Governor – KATIE PORTER – More than one good Democratic candidate here to be sure. I supported Betty Yee as my top choice right out of the gate. When she chose to withdraw, I looked again at the remaining Democratic candidates, and enthusiastically decided to support former Member of Congress Katie Porter. While I like Tom Steyer—particularly on climate and energy matters—and have a moderately good impression of Xavier Becerra, I believe that Katie P. stands out as not only whip-smart on the issues, but as a leader with a proven and steadfast commitment to standing up to big business special interests—something that we need more of in Sacramento. 

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The Sacramento Bee recently published a well-written editorial endorsing Porter for Governor; it’s well worth a read.  Here are a few excerpts: 

 “Porter has the intellect, the understanding of the issues, the ability to communicate, see the big picture, and the boldness to fight the monied interests who need to be fought. She has the singular ability to uplift Californians struggling with how expensive and exclusive this state has become. We also believe that it is time that California elects its first woman governor, after nearly 180 years of electing men.”

 “…we found Porter at her most compelling when she clearly identified and prioritized the loathsome income inequality that is rotting away at our economy—and indeed, at our nation’s democracy.” 

 “It’s hard for a candidate like Porter to break through in a state as large as California and in a race with too many candidates shouting to be heard. But we sat down with Porter, talked to her, questioned her and heard what she is saying. We’re telling you: Porter was impressive in a way that the other candidates were not.” 

                      

I may not agree with all her comments on this policy or that, but I know her values and steadfastness will be in the public interest. Additionally, Porter has a long and genuine history of consumer protection advocacy, which at its core is about helping working class and lower income people, and those who are at risk of being taken advantage of. 

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Ensuring that at least one Democrat makes it into the 'top two' for the November General Election is critically important to be sure. Most Democratic Primary voters will look at independent polling trends in May and possibly other viability considerations and decide strategically for whom to cast their vote. The race is still fluid and, as of mid-May, Katie Porter is in the mix. In fact, I just saw an independent poll that had her up at 13%. I am recommending your strong and thoughtful consideration of voting for KATIE PORTER to be our next Governor. IF you are deciding only between Secretary Becerra and Mr. Steyer, I respectfully recommend Steyer--for his good work on climate and energy matters. 

 

Lt. Governor – All four of the leading Democrats (Josh Fryday, Janelle Kellman, Fiona Ma, Michael Tubbs) are good people for this office, making this a difficult choice and another example as to why ranked choice voting in the Primary to determine the top two could be helpful. Fiona Ma, our current State Treasurer, is almost assuredly going to get into the top two; so, the question is, who will be her opponent in the November general election? Either Democrat Josh Fryday or Republican Gloria Romero are the most likely to advance to November against Fiona. For now, I plan to vote for environmental lawyer, climate resilience expert, nonprofit executive, and former Mayor Janelle Kellman. 

 

Secretary of State – SHIRLEY WEBER – Excellent incumbent Sec. of State and all-around first-rate elected leader with integrity. She’s done a good job running the multi-faceted offices of CA Secretary of State. She certainly deserves re-election. 

 

State Controller – MALIA COHEN – Malia has shown herself to be a determined, hard-working and honest public servant who clearly understands the job of the State Controller and has shown that she can be effective and get the job done. Malia has said that she will continue to insist upon accountability and transparency around reducing greenhouse gas pollution while we transition to a clean energy economy and protecting California’s natural resources for future generations. She has earned re-election to be sure. 

 

State Treasurer – Either Eleni Kounalakis or Tony Vasquez would be fine as our next State Treasurer. 

 

Attorney General – ROB BONTA – Rob is doing an excellent job as our A.G., and he will continue to do so when we vote to re-elect him. From reducing gun violence and fighting human trafficking to protecting reproductive rights and holding corporate polluters accountable, Rob is and will be the strong, strategic and progressive law enforcement official for our state. He also has shown time and time again that he is not afraid to sue the Trump Administration. 

 

CA Insurance Commissioner – BEN ALLEN – State Senator Ben Allen is a proven leader on consumer protection, environmental policy, and good government. Widely respected as a thoughtful and effective policymaker, Ben has built a strong record of crafting and negotiating solutions to some of California’s most complex policy challenges. He has worked directly to help wildfire survivors cut through frustrating insurance company and government bureaucracy, while championing stronger home-hardening and wildfire resilience standards that will reduce risk and help lower insurance costs over time.

