping there.

This year Ventura County is home to the hotly contested CA-26 congressional race, one of a handful of seats that can deliver a Democratic majority to the U.S. House of Representatives.  In CA-26 Democratic candidate Julia Brownley is going up against radical conservative Tony Strickland. Strickland is a former State Senator and president of the California chapter of Club for Growth, a right wing group committed to strong arming moderate Republicans out of office in favor of no compromise extremists. With the prospect of having an extremist for a representative, newly elected Chair David Atkins and the Ventura DCC have revved up their field effort this year.

As Atkins explains, “In the last four years we have significantly ramped up our engagement, including a painstaking endorsement process and aggressive field operations effort from our year-round office in Camarillo, making hundreds of thousands of phone calls and door knocks over the last three years alone.”

The enthusiasm of Ventura county residents this year has taken some seasoned volunteers by surprise. “Democratic excitement here is through the roof, with our volunteers amazed at the eagerness of county residents across all ages and demographics to register as Democrats to vote this election. Our voter registration efforts at the Ventura County Fair and July 4^th Parade were the most successful in recent memory,” said Atkins.

That enthusiasm will come as a great advantage given the Ventura DCC’s role in this year’s coordinated campaign, Battleground California. The Ventura DCC is mounting a full-fledged field effort as part of Battleground California.  As Atkins describes, “Ventura County Democrats are preparing the most expansive and aggressive field operation in our history. We will be making tens of thousands of voter contacts out of our central field office to encourage Democrats across Ventura County to support Proposition 30, oppose Proposition 32, and elect Julia Brownley, Fran Pavley, Hannah-Beth Jackson and other great Democrats, by phone and through precinct walks. Our local Democratic clubs are preparing slate mailers and precinct walk operations to support our downballot races, as well.”

We look forward to hearing more of what Ventura County has in store for Democrats this year and beyond. With an impressive field campaign and new volunteer energy, Ventura Democrats stand poised to make big splash as part of Battleground California.

To learn how you can get involved with your local Democratic party visit www.battlegroundcalifornia.com

Longtime Delegate Garry Shay gives some great advice to new delegates on their way to Charlotte.

California’s Delegation to the DNC is one of the largest and most diverse in the nation. Hear from this year’s California Delegation to the Charlotte 2012 DNC: