Salud Carbajal
Re-elect Congressional Representative Salud Carbajal to keep CA-24 on the right track.
About the Position
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The President of the United States is the head of the Executive branch of the federal government, and the Commander-in-Chief for all branches of the armed forces. A president has the power to make diplomatic, executive, and judicial appointments, and can sign into law or veto legislation. Presidential administrations are responsible for both foreign and domestic policy priorities. Presidents are limited to serving two four-year terms in office.
As of October 12th, Democratic challenger Vice President Joe Biden is leading Republican incumbent President Donald Trump in the polls by an average national margin of 9.2% (as of 10/24/20). Ten days before Election Day in 2016, Secretary Hillary Clinton held an average 4.9% polling lead over Donald Trump. Vice President Biden’s campaign has raised $952 million (as of 10/14/20) and is not funded by fossil fuel money. While his platform commits to establishing meaningful campaign finance reform, his 2020 campaign has received donations from special interest, corporate PAC, and lobbyist organizations. President Donald Trump has raised $601 million (as of 10/14/20) and has not taken any fundraising pledges. President Trump is endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police, Citizens United, Proud Boys, and a variety of law enforcement organizations.
Vice President Joseph R. Biden, Jr. is from Scranton, PA, and moved to Claymont, DE with his family when he was 10 years old. He has been a resident of Wilmington, DE, for most of his adult life. Vice President Biden came of age during the 1960s Civil Rights movement, which he cites as his inspiration for majoring in political science at the University of Delaware before earning his law degree at Syracuse University. His political career began in 1970 when he was elected to the New Castle County Council. Just two years later, at age 29, Vice President Biden ran for the Delaware Senate seat, and became one of the youngest people ever elected to the United States Senate. A few weeks after his election, his wife and infant daughter were killed in a car accident, and his two sons were badly injured. This personal tragedy shaped Vice President Biden’s public image as an empathetic leader and committed family man.
Vice President Biden spent 36 years representing Delaware in the Senate. He is often critiqued as being an unremarkable, status quo Democrat, and mid-career votes in favor of the Defense of Marriage Act, anti-drug legislation, and the Iraq War reaffirm that characterization. In 1991, Vice President Biden was the chairman of the Senate Judiciary Committee and presided over the Supreme Court confirmation hearings for Justice Clarence Thomas, who had been credibly accused of sexual harassment by a former colleague, Anita Hill. Vice President Biden’s mismanagement of the hearing resulted in a targeted and unfair character assassination of Anita Hill, and remains a reminder of his complicity in the patriarchal and racist systems on which American government is built.
Vice President Biden has also been directly accused of unwanted contact by several women over the course of his career. Most of the accusations came to light as part of the #MeToo movement, and related to invasions of personal space that included the touching of shoulders, caressing of hair, and close whispering. He has apologized publicly for this behavior, and stated an understanding of his responsibility to conform to more modern social norms in his interactions with women.
Vice President Biden launched two unsuccessful campaigns for President during his time in the Senate, in 1988 and 2008. After ending his 2008 campaign, he was chosen by President Barack Obama to join his ticket as Vice President, and they served together for two terms. As Vice President, he was responsible for managing the 2009 economic recovery, helping to expand health care through the Affordable Care Act, and acting as the administration’s liaison to the Senate. In 2015, his oldest son, Beau Biden, lost his battle with brain cancer at the age of 46. Since leaving office in 2016, Vice President Biden has dedicated substantial resources to cancer research.
Although he was rarely a trailblazer, Vice President Biden’s record does demonstrate a consistent liberal evolution on many issues throughout his career. After voting in favor of the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996, he was the first member of the Obama Administration to advocate for marriage equality in 2012. After presiding over the Anita Hill hearings in 1991, he was the architect of the Violence Against Women Act in 1994, and led the Obama Administration’s effort to reduce campus sexual assault through the It’s On Us campaign. After supporting the 1994 Crime Bill and aligning with the racist ‘tough on crime’ approach of that era, his current platform supports criminal justice reform, abolishing private prisons, and decriminalizing marijuana.
Vice President Biden has long been committed to building relationships with colleagues across the aisle, and bridging intra-party policy differences to establish compromise legislation for the American people. This commitment to civility resulted in Vice President Biden maintaining problematic working relationships with segregationist Senators James Eastland and Herman Talmadge during his time in the Senate. During the 2020 primary, Sen. Cory Booker and Sen. Kamala Harris, both Black candidates running for President, were outward in their critique of what they viewed as Vice President Biden’s defense of the reputations and decency of these segregationists. However, Vice President Biden has not apologized for his continued defense of collaborating with these segregationist colleagues, and maintains broad support in the Black community.
Vice President Biden’s commitment to compromise has extended to the left in recent months, and updates to his campaign platform are reflective of his interest in connecting with progressive voters. While he was a more moderate candidate in the larger 2020 field, he has been conscientious about including the popular perspectives of his progressive rivals, including Sen. Elizabeth Warren and Sen. Bernie Sanders, in his platform. He has recently issued proposals that include middle-class tax cuts, lowering Medicare eligibility to age 60, new benchmarks for greenhouse gas emission limits, free college tuition for families making less than $125,000 annually, and clean energy investments. While these proposals do not embrace the full scope of progressive ideals, they are an important indicator of his capacity for collaboration.
