{"podcast":{"title":"Rules of the Game: The Bolder Advocacy Podcast","slug":"rules-of-the-game-the-bolder-advocacy-podcast-744868","podcast_index_feed_id":744868,"rss_url":"https://rulesofthegame.libsyn.com/rss","website_url":"https://afj.org/podcast","image_url":"https://static.libsyn.com/p/assets/3/1/a/e/31ae8c4533ab742d/RoTG.png","author":"Alliance for Justice","episode_count":100,"summary":"Nonprofits are important advocates on issues critical to every community, but sometimes the rules and regulations of advocacy can be barriers to entry. In Rules of the Game, Bolder Advocacy attorneys at Alliance for Justice use real examples to demystify these laws to help 501(c)(3) and 501(c)(4) nonprofits be bolder advocates, whether holding elected officials accountable, educating candidates, engaging voters, or lobbying for policy change. Entertaining legal education, not legal advice!","last_synced_at":"2026-07-08T22:20:06.614648+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/rules-of-the-game-the-bolder-advocacy-podcast-744868"},"episode":{"title":"Ballot Measures and California Redistricting","slug":"ballot-measures-and-california-redistricting","published_at":"2025-09-17T11:00:00+00:00","page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/rules-of-the-game-the-bolder-advocacy-podcast-744868/ballot-measures-and-california-redistricting","show_page_url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/rules-of-the-game-the-bolder-advocacy-podcast-744868","url":"https://rulesofthegame.libsyn.com/ballot-measures-and-california-redistricting","audio_url":"https://traffic.libsyn.com/secure/rulesofthegame/ROTG140_.mp3?dest-id=2280527","summary":"Ballot measures give voters a chance to participate in direct democracy while providing nonprofit organizations with a powerful platform to educate the public about issues they champion. In this episode, we discuss California's pending redistricting ballot measure and other developments in direct democracy with returning guest Emma Olson Sharkey. Attorneys for this Episode • Tim Mooney • Susan Finkel Sourlis • Emma Olson Sharkey, Elias Law Group The Importance of Ballot Measures · Ballot measures give voters direct power to shape laws and policies, bypassing legislatures. · For nonprofits, they're a powerful platform to educate the public and advance mission-driven issues. · Emma Olson Sharkey—partner at Elias Law Group and one of the nation's leading ballot measure experts—returns to share insights (last heard in ROTG 96). California's Prop 50: Mid-Cycle Redistricting · Background: California has an independent redistricting commission that drew maps in 2021 for the 2022 elections. · New twist: In response to Texas' recent partisan maps, Governor Newsom and allies pushed for mid-decade redistricting. · The ballot measure: Prop 50, passed by the legislature and signed by the Governor, will go to voters in a special election on November 4, 2025. Redistricting Through Ballot Measures · Ballot measures have long been used to reform redistricting across the U.S. · Examples: - Successful: Colorado (2018), Michigan (2018), Missouri (2020), Ohio (2018). - Unsuccessful: Ohio's most recent attempt. · Mid-cycle redistricting isn't new: Texas pioneered it in 2003 under Tom DeLay, and the playbook has returned in 2025. What Nonprofits Need to Know · 501(c)(3) Public Charities: May engage in ballot measure advocacy—it counts as lobbying. Key distinction: 'Vote yes/no on Prop X' = p…","meta_description":"Ballot measures give voters a chance to participate in direct democracy while providing nonprofit organizations with a powerful platform to educate the pu…","key_points":[],"chapters":[],"topics":[],"duration_seconds":963,"processing_state":"not_requested","actions":[{"name":"request_transcript","method":"POST","url":"https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/rules-of-the-game-the-bolder-advocacy-podcast-744868/episodes/ballot-measures-and-california-redistricting/transcription-requests","description":"Idempotently request low-priority transcript generation for this episode."},{"name":"read_markdown","method":"GET","url":"https://stenobird.com/podcast/rules-of-the-game-the-bolder-advocacy-podcast-744868/ballot-measures-and-california-redistricting.md","description":"Read the agent-friendly Markdown representation of this episode resource."}]}}