"Mud getting slung across Bay Area ahead of primary election"

Quoted in this one in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Jessica Levinson, a professor of government and political ethics at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, calls it the "TMZ-ization of our elections."

"Is it our fault that we are totally uninformed (about political candidates) but we know what Kim Kardashian wore to her wedding?" Levinson asked.

In this year's primary, which by all accounts is attracting few voters' attention, campaign strategists' approach appears to be, "Anything that is not defamation or slander is fair game," Levinson said.

California "State Senate scandals inspire new wave of ethics bills"

Quoted in this one in the San Francisco Chronicle. 

Scandals are typically followed by political reform efforts, said Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor who specializes in governmental ethics.

"If you want to pass something dealing with ethics, this is the moment," she said. "We have to be sure when we are passing these laws, it's real reform and not window dressing reform or PR reform."

CA Budget News: "Brown Links Budget Dollars To Department Reforms"

Interviewed for this one on Capitol Public Radio.

What to know about the ‘down ballot’ races when you vote

Interviewed for this piece, airing on KCRW.

To hold judicial elections or not to hold judicial elections....

...that is the question I debated on KQED recently.

A link to the debate is here.

And my op-ed in the LA Times re judicial elections is here.

News from CA "Outside money pours into Inland races"

Quoted in this one in the Press Enterprise.

There are no limits on what committees can spend to support or oppose candidates. But they cannot coordinate their activities with a candidate or ballot measure committee.

That said, committees are often led by friends or former staffers of the candidates they help, said Jessica Levinson, a campaign finance expert and law professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles.

My speech at the 28th Amendment "Roadshow" at UCLA

A history of campaign finance law in 20 min or less...here.

"Yaroslavsky proposes electronic filing of political donations"

Quoted in this one in the LA Times.

Jessica Levinson, a Loyola Law School professor who serves on the Los Angeles City Ethics Commission, called the move "a step in the right direction." But she said even electronic reporting systems can have issues and suffer computer glitches.

"GOP hopeful defends comment on Nazi, Israeli flags"

Quoted in this article in the San Francisco Chronicle.

Jessica Levinson, a professor of political law at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles, said it appeared that Donnelly "was just calling out two sides of the debate" when he said he would allow the sale of the Nazi flag, the Israeli flag or any other flag in a state-run store.

"It's completely defensible to say, 'There are good things, there are bad things, and I won't vote to ban any of them,' " Levinson said. "But when voters hear it together, that's not how it plays."

She added, "Whenever a comparison is made to Hitler or Nazis, it's never good politics."

Kings' Twitter trash talker

Quoted in this article in the Los Angeles Register.

Jessica Levinson, vice president of the L.A. City Ethics Commission and a Loyola Law School professor, said taunting other fans is unusual for a public agency and possibly inappropriate.

“It’s a very bizarre use of an official Twitter,” Levinson said. “You can partner up with the Lakers or the Dodgers and you don’t have to vilify the Angels and the Clippers.”

Steinberg powers through Senate’s ethics crises in his final year

Quoted in this one in the Sacramento Bee.

“These are isolated incidents that really don’t have anything to do with his leadership,” said Jessica Levinson, a professor of political law at Loyola Law School and a member of the Los Angeles Ethics Commission. “They would have happened regardless of who was in his position ... What can we criticize him on? Maybe the aftermath.”

Read more here: http://www.sacbee.com/2014/05/09/6393961/steinberg-powers-through-senates.html#storylink=cpy

"Carson Councilman Albert Robles faces conflict-of-interest probe"

Quoted in this one in the Los Angeles Times.

But Jessica Levinson, a Loyola law professor who specializes in government ethics, said conflict of interest laws involving so-called incompatible offices are designed to keep politicians from "serving two masters." Experts say investigators don't have to prove that a conflict of interest happened, only that it could.

"It's meant to ensure that you serve your constituents and don't have divided duties and loyalties and agendas," Levinson said.

Why voters shouldn't be electing judges

My latest op-ed was just published by the Los Angeles Times. In it I argue that we should do away with judicial elections.

"So Cal Political Races, Infomercials & a Bullying Law"

Here is my interview with Madeleine Brand on KCRW's Press Play. We talked about Obamajams, campaign financing, and McCutcheon v. FEC. 

What I did last summer (and the summer before that, and the one before that...)

For those of you who are interested in my lengthier pieces on election law topics, here is a link to my law review articles. You can read the abstracts ("show abstract") or simply download the pieces.

Or here are the links to the individual articles:

We the Corporations?: The Constitutionality of Limitations on Corporate Electoral Speech After Citizens United

The Original Sin of Campaign Finance Law: Why Buckley v. Valeo is Wrong

Taking the Initiative: How to Save Direct Democracy

Ballot Box Budgeting in California: The Bane of the Golden State or an Overstated Problem?

Timing is Everything: A New Model for Countering Corruption Without Silencing Speech in Elections

Is the Party Over? Examining the Constitutionality of Proposition 14 as it Relates to Ballot Access for Minor Parties

 

Got A Voter ID?

My latest op-ed was just published on Politix.