    A dedicated public-interest advocate, Ben wants to deliver results for policyholders—not special interests. He does not accept contributions from insurance industry corporations, PACs, or executives. As Insurance Commissioner, Ben will focus on strengthening California’s insurance market while putting consumers first; protecting policyholders and improving transparency and accountability at the Department of Insurance; ensuring insurers promptly serve customers and pay claims fairly; expanding access to affordable coverage options; and advancing wildfire resilience strategies that make communities safer and more insurable. 

    Ben Allen’s campaign is endorsed by California Professional Firefighters, Senators Alex Padilla and Adam Schiff, Sierra Club California, California Democratic Renters Council, former Insurance Commissioner Dave Jones, and numerous union locals and Democratic clubs across the state. I enthusiastically endorse BEN ALLEN for California Insurance Commissioner. 

 

State Superintendent of Public Instruction – ANTHONY RENDON – Former Assembly Speaker and long-time children’s advocate Anthony Rendon has shown a long-standing commitment to working for the benefit of children. He attended a community college and eventually earned a Ph.D. from U.C. Riverside. Mr. Rendon was the executive director for many years of a child development nonprofit that supports early childhood education and provides social and medical services to children in need. He continues to actively support universal Pre-K, and one of his top goals is to build a cradle-to-career education system that prevents students from getting lost in the cracks. He will promote grade-level literacy, combat chronic absenteeism, and seek to fully fund our public education system. Only ANTHONY RENDON has the gravitas to use this office in a big way. He is endorsed by early childhood professionals, school board members, state lawmakers, and community college faculty up and down the state. 

 

Bd. of Equalization (#2) – SALLY LEIBER – This incumbent and long-time progressive public servant deserves re-election for one last term. 

 

CA State Senate:

    #2–Damon Connelly          #4–Jaron Brandon

    #8–Angelique Ashby          #10–David Cohen                          

   #14–Esmeralda Soria          #16–Manpreet Kaur                 

   #18–Steve Padilla           #20–Caroline Menjivar                       

   #22–Susan Rubio           #24–Dr. Sion Roy or Mike Newhouse 

   #26–Sara Hernandez         #28–Lola Smallwood-Cuevas               

   #38–Catherine Blakespear               

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CA State Assembly:

       #2–Chris Rogers                 #4–Cecelia Aguiar-Curry         #6–Maggy Krell

       #7–Amy Slavensk               #1–Lori Wilson                   #12–Eli Beckman

      #13–Rhodesia Ransom          #14–Buffy Wicks                  #15–Anamarie Avila Farias

      #16–Rebecca Bauer-Kahan  #17–Matt Haney                #18–Mia Bonta

      #19–Catherine Stefani           #20–Liz Ortega                    #21–Diane Papan

      #23–Marc Berman               #24–Alex Lee                      #25–Ash Kalra

      #26–Patrick Ahrens              #28–Gail Pellerin                  #29–Robert Rivas   

      #30–Dawn Addis                  #31–Sandra Celedon         #35–Ana Palacio    

      #36–Oscar Ortiz                #37–Gregg Hart                   #38–Steve Bennett

      #39–Juan Carrillo                 #40–Pilar Schiavo                #41–John Harabedian       

      #42–Deborah Klein Lopez   #43–Celeste Rodriguez        #44–Nick Shultz     

      #46–Jesse Gabriel                #49–Mike Fong                    #50–Robert Garcia

      #51–Rich Chavez Zbur          #52–Jessica Caloza               #54–Mark González

      #55–Isaac Bryan                 #56–Lisa Calderon                #57–Sade Elhawary         

      #58–Clarissa Cervantes         #60–Corey Jackson              #61–Tina McKinnor

      #62–José L. Solache jr.         #64–Blanca Pachaco             #6–Fatima Iqbal-Zubair   

      #66–Scott Houston            #67–Ali S. Taj or Mark Pulido   #69–Josh Lowenthal        

      #71–J.J. Galvez                   #73–Cottie Petrie-Norris        #76–Darshana Patel

      #77–Tasha Boerner Horvath   #78–Chris Ward                  #79–LaShae Sharp-Collins 

      #80–David Alvarez 

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U.S. House of Representatives (Stop Trump! Vote Democratic): 

