Ava is also a seasoned policy professional and author. She has researched, written and edited projects for a variety of clients in Los Angeles and Sacramento. Her publications and websites have been cited as a source by the Los Angeles Times, San Francisco Chronicle, Sacramento Bee, Wall Street Journal and many other newspapers. Writing projects include reports, policy briefs, several entire magazines, brochures, and newsletters on the following subjects:
Money and Power in the City of Angels. By Ava Alexandar
The following excerpt highlights some of the key findings from this report include:
Overview of Los Angeles City Campaign Contributions – In 2009, 32 candidates for Los Angeles municipal offices received $14 million in direct contributions, with the bulk of these contributions, about $10 million, going to the 16 citywide candidates for mayor, city attorney and controller. Ten candidates received $1.7 million in public matching funds, most of which went to citywide candidates. Organizations and individuals spent $1.77 million in independent expenditures on these races.
Organizational vs. Individual Contributions – One success of Los Angeles’ reforms has been to shift candidate dependence away from organization to individual contributions. In 2009, individuals provided approximately 77% of all campaign contributions received, while organizations provided about 20%. The remaining 3% were unitemized contributions and candidate loans.
Matching Funds – Public matching funds provide candidates, particularly those running for open seats, with the ability to raise smaller amounts from private contributors and still remain competitive. In order to qualify for matching funds, candidates must raise a minimum threshold amount in small contributions. The minimum threshold and small contribution amount varies by office. Matching funds release candidates from their dependence on large major contributors and focus their attention on small individual contributors. In 2009, however, most incumbents opted out of the matching fund program, while most challengers and open seat candidates accepted matching funds.
Incumbent vs. Challenger Contributions – Incumbents have an overwhelming fundraising advantage over challengers. Incumbents raised a combined total of $5.3 million in private contributions, compared to challengers who raised a combined total of $285,000, a ratio of over 19-to-1.
Published by the Center for Governmental Studies. CGS Chief Executive Officer Tracy Westen and CGS President Bob Stern provided substantive suggestions and editorial comments.
Citizen Legislators or Political Musical Chairs: Term Limits in California by Ava Alexandar
The following excerpt highlights some of the key findings from this report include:
Gender – Term limits by itself did not increase the number of women in the California state legislature. By comparison, California’s congressional delegation, which did not have term limits, witnessed greater gains in gender diversity than did the term limited state legislature. While there are now more women in California’s state legislature after term limits, those increases cannot solely be attributed to term limits.
Race – Redistricting in the 1990s was the primary force stimulating greater racial diversity in the state legislature, but term limits accelerated legislative turnover, which in turn allowed a more racially diverse legislature to emerge more quickly.
Educational Diversity – The legislature has grown in educational diversity. While term limits did not cause this directly, term limits have accelerated opportunities for new members with more diverse educational skills to join the legislative chamber.
Age – The median age in the entire legislature was 57 years of age in both 1990 and in 2010. What has shrunk, however, is the range and diversity of legislators’ ages. Over the past 20 years, the number of members in their fifties and sixties has significantly increased, while the number of younger members in their twenties and thirties and older members in their seventies and eighties has decreased.
Legislative Experience – Members today have less state legislative experience than pre-term limits, which has produced a legislature that is more dependent on the expertise of lobbyists and staff and weaker in its relationships with the executive branch.
Post Legislative Careers – Members in 2008 are just as likely to seek other public sector jobs after they leave the legislature than did their 1980s and 1990 counter-parts.
Published by the Center for Governmental Studies. CGS Chief Executive Officer Tracy Westen and CGS President Bob Stern provided substantive suggestions and editorial comments.
Voter Information in the Digital Age: Grading State Election Websites. By Ava Alexandar, Robert Stern, and Tracy Westen.
The following excerpt highlights some of the key findings from this report include:
Assessments and Grades – Most state election websites performed poorly in providing voter information. Just four states scored higher than 70 percent. Only two states (Alaska and California) received grades of “A” (90 percent), one state (Washington) received a “B” (81 percent) and one state (Oregon) received a “C” (71 percent). Five states (Georgia, District of Columbia, Nevada, Florida and North Dakota) received a “D” (64-60 percent), and the remaining 42 states received an “F” (57-19 percent).
Candidate Information – The study analyzed whether state websites contained the names of candidates for state and federal office, party affiliations, street addresses, photographs, email addresses, web addresses, phone numbers, occupations, incumbency status, candidate statements on their qualifications or the issues, campaign finance data, descriptions of the office sought, links to their political party organizations, information provided in audio and/or video formats, links to summaries, transcripts or videos of candidate debates, and translations of materials into other languages. Only five states received grades of C or better, and forty states received an F on this portion of the assessment.
Ballot Measure Information – The study analyzed whether state websites contained ballot measure summaries, full texts, nonpartisan analyses, fiscal analyses and pro and con statements. State election website performance in this section varied dramatically, with 13 states receiving a B or better and 25 states receiving an F. Four states were not evaluated in this section, either because they have not had a measure on the ballot in the past four years or more, or because they are not a state that uses the ballot measure process.
General Information – The study analyzed whether state websites contained precinct level sample ballots, audio and video opportunities for candidates and/or ballot measures, and online voter pamphlets. States performed very poorly in this general information portion of the assessment. Eleven states received the highest grade of D, and 40 states received an F.
Published by the Center for Governmental Studies.
The Future of School Discipline in Fresno County: Report on a California Agenda Series Event. By Ava Alexandar
“School discipline policies remain at the forefront of public policy debate. Deep concern about lost academic opportunities and the high school-dropout rate push advocates to search for alternatives. Although both sides of this debate continue to disagree about the solutions, they agree that finding ways to increase school safety, reduce the dropout rate, and educate our children remain our top priorities.”
Released by The Edmund G. “Pat” Brown Institute for Public Affairs
Ava Alexandar 