The Biden/Harris campaign is endorsed by many progressive groups in the country. While the Biden/Harris platform is the most progressive platform ever adopted by a major party ticket, we encourage progressive advocates to continue to hold their administration accountable, and work to encourage progressive legislation throughout the country. With consideration to their records in public service, we unequivocally recommend Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
The Vice President is the second-highest office in the Executive branch of the federal government. The officeholder is the first in the line of succession to the presidency and holds legislative authority as the president of the Senate. In this role, the Vice President presides over Senate deliberations and can cast a tie-breaking vote in close decisions. A Vice Presidential candidate is selected directly by a Presidential nominee who has won the democratic primary process. Vice Presidential candidates are elected indirectly as a part of the Presidential ticket in the general election. A Vice President serves four year terms, and there is no term limit for this position.
As of October 12th, Democratic challenger Vice President Joe Biden is leading Republican incumbent President Donald Trump in the polls by an average national margin of 9.2% (as of 10/24/20). Ten days before Election Day in 2016, Secretary Hillary Clinton held an average 4.9% polling lead over Donald Trump. Vice President Biden’s campaign has raised $952 million (as of 10/14/20) and is not funded by fossil fuel money. While his platform commits to establishing meaningful campaign finance reform, his 2020 campaign has received donations from special interest, corporate PAC, and lobbyist organizations. President Donald Trump has raised $601 million (as of 10/14/20) and has not taken any fundraising pledges. President Trump is endorsed by the Fraternal Order of Police, Citizens United, Proud Boys, and a variety of law enforcement organizations.
Senator Kamala Harris grew up in Berkeley, CA, and now resides in Los Angeles. She is the daughter of a Jamiacan father and an Indian mother who both emigrated to the Bay Area in the 1960s, and established themselves as activists in the Civil Rights movement in Oakland. Sen. Harris’ interest in justice and equal rights was instilled at a young age when she participated in civil rights protests in Oakland alongside her activist parents, and was further shaped when she was included in the second class of students to be bussed as part of Berkley’s efforts toward school integration. She attended Howard University, one of America’s HBCU institutions, for undergraduate studies, and completed her law degree at the University of California, Hastings.
After working for the Alameda County District Attorney’s Office for 8 years, Sen. Harris transitioned to a role as a prosecutor in the San Francisco District Attorney’s office. Sen. Harris’ political career began in 2003 when she won her bid to become District Attorney of the City and County of San Francisco. She served two terms in San Francisco before being elected as the Attorney General for the state of California in 2010. She was the first woman and the first person of color to hold this seat. In representing the needs and interests of Californians in each of these roles, Sen. Harris’ record was both progressive for the time and complicated by her moderate approach to policing and criminal justice. She has been criticized for failing to institute comprehensive police accountability measures, for not establishing meaningful prison reform, and for taking a hands-off approach to cases related to police misconduct. However, her lenient approach to policing was often punctuated by decidedly progressive support for social justice issues, including the establishment of an education and workforce reentry program designed to diminish recidivism. Similarly, as Attorney General, she declined to defend Proposition 8, a proposition to make same-sex marriage illegal in California, in court and officiated the first wedding in the state when marriage equality was restored in 2013.
In 2016, Sen. Harris became the first woman of color elected to represent California in the United States Senate. Sen. Harris has sponsored legislation on climate and environmental protections, rental and housing protections, women’s health, and pandemic relief. She was also an original cosponsor of the progressive Green New Deal authored by Rep. Alexandria Ocasio Cortez and Sen. Ed Markey. Sen. Harris sits on four committees: Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs, Budget, Judiciary, and Select Committee on Intelligence. She has been an outspoken opponent of the Trump Administration, and has deftly used her position on the Senate Judiciary Committee to question judicial nominees and interrogate the hypocrisy of her Republican colleagues.
Sen. Harris formally launched her campaign for President in January 2019 at an Oakland rally with an estimated attendance of 20,000 supporters. As a candidate, she pushed forward a platform that opposed Medicare for All, supported expansion of the Affordable Care Act, sought to expand tax benefits for middle and low-income families, supported citizenship for Dreamers, and favored a ban on assault weapons. She ended her campaign in December 2019, and was tapped to join Vice President Joe Biden’s ticket ahead of the Democratic National Convention in August 2020.
The Biden/Harris campaign is endorsed by many progressive groups in the country. While the Biden/Harris platform is the most progressive platform ever adopted by a major party ticket, we encourage progressive advocates to continue to hold their administration accountable, and work to encourage progressive legislation throughout the country. With consideration to their records in public service, we unequivocally recommend Joe Biden and Kamala Harris as the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
Depending on where you live, you may have one of the below congressional districts on your ballot.
About the Position
The United States is divided into 435 congressional districts, each with a population of about 710,000 individuals. Each district elects a representative to the House of Representatives for a two-year term. California has 53 congressional representatives. There is no term limit for this position.
About the District
California’s 24th Congressional District includes parts of Santa Barbara, San Luis Obispo, and Ventura Counties. Republicans held this district until 2012, when Lois Capps won and flipped CA-24 from red to blue. In recent federal and state elections, this district leaned blue by providing both Hillary Clinton and Gavin Newsom with 56 percent of the vote in their respective races.
About the Race
In the primary, Democrat Incumbent Representative Salud Carbajal led Republican challenger Andy Caldwell by a margin of 19.6 percent. Rep. Carbajal has received donations from several corporate PACs, including Google NetPAC, General Motors Company, and Amazon, but is also funded by End Citizens United PAC. He has accepted donations from Exelon Corporation PAC and Edison International PAC, and from defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corporation Employees’ PAC. Opponent Caldwell’s campaign has not committed to refusing police and corporate PAC money, and is funded by fossil fuel money through CIPAC Federal PAC. Caldwell’s campaign also submitted FEC disclosures that included several miscategorized donations and individual donations that exceeded the allowable limit.
About the Candidate
Rep. Carbajal, a veteran of the United States Marine Corp, lives in the Santa Barbara area. According to campaign materials, Rep. Carbajal is running for re-election to continue to advocate for the needs of his Central Coast community through legislation related to housing, environmental protections, and workforce-development programs.
