On May 18, the 9th circuit lifted a stay that had been imposed by a U.S. District Court, so that now political parties may make unlimited donations to candidates for city office in San Diego. The case is Thalheimer v City of San Diego, 10-55322. See this story.

San Diego has had a city ordinance since 1973, making it illegal for political parties to make donations to candidates for city office. All city and county elections in California are non-partisan. A U.S. District Court had struck down that ban on February 16, 2010, but had stayed its own ruling while the city appealed. The city is free to impose a contribution limit on political party donations, and in fact had recently passed such a cap (in response to the court decision). But the city cap on donations doesn’t go into effect until late June, so in the meantime there is no restriction.