      #1–Mike McGuire         #2–Jared Huffman         #3–Heidi Hall

      #4–Mike Thompson         #6–Richard Pan         #7–Doris Matsui   

      #8–John Garamendi         #9–Josh Harder         #10–Mark DeSaulnier

     #11–Scott Wiener         #12–Lateefah Simon         #14*-Melissa Hernandez

     #15–Kevin Mullin         #16–Sam Liccardo         #17–Ro Khanna    

     #18–Zoe Lofgren         #19–Jimmy Panetta         #22–Randy Villegas          

     #24–Salud Carbajal         #25–Raul Ruiz         #26–Chris Espinosa

     #27–George Whitesides         #28–Judy Chu         #29–Luz Rivas      

     #30–Laura Friedman         #31–Gil Cisneros         #32–Brad Sherman  

     #33–Pete Aguilar         #34–Jimmy Gomez         #35–Norma Torres

     #36–Ted Lieu         #37–Sydney Kamlager-Dove         #38–Hilda Solis     

     #39–Mark Takano         #40–Esther Kim Varet         #41–Hector De La Torre

     #42–Robert Garcia         #43–Maxine Waters         #44–Nanette Barragan

     #45–Derek Tran         #47–Dave Min         #48–Marni von Wilpert

     #49–Mike Levin         #50–Scott Peters         #51–Sara Jacobs   

     #52–Juan Vargas    

    * Special Election for C.D. 14 to finish out this year only: Sheriene Ridenour

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Alameda County Board of Supervisors: 

     District #3 – Lena Tam

     District #2 – Elisa Marquez

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Alameda County District Attorney – Ursula Jones-Dickson

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Alameda County Superintendent of Schools – Allyse Castro

 Alameda County Board of Education (Area 7) – Cheryl Cook-Kallio

 Alameda County Board of Education (Area 4) – Aisha Knowles

 Alameda County Board of Education (Area 1) – Ana Vasudeo

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Alameda County Superior Court Judge:

            Seat #13 – Cabral Bonner                         Seat #19 – Selia Warren

 

Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors: 

     District #1 – JOHN GIOIA

     District #4 – KEN CARLSON

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Contra Costa County Superintendent of Schools – no recommendation (two good candidates)

 

City of Richmond Mayor: Demnlus Johnson III or Ahmad Anderson

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City of Richmond City Council:

         District #2 – Cesar Zepeda

         District #3 – Doria Robinson

         District #4 – Soheila Bana

 

Santa Clara County District Attorney – Jeff Rosen

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San Mateo County Assessor-Recorder – Jim Irizarry

 

Los Angeles Mayor – KAREN BASS

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Los Angeles City Attorney – no recommendation

Los Angeles City Controller – Zach Sokoloff

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Los Angeles City Council:

  District  3–Barri Worth Girvan   District  5–Katy Yaroslavsky   District 15–Tim McOsker

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Los Angeles County Supervisor:

  #1 – Maria Elena Durazo 

  #3 – Lindsey Horvath

            

Fresno County Supervisor (#4) – REY LEÓN

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Sacramento County Supervisor (#1) – ERIC GUERRA

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San Diego County Supervisor (#5) – KYLE KRAHEL

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Sonoma County Supervisor (#4) – MELANIE BAGBY

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Yolo County Supervisor (#2) – LUCAS FRERICHS

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 LOCAL BALLOT MEASURES

 

Peralta Community College District Measure A – YES – Extension of existing parcel tax for providing vital support to our local community colleges!

 

Oakland Measure C – YES – Temporary Small Business Tax Relief

Oakland Measure D – YES – Modest logistical changes to Police/Fire Retirement System board

Oakland Measure E – YES – Parcel tax for vital city services

 

Contra Costa Community Colleges District Bond Measure G – YES – General obligation bond to pay for much-needed repairs, classroom upgrades, modern career training facility expansion. 

 

Contra Costa County Measure A – YES – Renews w/slight modifications the existing County Urban Limit boundaries to prevent new sprawl development, reduce future vehicle miles traveled (VMT), protect open space and agricultural lands, and discourage development in very high fire hazard severity zones. This is a no-brainer YES vote. 

Contra Costa County Measure B – YES – This is a 5/8¢ sales tax increase for five years to fund vital County services, including making up for reductions in expected federal funds. 

 

El Cerrito Measure C – YES – Libraries are the great equalizers in society. Please support El Cerrito’s Library! Funds necessary construction of a new modern library and operating expenses for ten years. 

 

Sonoma–Marin Area Rail Transit (SMART) District Measure B – YES – Support North Bay Light Rail.

 

San Francisco Bond Measure A – YES – Infrastructure Bond for seismic safety and emergency response. 

San Francisco Measure B – NO – Sets anti-democratic lifetime term limits for local elected offices. 

 

Santa Clara Valley Open Space Authority Measure D – YES – Parcel tax for open space preservation, clean waterways and wildfire prevention.

 

L.A. County Measure ER – YES – Temporary Half-cent sales tax increase for five years to fund a broad range of County health care services.

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