Rep. Carbajal’s priorities for CA-24 this year have included renewing the National Defense Reauthorization Act and securing veteran support services, Central Coast land, water, and climate protections, and improving infrastructure investment.
He currently sits on three committees: Agriculture (ranks 21st), Armed Services (ranks 13th), and Transportation and Infrastructure (as vice chair). This year, Rep. Carbajal has voted 100 percent of the time with Nancy Pelosi and 94 percent of the time with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. In contrast to Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Carbajal voted in favor of passing the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act and the National Defense Authorization Act, and making appropriations to the Department of the Interior, the environment, and related agencies. Rep. Carbajal has sponsored 24 bills about political disclosure, land and coastal protections, veterans’ supports, and infrastructure. Of these bills, the majority are in committee or have been referred to committee.
Rep. Carbajal is endorsed by many progressive groups in the district, including Indivisible, Planned Parenthood Action Fund, and California League of Conservation Voters. He is also endorsed by the Peace Officers Research Association of California, which has advocated against the elimination of police money in District Attorney races. Despite his questionable campaign financing record, Rep. Carbajal has shown a strong commitment to his progressive values, including making the introduction of the California Clean Coast Act his first legislative action in Congress. According to our analysis, Rep. Carbajal is the strongest choice for representative leadership in office.
About the Position
The United States is divided into 435 congressional districts, each with a population of about 710,000 individuals. Each district elects a representative to the House of Representatives for a two-year term. California has 53 congressional representatives. There is no term limit for this position.
California's 25th Congressional District includes parts of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. Republicans held this district from 1992 to 2018, when Katie Hill won and flipped CA-25 from red to blue in the historic 2018 midterm elections. Rep. Hill resigned mid-term in 2019, resulting in a low-turnout special election that was won by Republican Mike Garcia. A Democratic victory in this district in November will help retain control of the House of Representatives and advance a progressive agenda.
In the primary, Democratic challenger Christy Smith led Republican incumbent Mike Garcia by a margin of 7.8 percent. Smith has not pledged to refuse fossil fuel or police money, but has pledged that her campaign will not take corporate PAC money. She has received financial support from a variety of progressive organization PACs, including End Citizens United, Equality California, EMILY’s List, and Clean. Smith has also pledged not to take donations from special interests, Washington lobbyists, health insurance companies, or big drug companies. In contrast, Rep. Garcia, who spent 10 years working for a defense contractor, has numerous problematic campaign funders, including Lockheed Martin Corporation, and the Lincoln Club of Orange County. Garcia has disagreed with Speaker Pelosi on 64 percent of votes since he joined the House.
Christy Smith, an education professional and member of the State Assembly, has lived in Santa Clarita for the last 40 years. According to campaign materials, Assemblywoman Smith is running for office to invest in public education by providing teachers with a living wage, reducing class sizes, making college more affordable, and improving technical training programs.
Assemblywoman Smith wants to reinstate state and local tax deductions, which would lower taxes for families by up to $12,000 a year. She supports ending Citizens United and refuses donations from the gun lobby, Big Tobacco, and other federal corporate PACs. In Congress, Assemblywoman Smith would support a public health-care option to build on the Affordable Care Act, lowering the price of prescriptions, and protecting reproductive health-care rights and Planned Parenthood funding. She also supports strong climate action, gun safety, protecting our seniors retirement security, human rights, and immigration reform, and she serves as chair of the Joint Legislative Committee on Emergency Management.
Assemblywoman Smith currently represents portions of this district as a member of the California State Assembly. As is common in historically Republican districts like hers, she scored an unimpressive 48 out of 100 on Courage Score, our annual analysis of legislators’ progressive voting records. This rating is primarily owed to no votes on AB 362, which allows the state to contract operators at safe-injection sites in the Bay Area, and AB 1215, which bans biometric surveillance and facial-recognition technology from use in police body cameras for three years. She also had problematic votes on legislation related to affordable housing, economic justice, racial justice, and political accountability. However, she has also worked to protect homeowners against excessive property taxation, and to mandate that revenue from the gas tax be spent solely on transportation infrastructure projects. Based on our analysis, Assemblywoman Smith’s votes move her district in a progressive direction.
Christy Smith is endorsed by many progressive groups in the district. Former President Obama also endorsed her in this race, as well as many other current U.S. officials from across the country. According to our analysis, Rep. Christy Smith is the strongest choice for equitable leadership in office.
The United States is divided into 435 congressional districts, each with a population of about 710,000 individuals.
About the Position
The United States is divided into 435 congressional districts, each with a population of about 710,000 individuals. Each district elects a representative to the House of Representatives for a two-year term. California has 53 congressional representatives. There is no term limit for this position.
About the District
California’s 26th Congressional District includes parts of Ventura County. Republicans held this district from 2002 to 2012, when Julia Brownley won and flipped CA-26 from red to blue. This district has voted Democratic in recent state and federal elections, voting for Gavin Newsom by a 15 percent margin in 2018, and for Hillary Clinton by a 22 percent margin in 2016.
About the Race
In the primary, Democrat Incumbent Representative Julia Brownley led Republican challenger Ronda Baldwin-Kennedy by a margin of 20.2 percent. As of July 2020, Baldwin-Kennedy’s campaign has raised $160,000, and Rep. Brownley’s campaign has raised over $1.3 million. Rep. Brownley’s campaign has received donations from many corporate PACs, including Cerner Corporation, Procter & Gamble, and Google. Her campaign has also received donations from Edison International, and from defense contractor Lockheed Martin Corporation Employees’ PAC. Ventura County is home to several large aerospace technology companies, including Northrop Grumman, and Rep. Brownley has supported their continued investment in the region. As a result, she has received donations from nearly every major airline company in the country, and a variety of airline-adjacent professional organizations and PACs. Baldwin-Kennedy’s campaign has not committed to refusing police money, corporate money, or fossil fuel money. She is primarily funded by individual donors, and has made personal contributions to her campaign that total 40 percent of her overall contributions as of August 2020.
