- See also: California political consultants
The charts on this page show the main firms and organizations who provided paid consulting services to statewide ballot propositions on California's 2010 ballot.
The primary types of consulting or paid services a firm might provide are:
- Public opinion research/polling. Public opinion research is what a campaign uses to identify the themes and messages that are most likely to cause voters to support or oppose a particular ballot proposition. Firms such as Public Opinion Strategies and David Binder Research do this type of work.
- Communications strategy (what messages and themes should a campaign emphasize?). This type of work is performed by groups such as Townsend, Raimundo and Woodward & McDowell.
- Signature collection to qualify a proposition for the ballot. National Petition Management, Kimball Petition Management and others perform this type of work.
- Legal work. This can include drafting the language for a proposed proposition, making sure that a campaign committee is legally compliant with campaign finance and other laws, and engaging in litigation either by filing a lawsuit against a ballot proposition or defending, if someone else files such a lawsuit.
Some firms are major players in the area of providing paid services to ballot proposition campaigns. In 2010, four firms (Goddard Clausen (communications/strategy), National Petition Management, Nielsen, Merksamer (law firm) and Olson, Hagel (law firm)) each worked for at least four different campaigns. 9 additional firms worked on 3 campaigns and 10 firms worked on 2 campaigns.
1 or more campaigns
In this chart, and the charts below it, a green background indicates that the firm was working for the side that advocated a "yes" vote, while a red background indicates that the firm was working for the side that advocated a "no" vote.
| Vendor/consultant
|
14
|
15
|
16
|
17
|
19
|
20
|
21
|
22
|
23
|
24
|
25
|
26
|
27
|
| AC Public Affairs
|
|
|
|
|
|
$147,500
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Acosta Salazar
|
|
|
|
|
$38,325
|
|
|
|
|
|
$67,192
|
|
|
| Amplified Strategies
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$357,059
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Apex Strategies
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$67,500
|
|
| Arno
|
|
|
$2,199,794
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Barger & Wolen
|
|
|
|
$64,712
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Baselice
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$162,214
|
$104,190
|
|
|
|
| Bayside Communications
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$30,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Bedrock Strategies
|
|
|
$80,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Bell, McA/Hiltachk
|
|
$23,053
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$155,772
|
|
|
|
|
| The Better World
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$120,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Bicker, Castillo
|
|
|
|
$390,000
|
|
|
|
$455,555
|
$308,065
|
|
|
|
|
| Capital Campaigns
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$100,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Carpenter Hawkins
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$90,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Clean Economy Network
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$120,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Conservation Strategy
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$206,000
|
|
$200,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Croce, Renee
|
$137,500
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
| David Binder Research
|
|
|
$45,300
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$98,500
|
$60,700
|
|
| Discovery Data
|
|
|
$111,000
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Dumbrille, Philip
|
|
|
|
|
|
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|
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|
$153,978
|
|
|
|
| Fabiani, Mark
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
$225,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Fairbank, Maslin
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$107,750
|
$126,665
|
$241,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Fiona Hutton
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$446,719
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Forward Observer
|
|
|
$240,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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| Gateway Media
|
|
|
|
|
$41,590
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Goddard Clausen
|
|
|
|
$549,667
|
|
$549,470
|
|
|
$270,000
|
$290,000
|
|
$158,750
|
|
| Goldberg, Lenny
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$30,000
|
|
| Goodwin Simon
|
|
|
$27,700
|
|
|
|
|
$34,350
|
|
$75,000
|
|
|
|
| Grassroots LAB
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$27,500
|
|
|
$15,000
|
|
| Independent Campaigns
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$43,055
|
|
|
|
| JPM&M
|
|
$72,528
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Kaufman Campaigns
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$48,000
|
|
$77,500
|
$50,000
|
|
|
| Kimball Petitions
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$1,587,364
|
$2,626,808
|
|
$3,031,085
|
| KP Public Affairs
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$70,000
|
|
|
|
| Larsen Cazanis
|
|
|
$325,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Lombardo
|
|
|
|
$27,500
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$55,000
|
|
| M4 Strategies
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$84,500
|
|
|
|
| Maviglio, Steven
