SACRAMENTO, Calif. A new constitutional amendment introduced in the California Assembly Monday would guarantee every voter, regardless of party preference, the right to vote in all publicly funded and administered elections. It has drawn support from a notably broad coalition of Democratic lawmakers who are putting voters first.
Simply put, this amendment—ACA 24—would codify in the California constitution that the right to vote derives from citizenship, not upon affiliation with a political party.
ACA 24 comes on the heels of a coordinated effort by influential figures in both major parties to close California’s primaries, a campaign branded “Undo the Top Two.” Filed in 2026 by longtime Democratic consultant Steve Maviglio, the repeal effort has attracted a bipartisan roster of party insiders, including former California Republican Party chair Ron Nehring, Reform California chair Carl DeMaio, California Federation of Labor Unions president Lorena Gonzalez, and California Democratic Party chair Rusty Hicks.
Their goal is a return to a semi-closed system that would deny independent voters a meaningful choice. More than 5.2 million Californians are registered “No Party Preference,” a bloc that helped elevate 2026 primary turnout to a record 41%, the highest in California history.
Since California voters adopted the nonpartisan top-two primary in 2010, the Legislature has come to look far more like the state it represents. Women’s representation nearly doubled and people of color became a majority of lawmakers for the first time, a shift reformers attribute to opening primaries to every voter rather than to party insiders. Rolling the system back would hand that gatekeeping power back to the parties.
It also sits against a larger constitutional question now moving through the courts: whether the right to vote at a decisive stage of a publicly funded election comes from citizenship or from party membership. On that question, the two parties tend to agree on one thing, that the primary belongs to them.
The Right to Vote Amendment draws the opposite line. Sponsored by More Choice California, a coalition of election reform advocates and organizations led by the Independent Voter Project, it would enshrine into law the following:
“No eligible voter shall be excluded from meaningful participation at any integral stage of any publicly funded election, including primary elections, on any basis including political party preference.”
It is a simple but far-reaching principle that most voters understand and support. All eligible voters deserve an equal and meaningful vote at all integral stages of a publicly funded election, including primary elections.
Neither party should be allowed to use its internal rules or legal standing to override a citizen’s right to vote, a threat More Choice California has explicitly stated comes from “both sides.”
Republican leaders and aligned special interests are trying to repeal Alaska’s nonpartisan Top Four system, which includes primaries open to all voters and candidates. They tried and failed in 2024 but have placed another repeal initiative on the 2026 ballot. Republicans in Texas and South Carolina are suing to close their primaries to party members only.
At a moment when California politics is often reduced to intraparty factionalism, a dozen Assembly Democrats from different regions and ideological wings of the party put their names on the same bill, agreeing that the right to an equal and meaningful vote should be protected.
Below is a look at the legislative coalition pushing the amendment.
Lead Author
Stephanie Nguyen (D-Elk Grove) represents the 10th Assembly District and is carrying the amendment as lead author. A daughter of Vietnamese refugees, Nguyen built her career in community nonprofit leadership, serving as executive director of Asian Resources, Inc. and director of the Sacramento Asian Pacific Chamber Foundation. In the Assembly, she has established a reputation as a prolific, detail-oriented lawmaker who authors dozens of bills a session on everything from elder financial abuse protections to health care access. Now she has taken the lead on a constitutional amendment that limits a party’s ability to control election access, including her own party’s, underscoring the nonpartisan nature of the effort.
"This is a voter-centered bill, not a party bill," Nguyen said in a statement.
"I have colleagues I respect in both the Republican and Democratic parties who may not agree with me on this, and I understand that. But this measure is not about our parties. It is about the voters we all answer to. Every one of them helps pay for these elections, and every one of them deserves an equal say in who represents them."
Joint Authors
Anamarie Avila Farias (D-Martinez)
Representing the 15th Assembly District, Avila Farias brings direct experience fighting for fair representation. Before her election, she served on the Contra Costa County Board of Education, the Martinez City Council, and the California Housing Finance Agency board. She also has a history with voting-rights litigation, having been involved in a California VRA case that forced her local school district to abandon at-large elections in favor of district-based ones. That background gives her a firsthand understanding of what it means when an election system fails to give voters meaningful, equal participation.
Lori Wilson (D-Suisun City)
Representing the 11th Assembly District, Wilson has emerged as one of the Assembly’s most independent-minded members. She has been outspoken about the need to strengthen voter trust in elections and has shown a willingness to buck party leadership when she believes it is the right direction for voters.
“Democracy works best when every eligible voter has a seat at the table,” said Wilson:
“Our political system should make room for every voice, not create barriers. The right to vote is fundamental, and it should never depend on choosing a political label. ACA 24 is about ensuring every voter has the opportunity to fully participate in our democracy.”
David Alvarez (D-San Diego)
Representing the 80th Assembly District, Alvarez came to Sacramento after serving on the San Diego City Council, including as council president, giving him a grounding in the nuts and bolts of local election administration that few state legislators bring to the capitol. His support reflects a pragmatic, voter-access-first approach.
Blanca Rubio (D-Baldwin Park)
Representing the 48th Assembly District, Rubio has built a reputation as a coalition-builder willing to work across the aisle on practical governance questions rather than ideological ones. Her willingness to co-sponsor a measure that limits both parties’ control over primaries fits a pattern of putting constituent access above party convenience.
Coauthors
The coauthor list reads like a cross-section of the Assembly’s Democratic caucus, spanning generations, regions, and ideological lanes:
Blanca Pacheco (D-Downey), a former Downey mayor, brings a local-government, good-governance perspective and chairs the powerful Assembly Rules Committee.
Lisa Calderón (D-Whittier) chairs the Assembly Insurance Committee. One of the state's first Latina legislative aides' decades earlier, she has built a reputation for pragmatic, results-driven policymaking,
Alex Lee (D-San Jose), one of the legislature’s youngest and most independent voices, has repeatedly shown a willingness to challenge entrenched interests, including his own party’s leadership, on transparency and reform.
Corey Jackson (D-Moreno Valley) has made a name fighting for underserved Inland Empire communities and challenging entrenched ways of doing business when he sees them working against ordinary voters.
Patrick Ahrens (D-Santa Clara) represents a newer generation of members who campaigned on government accountability and has carried that theme into their legislative work.
Jasmeet Bains (D-Delano), a physician and the first Sikh American woman elected to the California Legislature, has not been afraid to break from caucus positions when she believes her Central Valley constituents are better served.
Mike Gipson (D-Carson), a longtime South Bay-area legislator, brings the perspective of a veteran who has watched primary and election-access fights play out over multiple cycles.
José Luis Solache (D-Lynwood), a former Lynwood mayor, adds another local-government voice grounded in direct election administration.
Tina McKinnor (D-Inglewood) has built a legislative record focused on expanding access and representation for her Inglewood-area constituents.
Assembly Democrats Defend Independent Voters Against a Party-Driven Effort to "Undo the Top Two" Nonpartisan Primary is republished as part of The Fulcrum’s partnership with IVN and the Latino News Network to expand voter‑first journalism and strengthen public‑centered coverage of democracy.