About the Candidate
Rep. Brownley, a former State Assemblymember, lives in Thousand Oaks, CA. According to campaign materials, Rep. Brownley is running for re-election to continue her advocacy for working families and support for veteran services.
Rep. Brownley’s priorities for CA-26 this year have included funding for Veterans Treatment Courts, making homeownership accessible through the Mortgage Insurance Tax Deduction Act and the Mortgage Debt Tax Forgiveness Act, and helping disabled veterans build their families through IVF and adoption. She currently sits on three committees: Veteran’s Affairs (ranks 2nd), Transportation and Infrastructure (ranks 16th), and Climate Crisis (ranks 4th). This year, Rep. Brownley has voted 100 percent of the time with Nancy Pelosi and 94 percent of the time with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. In contrast to Rep. Ocasio-Cortez, Rep. Brownley has voted in favor of the motion to concur in the Senate Amendment on the DHS Cyber Hunt and Incident Response Teams Act, the passage of the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement Implementation Act, and the conference report for the National Defense Authorization Act for 2020. Rep. Brownley has sponsored 54 bills about veteran supports and transportation infrastructure. Of those 54, three have been received in the Senate, and the rest are either in committee or have been referred to committee.
Rep. Brownley is endorsed by some progressive groups in the district, but is also endorsed by the Peace Officers Research Association of California. However, the threat of Republican challenger Baldwin-Kennedy’s conservative policies on education and border control greatly outweigh Rep. Brownley’s moderate voting record on issues like expanding paid family leave for federal workers and discriminating against job applicants with a criminal history. According to our analysis, Rep. Brownley is the strongest choice for representative leadership in office.
About the Position
The United States is divided into 435 congressional districts, each with a population of about 710,000 individuals. Each district elects a representative to the House of Representatives for a two-year term. California has 53 congressional representatives. There is no term limit for this position.
California's 30th Congressional District includes parts of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. Democrats typically hold this district, and the incumbent Rep. Sherman has held this seat since 2012. The most recent election results show 69.1 percent of AD-30 voted for Clinton for president in 2016, and 69.9 percent of the district voted for Newsom for governor in 2018.
In the primary, Democrat incumbent Representative Sherman led Republican challenger Mark Reed by a margin of 35.4 percent. Neither campaign has pledged to refuse corporate PAC, fossil fuel, or police money. Sherman’s campaign is funded by banks, fossil fuel money, and Pro-Israel America PAC. Reed’s campaign has not made any FEC filings.
Representative Brad Sherman was born and raised in Southern California and lives in Sherman Oaks, a neighborhood in the San Fernando Valley. He is the incumbent and is currently serving his 12th term in Congress. According to campaign materials, he is running for re-election to continue providing strong progressive leadership in Congress for the labor movement, human rights, animal rights, and the environment.
As a congressional representative, Rep. Sherman has provided leadership in areas that include fiscal policy and foreign relations, and was among the first legislators to call for impeachment against the president in 2017 on the grounds of obstruction of justice. Prior to his election to Congress, he served on the California State Board of Equalization from 1991 to 1996. It is, however, important to note that Rep. Sherman has been called out by former aides for enabling a generally toxic workplace atmosphere, although he has not been accused of any specific abusive acts in or outside the workplace. In addition, Rep. Sherman spoke in 2017 at an event hosted by MeK (Mojahedin-e Khalq), an Iranian group with ties to Rudy Giuliani and John Bolton, and which advocates for U.S. sanctions on and bombing of Iran. His support of the organization incited criticism among anti-war groups and his constituents, many of whom are Iranian-American.
Rep. Sherman’s priorities for CA-30 this year have included fixing the economy, standing up to Wall Street, and protecting Social Security and Medicare. He currently sits on three committees and is a senior member of the House Foreign Affairs Committee and the House Financial Services Committee. This year, Rep. Sherman has voted 100 percent of the time with Nancy Pelosi and 95 percent of the time with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez. While Rep. Ocasio-Cortez voted against the National Defense Authorization Act, Sherman voted for it. Rep. Sherman has co-sponsored three bills about protecting the USPS, increasing accountability of police misconduct, and limiting American engagement in hostilities in or against Iran this year, of which all have successfully passed.
Rep. Sherman is endorsed by many progressive groups in the district. He is also endorsed by Democrats for Israel Los Angeles, which pressured the California Democratic Party to vote down an amendment to the party platform that would have called for the right of return for Palestinians and resulted in the elimination of references to a two-state solution. However, the threat of the potential policies of his Republican challenger, Reed, who is pro-life, denies climate change, and opposes same-sex marriage, outweighs Sherman’s issues described here. According to our analysis, Rep. Sherman is the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
The United States is divided into 435 congressional districts, each with a population of about 710,000 individuals.
Depending on where you live, you may have one of the below State Assembly races on your ballot.
State Assembly Members form part of the California State Legislature, and work alongside the governor to establish laws and a state budget. They hold the power to pass bills that affect public policy, set state spending levels, raise and lower taxes, and uphold or override the governor’s vetoes. The California State Assembly has 80 districts. Each represents a population of at least 465,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Assembly for a two-year term. Every two years, all 80 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to three two-year terms (six years) in the Assembly. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the State Senate and Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 61 seats in the California State Assembly, while Republicans hold 17 seats. One seat is held by an Independent, and one seat is currently vacant.
