Election Showdown 2024: High-Stakes Consequences for Investors in California and Beyond

SPEAKERS

Ambassador John B. Emerson | John Emerson works in global distribution as vice chair of Capital Group International, Inc. He has 23 years of industry experience, all with Capital Group. From 2013 to 2017, he served as the United States ambassador to the Federal Republic of Germany. John was awarded the State Department’s Susan M. Cobb Award for Exemplary Diplomatic Service in 2015, which is given annually to one non-career ambassador, and in 2017 he was awarded the CIA Medal and the U.S. Navy’s Distinguished Public Service award. Prior to accepting the ambassadorial posting, John spent 16 years as president of Capital Group Private Client Services. Before joining Capital, he was deputy assistant to President Clinton where he coordinated his economic conferences, served as the president’s liaison to the nation’s governors, and led the administration’s efforts to obtain congressional approval of the GATT Uruguay Round Agreement and the extension of China’s MFN trading status. Additionally, he was appointed by President Obama to serve on his Advisory Committee for Trade Policy and Negotiations. Before working in the Clinton White House, John served as Los Angeles Chief Deputy City Attorney, and was a partner in the law firm of Manatt, Phelps, Rothenberg, and Phillips. John holds an honorary doctor of laws degree from Hamilton College, a juris doctor degree from the University of Chicago and a bachelor’s degree in philosophy from Hamilton College. John is based in Los Angeles.

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Senator James L. Brulte | Senator Jim Brulte (Ret.) is the only freshman in California history to be elected leader of his party in both the State Senate and the State Assembly. He served in the state legislature from 1990-2004 representing the Inland Empire counties of Riverside and San Bernardino. During his time in Sacramento, Brulte wrote comprehensive legislation to reform California’s worker’s compensation and welfare systems. He also wrote legislation to equalize the education funding formula which supported disadvantaged rural and suburban school districts. Brulte also wrote California’s Safe Surrender Law that allows mothers to drop off their newborn babies at hospitals or fire stations with no questions asked.

In 2022, Brulte partnered with former California Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner and brought together the California Medical Association and the California Consumer Attorneys to negotiate a compromise of the California Medical Malpractice System. (MICRA). That compromise was passed by the legislature and signed into law by Governor Newsom. As a result, a ballot initiative related to MICRA was withdrawn from the ballot. Brulte has served in three presidential administrations and was appointed by two California governors to state boards. After he left the legislature, Capitol Weekly wrote that “over the last 15 years, there has been no more enduring force in California Republican politics than Jim Brulte.”

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Geoffrey Cowan | Geoffrey Cowan is a University Professor and the inaugural holder of the Annenberg Family Chair in Communication Leadership at the University of Southern California. He directs the USC Annenberg Center on Communication Leadership & Policy. From 2010-2016, Cowan was the founding President of the Annenberg Foundation Trust at Sunnylands. From 1996-2007, Cowan served as Dean of the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication & Journalism. For his work in changing the delegate selection rules of the Democratic Party, Howard K. Smith’s ABC-TV network editorial on the eve of the 1972 Democratic Convention said that “young Geoffrey Cowan did more to change conventions than anyone since Andrew Jackson started them.” His most recent book is “Let the People Rule: Theodore Roosevelt and the Birth of the Presidential Primary (W. W. Norton, 2016).

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MODERATOR
Terri Spath, CFA, CFP | Terri Spath, CFA, CFP is the Founder and Chief Investment Officer of Zuma Wealth, LLC. Her tenure spans a quarter-century earning top performance marks stewarding billions of dollars at some of the largest investment shops, including Franklin Templeton Investments and Mercer Advisors. She brings the expertise that comes with managing money through the late 90s tech boom and bust, the 2007 recession and the longest bull market on record that ran from 2009 to 2020. A renowned expert, Terri is a regular guest on CNBC and Bloomberg TV, and a sought after industry speaker. She was named a "Top 10 Inspiring Women of 2022" by Industry Era Magazine and was shortlisted by the Women in Asset Management awards in 2019. Terri has been interviewed and quoted in hundreds of publications and lauded for making complex concepts simple. Terri's years of real-world expertise are rooted in a suite of top financial credentials: the CFA charter, the CFP® certification, an MBA in Finance from Columbia University and an AB in Economics with Honors from the University of Michigan.

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