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$105,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Masterson & Wright
|
|
|
|
|
$984,250
|
|
$1,144,515
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Mercury Public Affairs
|
$300,000
|
|
$138,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
$170,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Meredian Pacific
|
$107,500
|
|
|
|
|
$217,743
|
|
|
|
|
|
$75,000
|
|
| Moore Methods
|
$64,500
|
|
$423,250
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| The Murray Group
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$25,000
|
|
|
|
| National Petition
|
|
|
|
$2,273,745
|
|
$1,937,380
|
|
|
$2,222,312
|
|
|
$2,341,023
|
|
| Next Generation
|
|
|
|
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
$22,500
|
|
| Nielsen, Merksamer
|
$649,101
|
|
$1,326,627
|
$472,087
|
|
$385,321
|
$13,231
|
$484,070
|
|
$210,522
|
|
$343,025
|
|
| Olson, Hagel
|
$29,884
|
|
|
|
|
|
$88,944
|
$16,758
|
$98,871
|
$19,662
|
$132,318
|
$6,240
|
|
| Paschal/Roth
|
|
$72,500
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Pence, Robert
|
|
|
$122,500
|
|
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|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Hart Research
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$193,889
|
|
|
|
| Progressive Campaigns
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$1,646,596
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Public Opinion
|
|
|
|
$167,000
|
|
$96,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Resources Law
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$52,500
|
|
|
|
|
| Rose Institute (dead link)
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$90,000
|
|
|
|
| Sipple Strategic
|
|
|
$100,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
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| SK Impact
|
|
|
$30,000
|
|
|
|
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|
|
|
|
| Strumwasser & Woocher
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$79,103
|
| Swanson Communications
|
|
|
$95,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Townsend, Raimundo
|
$325,000
|
|
$940,638
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Voter/Consumer Research
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$115,100
|
|
| The Wayne Johnson Agency
|
|
|
|
|
$135,588
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Warfield, Wendy
|
|
$30,420
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$120,000
|
|
$55,500
|
|
| Winner & Mandabach
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$250,352
|
$405,000
|
$362,596
|
|
|
|
|
| Woodward & McDowell
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$405,000
|
$290,000
|
|
|
|
Two campaigns
| Vendor/consultant
|
14
|
15
|
16
|
17
|
19
|
20
|
21
|
22
|
23
|
24
|
25
|
26
|
27
|
| Baselice
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$162,214
|
$104,190
|
|
|
|
| Bell, McA/Hiltachk
|
|
$23,053
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$155,772
|
|
|
|
|
| Conservation Strategy
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$206,000
|
|
$200,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Grassroots LAB
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$27,500
|
|
|
$15,000
|
|
| Lombardo
|
|
|
|
$27,500
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$55,000
|
|
| Masterson & Wright
|
|
|
|
|
$984,250
|
|
$1,144,515
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Moore Methods
|
$64,500
|
|
$423,250
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Public Opinion
|
|
|
|
$167,000
|
|
$96,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Townsend, Raimundo
|
$325,000
|
|
$940,638
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
| Woodward & McDowell
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$405,000
|
$290,000
|
|
|
|
Three campaigns
| Vendor/consultant
|
14
|
15
|
16
|
17
|
19
|
20
|
21
|
22
|
23
|
24
|
25
|
26
|
27
|
| Bicker, Castillo
|
|
|
|
$390,000
|
|
|
|
$455,555
|
$308,065
|
|
|
|
|
| David Binder Research
|
|
|
$45,300
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$98,500
|
$60,700
|
|
| Fairbank, Maslin
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$107,750
|
$126,665
|
$241,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Goodwin Simon
|
|
|
$27,700
|
|
|
|
|
$34,350
|
|
$75,000
|
|
|
|
| Kaufman Campaigns
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$48,000
|
|
$77,500
|
$50,000
|
|
|
| Kimball Petitions
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$1,587,364
|
$2,626,808
|
|
$3,031,085
|
| Mercury Public Affairs
|
$300,000
|
|
$138,000
|
|
|
|
|
|
$170,000
|
|
|
|
|
| Meredian Pacific
|
$107,500
|
|
|
|
|
$217,743
|
|
|
|
|
|
$75,000
|
|
| Warfield, Wendy
|
|
$30,420
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$120,000
|
|
$55,500
|
|
| Winner & Mandabach
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
$250,352
|
$405,000
|
$362,596
|
|
|
|
|
Four campaigns
| Vendor/consultant
|
14
|
15
|
16
|
17
|
19
|
20
|
21
|
22
|
23
|
24
|
25
|
26
|
27
|
| National Petition
|
|
|
|
$2,273,745
|
|
$1,937,380
|
|
|
$2,222,312
|
|
|
$2,341,023
|
|
Five campaigns
| Vendor/consultant
|
14
|
15
|
16
|
17
|
19
|
20
|
21
|
22
|
23
|
24
|
25
|
26
|
27
|
| Goddard Clausen
|
|
|
|
$549,667
|
|
$549,470
|
|
|
$230,000
|
$290,000
|
|
$158,750
|
|
Seven campaigns
| Vendor/consultant
|
14
|
15
|
16
|
17
|
19
|
20
|
21
|
22
|
23
|
24
|
25
|
26
|
27
|
| Olson, Hagel
|
$29,884
|
|
|
|
|
|
$88,944
|
$16,758
|
$98,871
|
$19,662
|
$132,318
|
$6,240
|
|
Eight campaigns
| Vendor/consultant
|
14
|
15
|
16
|
17
|
19
|
20
|
21
|
22
|
23
|
24
|
25
|
26
|
27
|
| Nielsen, Merksamer
|
$649,101
|
|
$1,326,627
|
$472,087
|
|
$385,321
|
$13,231
|
$484,070
|
|
$210,522
|
|
$343,025
|
|