California's 37th Assembly District includes parts of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. Democrats typically hold this district. The most recent election results show 64.3 percent of AD-37 voted for Clinton for president in 2016, and 64.6 percent of the district voted for Newsom for governor in 2018.
In the primary, Democrat challenger Steve Bennett trailed Republican candidate Charles Cole by a margin of 2.9 percent. Neither candidate has pledged to refuse to accept corporate PAC, fossil fuel, or police money. Bennett’s campaign has raised $376,949.78, mostly from individuals and some labor groups. Cole has raised $10,159.18, mostly from individuals.
Steve Bennett, who is completing his fifth term as a Ventura County supervisor, has been a public servant for more than 20 years. He taught high school economics and American history, and then worked as a Ventura City Councilmember before being elected to the Ventura Board of Supervisors. According to campaign materials, he is running for election to stand up to powerful special interests to protect constituents’ quality of life, address climate change, and tackle homelessness.
Bennet’s political career began in 1995, when he co-authored and fought for the SOAR (Save Open Space and Agricultural Resources) initiatives in Ventura County. It was the first move in the county to protect agricultural and open-space lands from development by requiring a vote of the people before those areas could be rezoned.
Bennett is 1st District supervisor in Ventura County, where he has committed to resisting special interests in politics, supporting Ventura County’s vulnerable citizens, and protecting rural lands from development. As supervisor, he authored a bill that limited special-interest contributions to any campaign for local office to $750. He also worked on affordable housing, and initiated a number of programs to help farmworkers and seniors.
Bennett is endorsed by a strong majority of local progressive groups and leaders in the district. Republican opponent Cole is endorsed by GOP groups and a gun store. In addition, he has virtually no government experience and does not believe in climate change, making him a poor choice for the district. According to our analysis, Steve Bennett is the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
State Assembly Members form part of the California State Legislature, and work alongside the governor to establish laws and a state budget. They hold the power to pass bills that affect public policy, set state spending levels, raise and lower taxes, and uphold or override the governor’s vetoes. The California State Assembly has 80 districts. Each represents a population of at least 465,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Assembly for a two-year term. Every two years, all 80 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to three two-year terms (six years) in the Assembly. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the State Senate and Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 61 seats in the California State Assembly, while Republicans hold 17 seats. One seat is held by an Independent, and one seat is currently vacant.
California's 37th Assembly District includes parts of Santa Barbara and Ventura Counties. Democrats typically hold this district. The most recent election results show 64.3 percent of AD-37 voted for Clinton for president in 2016, and 64.6 percent of the district voted for Newsom for governor in 2018.
In the primary, Democrat challenger Steve Bennett trailed Republican candidate Charles Cole by a margin of 2.9 percent. Neither candidate has pledged to refuse to accept corporate PAC, fossil fuel, or police money. Bennett’s campaign has raised $376,949.78, mostly from individuals and some labor groups. Cole has raised $10,159.18, mostly from individuals.
Steve Bennett, who is completing his fifth term as a Ventura County supervisor, has been a public servant for more than 20 years. He taught high school economics and American history, and then worked as a Ventura City Councilmember before being elected to the Ventura Board of Supervisors. According to campaign materials, he is running for election to stand up to powerful special interests to protect constituents’ quality of life, address climate change, and tackle homelessness.
Bennet’s political career began in 1995, when he co-authored and fought for the SOAR (Save Open Space and Agricultural Resources) initiatives in Ventura County. It was the first move in the county to protect agricultural and open-space lands from development by requiring a vote of the people before those areas could be rezoned.
Bennett is 1st District supervisor in Ventura County, where he has committed to resisting special interests in politics, supporting Ventura County’s vulnerable citizens, and protecting rural lands from development. As supervisor, he authored a bill that limited special-interest contributions to any campaign for local office to $750. He also worked on affordable housing, and initiated a number of programs to help farmworkers and seniors.
Bennett is endorsed by a strong majority of local progressive groups and leaders in the district. Republican opponent Cole is endorsed by GOP groups and a gun store. In addition, he has virtually no government experience and does not believe in climate change, making him a poor choice for the district. According to our analysis, Steve Bennett is the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
State Assembly Members form part of the California State Legislature, and work alongside the governor to establish laws and a state budget. They hold the power to pass bills that affect public policy, set state spending levels, raise and lower taxes, and uphold or override the governor’s vetoes. The California State Assembly has 80 districts. Each represents a population of at least 465,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Assembly for a four-year term. Every two years, all 80 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to three two-year terms (six years) in the Assembly. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the State Senate and Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 61 seats in the California State Assembly, while Republicans hold 17 seats. One seat is held by an Independent, and one seat is currently vacant.
California's 35th Assembly District includes parts of Santa Barbara County and all of San Luis Obispo County. The district has been held by Republicans and Democrats over the years, but has been red since 2012. Most recent election results show AD-35 voted for Clinton for president in 2016 and Cox for governor in 2018.
In the primary, Republican challenger Suzette Martinez Valladares led Republican challenger Lucie Lapointe Volotzky by a margin of 14.2 percent. Neither campaign has pledged to refuse corporate PAC, fossil fuel, or police money. Valladares’s campaign has raised $237,213.00, including contributions from corporate and police interest groups. Volotzky has raised much less, with $7,084.00, mostly from individuals.
Neither candidate has served in office. Valladares’s priorities for this year, other than espousing broadly Republican values, are difficult to ascertain, given the lack of a developed platform. Due to a lack of campaign materials, it is also not possible to ascertain Volotzky’s priorities for the district. Based on their campaign materials, both candidates are likely to provide no progressive leadership in office.
Keep reading for progressive recommendations in other key races and on ballot measures where your vote can make a critical difference.
State Assembly Members form part of the California State Legislature, and work alongside the governor to establish laws and a state budget. They hold the power to pass bills that affect public policy, set state spending levels, raise and lower taxes, and uphold or override the governor’s vetoes. The California State Assembly has 80 districts. Each represents a population of at least 465,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Assembly for a four-year term. Every two years, all 80 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to three two-year terms (six years) in the Assembly. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the State Senate and Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 61 seats in the California State Assembly, while Republicans hold 17 seats. One seat is held by an Independent, and one seat is currently vacant.
California's 44th Assembly District includes parts of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. Democrats typically hold this district, although a Republican held this seat from 2010 to 2014. The most recent election results show AD-44 voted for Clinton for president in 2016 and Newsom for governor in 2018.
In the primary, Democrat incumbent Representative Irwin led Republican challenger Rob McCoy by a margin of 54.9 percent. Irwin’s campaign has raised $491,633.36. The campaign has not committed to refusing corporate PAC, fossil fuel, or police money, and is funded by police and corporate money, including from Monsanto, Facebook, and Johnson & Johnson. McCoy’s campaign has not made any FEC filings.
Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin currently resides in Thousand Oaks, CA. She is the incumbent, having served in this position since 2014. According to campaign materials, she is running to keep her seat to continue to create jobs, ensure that her community is safe, and advocate for fiscally responsible governance.
Assemblymember Irwin’s priorities for AD-44 this year include job creation. She has sponsored and co-sponsored two bills about gun violence prevention. Irwin scores a Lifetime Courage Score of 46 out of 100 on Courage Score, our annual analysis of legislators’ progressive voting records. Based on our Courage Score analysis, Rep. Irwin has supported some progressive bills that made it to a vote. That said, she has voted against key progressive bills on criminal-justice reform, labor rights, and increasing access to affordable housing.
Prior to her election to the State Assembly, Rep. Irwin served as mayor of Thousand Oaks. In her first term as assemblymember, she advanced legislation to increase funding for education and mental-health services, expand consumer protections, and address sexual harassment in the workplace. Irwin currently serves as chair of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee and the Cybersecurity Select Committee, and sits on three additional committees.
Rep. Irwin is endorsed by many progressive groups in the district. She is also endorsed by the California Correctional Peace Officers Association. However, the threat of Republican challenger and strong Trump supporter McCoy’s potential policies--especially as a pastor who made the news recently by defying a judge’s orders to stop in-person church services during the pandemic--greatly outweighs Irwin’s moderate voting record. According to our analysis, Rep. Irwin is the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
State Assembly Members form part of the California State Legislature, and work alongside the governor to establish laws and a state budget. They hold the power to pass bills that affect public policy, set state spending levels, raise and lower taxes, and uphold or override the governor’s vetoes. The California State Assembly has 80 districts. Each represents a population of at least 465,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Assembly for a four-year term. Every two years, all 80 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to three two-year terms (six years) in the Assembly. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the State Senate and Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 61 seats in the California State Assembly, while Republicans hold 17 seats. One seat is held by an Independent, and one seat is currently vacant.
California's 44th Assembly District includes parts of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. Democrats typically hold this district, although a Republican held this seat from 2010 to 2014. The most recent election results show AD-44 voted for Clinton for president in 2016 and Newsom for governor in 2018.
In the primary, Democrat incumbent Representative Irwin led Republican challenger Rob McCoy by a margin of 54.9 percent. Irwin’s campaign has raised $491,633.36. The campaign has not committed to refusing corporate PAC, fossil fuel, or police money, and is funded by police and corporate money, including from Monsanto, Facebook, and Johnson & Johnson. McCoy’s campaign has not made any FEC filings.
Assemblymember Jacqui Irwin currently resides in Thousand Oaks, CA. She is the incumbent, having served in this position since 2014. According to campaign materials, she is running to keep her seat to continue to create jobs, ensure that her community is safe, and advocate for fiscally responsible governance.
Assemblymember Irwin’s priorities for AD-44 this year include job creation. She has sponsored and co-sponsored two bills about gun violence prevention. Irwin scores a Lifetime Courage Score of 46 out of 100 on Courage Score, our annual analysis of legislators’ progressive voting records. Based on our Courage Score analysis, Rep. Irwin has supported some progressive bills that made it to a vote. That said, she has voted against key progressive bills on criminal-justice reform, labor rights, and increasing access to affordable housing.
Prior to her election to the State Assembly, Rep. Irwin served as mayor of Thousand Oaks. In her first term as assemblymember, she advanced legislation to increase funding for education and mental-health services, expand consumer protections, and address sexual harassment in the workplace. Irwin currently serves as chair of the Veterans’ Affairs Committee and the Cybersecurity Select Committee, and sits on three additional committees.
Rep. Irwin is endorsed by many progressive groups in the district. She is also endorsed by the California Correctional Peace Officers Association. However, the threat of Republican challenger and strong Trump supporter McCoy’s potential policies--especially as a pastor who made the news recently by defying a judge’s orders to stop in-person church services during the pandemic--greatly outweighs Irwin’s moderate voting record. According to our analysis, Rep. Irwin is the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
State Assembly Members form part of the California State Legislature, and work alongside the governor to establish laws and a state budget. They hold the power to pass bills that affect public policy, set state spending levels, raise and lower taxes, and uphold or override the governor’s vetoes. The California State Assembly has 80 districts. Each represents a population of at least 465,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Assembly for a two-year term. Every two years, all 80 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to three two-year terms (six years) in the Assembly. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the State Senate and Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 61 seats in the California State Assembly, while Republicans hold 17 seats. One seat is held by an Independent, and one seat is currently vacant.
California's 45th Assembly District includes parts of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. Democrats typically hold this district. The most recent election results show 67.4 percent of AD-45 voted for Clinton for president in 2016, and 67.3 percent of the district voted for Newsom for governor in 2018.
In the primary, Democrat incumbent Representative Jesse Gabriel led Republican challenger Jeffi Girgenti by a margin of 97.6 percent. Gabriel’s campaign has raised $706,389.49. Gabriel has pledged to refuse fossil fuel money, but has yet to pledge to refuse corporate PAC and police money. Gabriel’s campaign is funded mostly by labor groups and individuals, but has also accepted money from corporations like Facebook, Comcast Corporation, and AT&T. Opponent Girgenti’s campaign has not made any campaign finance filings.
Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel grew up in the Oak Park community in Ventura County and currently lives in the San Fernando Valley. He is the incumbent, having served as assemblymember for the 45th District in the State Assembly since 2018, where he was appointed by Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendón to serve in the Assembly Leadership as assistant majority whip. According to campaign materials, he is running for re-election to continue to advance the legislative priorities of the Democratic Caucus in the State Assembly.
Assemblymember Gabriel is an advocate for stronger gun violence prevention legislation, protection against hate crimes, and bringing jobs and innovation to the San Fernando Valley. That said, he has voted against key progressive bills on such issues as criminal-justice reform and worker protections.
Assemblymember Gabriel currently sits on six committees, including the Standing Committee on Housing and Community Development. Rep. Gabriel has sponsored a bill about gun control this year, which passed into law. He scores a lifetime score of 74 out of 100 on Courage Score, our annual analysis of legislators’ progressive voting records.
Prior to his election to the State Assembly, he worked as a constitutional rights and general litigation attorney. In this role, he sued the Trump administration to protect Dreamers who were promised protection under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
Rep. Gabriel is endorsed by many progressive groups in the district. According to our analysis, Rep. Gabriel is the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
State Assembly Members form part of the California State Legislature, and work alongside the governor to establish laws and a state budget. They hold the power to pass bills that affect public policy, set state spending levels, raise and lower taxes, and uphold or override the governor’s vetoes. The California State Assembly has 80 districts. Each represents a population of at least 465,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Assembly for a two-year term. Every two years, all 80 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to three two-year terms (six years) in the Assembly. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the State Senate and Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 61 seats in the California State Assembly, while Republicans hold 17 seats. One seat is held by an Independent, and one seat is currently vacant.
California's 45th Assembly District includes parts of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. Democrats typically hold this district. The most recent election results show 67.4 percent of AD-45 voted for Clinton for president in 2016, and 67.3 percent of the district voted for Newsom for governor in 2018.
In the primary, Democrat incumbent Representative Jesse Gabriel led Republican challenger Jeffi Girgenti by a margin of 97.6 percent. Gabriel’s campaign has raised $706,389.49. Gabriel has pledged to refuse fossil fuel money, but has yet to pledge to refuse corporate PAC and police money. Gabriel’s campaign is funded mostly by labor groups and individuals, but has also accepted money from corporations like Facebook, Comcast Corporation, and AT&T. Opponent Girgenti’s campaign has not made any campaign finance filings.
Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel grew up in the Oak Park community in Ventura County and currently lives in the San Fernando Valley. He is the incumbent, having served as assemblymember for the 45th District in the State Assembly since 2018, where he was appointed by Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendón to serve in the Assembly Leadership as assistant majority whip. According to campaign materials, he is running for re-election to continue to advance the legislative priorities of the Democratic Caucus in the State Assembly.
Assemblymember Gabriel is an advocate for stronger gun violence prevention legislation, protection against hate crimes, and bringing jobs and innovation to the San Fernando Valley. That said, he has voted against key progressive bills on such issues as criminal-justice reform and worker protections.
Assemblymember Gabriel currently sits on six committees, including the Standing Committee on Housing and Community Development. Rep. Gabriel has sponsored a bill about gun control this year, which passed into law. He scores a lifetime score of 74 out of 100 on Courage Score, our annual analysis of legislators’ progressive voting records.
Prior to his election to the State Assembly, he worked as a constitutional rights and general litigation attorney. In this role, he sued the Trump administration to protect Dreamers who were promised protection under the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program.
Rep. Gabriel is endorsed by many progressive groups in the district. According to our analysis, Rep. Gabriel is the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
Depending on where you live, you may have one of the below State Senate races on your ballot.
State senators represent and advocate for the needs of their district at the California State Capitol. They are responsible for creating legislation that addresses issues within their district, as well as voting and debating on preexisting laws. The California State Senate has 40 congressional districts. Each represents a population of about 930,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Senate for a four-year term. Every two years, half of the Senate's 40 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to two four-year terms (eight years) in the Senate. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the State Senate and Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 29 seats in the California State Senate, while Republicans hold 11 seats.
California's 19th Senate District includes all of Santa Barbara County and parts of Ventura County. Democrats typically hold this district. Most recent election results show SD-19 voted for Clinton for president in 2016 and Newsom for governor in 2018.
In the primary, Democrat candidate Monique Limón led Republican challenger Gary Michaels by a margin of 28.1 percent. Limón’s campaign has raised $306,923.02, and her campaign has not committed to refusing corporate PAC or fossil fuel money, and has accepted corporate and police money. Michaels’s campaign has not made any FEC filings.
Monique Limón is a lifelong resident of Santa Barbara. According to campaign materials, she is running for State Senate because she understands the values of the region and will use her public service experience to advocate for environmental protection, educational reforms, and improved health-care access.
Limón is a member of the California State Assembly, where she uses her understanding of her community to establish meaningful legislation to positively affect educational outcomes and environmental protections. She was chair of the Assembly Select Committee on Natural Disaster Response, Recovery, and Rebuilding, and worked to improve emergency communication and fire prevention. Prior to serving in the Assembly, Limón served two terms on the Santa Barbara Unified School Board, and was assistant director for the McNair Scholars program at UCSB.
Limón’s priorities for SD-19 this year include health, women, consumer protection, and natural disasters. As an assemblymember this year, Limón has sponsored or cosponsored three bills about consumer protection, expanding paid family leave, and increasing the penalty for oil spills. She scores 90 out of 100 on Courage Score, our annual analysis of legislators’ progressive voting records. Based on our Courage Score analysis, Limón has supported the most progressive bills that made it to a vote. That said, she has not supported legislation to continue oversight of telecommunications companies.
Limón is endorsed by a majority of progressive groups in the district. According to our analysis, Monique Limón is the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
State senators represent and advocate for the needs of their district at the California State Capitol.
State senators represent and advocate for the needs of their district at the California State Capitol. They are responsible for creating legislation that addresses issues within their district, as well as voting and debating on preexisting laws. The California State Senate has 40 congressional districts. Each represents a population of about 930,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Senate for a four-year term. Every two years, half of the Senate's 40 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to two four-year terms (eight years) in the Senate. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the State Senate and Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 29 seats in the California State Senate, while Republicans hold 11 seats.
California's 27th Senate District includes parts of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. Democrats typically hold this district. The most recent election results show SD-27 voted for Hillary Clinton for president in 2016 and Gavin Newsom for governor in 2018.
In the primary, Democrat incumbent Representative Henry Stern led Republican challenger Houman Salem by a margin of 27.6 percent. Stern’s campaign has raised $1,114,716 and has pledged to accept no money from the fossil fuel industry. Salem’s campaign has raised $19,080 and has not committed to any such pledges.
Rep. Henry Stern, an environmental attorney and community activist, is from Malibu, CA. According to campaign materials, Rep. Stern is running for re-election to promote renewable-energy technology, end trophy hunting, and divert funds toward backup power and firefighting resources.
Sen. Stern’s priorities for SD-27 this year include expanding official state recognition of the climate-change crisis, further protecting our endangered species, and building microgrids to reduce blackouts. He currently sits on eight committees: the Natural Resources and Water Committee (chair); Climate Change Policies Committee (vice chair); Arts Committee; Budget and Fiscal Review Committee; Energy, Utilities and Communications Committee; Environmental Quality Committee; Elections and Constitutional Amendments Committee; and Judiciary Committee. Sen. Stern has sponsored 141 bills this year about such topics as gun violence prevention, education finance, fire safety, and exempting feminine hygiene products from taxation, of which over 10 percent have successfully passed. He scores a Lifetime 80 out of 100 on Courage Score, our annual analysis of legislators’ progressive voting records. Based on our Courage Score analysis, Senator Stern has supported the most progressive bills that made it to a vote. That said, Sen. Stern has not supported expanding Medi-Cal coverage to noncitizens or banning the use of biometric surveillance and facial-recognition technology from use in police body cameras.
Prior to his election to the State Senate, Sen. Henry Stern worked as an environmental lawyer, counseled Congressman Henry Waxman on the House Energy and Commerce Committee, and taught civics in local schools. He is a longtime supporter of environmental conservation and animal rights.
Rep. Henry Stern is endorsed by many progressive groups in the district. In his previous campaign, he was endorsed by the Association of Los Angeles County Sheriffs and California Association of Highway Patrolmen. However, the threat of Republican challenger and strong Trump supporter Houman Salem’s potential policies greatly outweighs Rep. Stern’s occasionally moderate voting record. According to our analysis, Rep. Henry Stern is the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
State senators represent and advocate for the needs of their district at the California State Capitol.
Each of the 58 counties in California is governed by a five-person board of supervisors. A board of supervisors has legislative and executive power to manage county services and resources, including courts, jails, public health, and public lands. They also have quasi-judicial powers, which gives them the right to hold hearings, conduct investigations, and make decisions in a manner similar to judicial courts. Laws passed by Boards of Supervisors are generally called ordinances. Because counties include both incorporated cities, which are administered by their own city councils and unincorporated areas, which are directly administered by the county, ordinances may or may not apply in different areas of the county. Supervisors are typically limited to three terms, or 12 years in office total.
Ventura County is California's 13th most populous county. Ventura County’s Board of Supervisors oversees the needs of approximately 846,000 people and manages an estimated budget of $2.4 billion annually. According to the County Charter, Ventura is governed by a five-member Board of Supervisors, elected at large for a staggered four-year term in their respective districts. Chairmanship rotates annually.
In the primary, challenger Carmen Ramirez trailed challenger Tim Flynn by a margin of 6.7 percent. Ramirez’s campaign has raised $47,334 and has committed to not accept any money from the fossil fuel industry. Flynn’s campaign has raised $11,987 and has not committed to any such pledges.
Carmen Ramirez, a legal-aid attorney and Oxnard City Council member, is from the San Gabriel Valley and has lived and worked in Ventura County since 1972. According to campaign materials, Ramirez is running to protect the environment, advocate for disaster preparedness, and help bring modern jobs to Ventura County.
Carmen Ramirez’s priorities for Ventura County this term include housing and homelessness, addressing climate change, and emergency preparedness, particularly in regard to public health crises. She believes that Ventura County can and should be running on 100 percent renewable energy by 2030, providing training and employment for workers transitioning from fossil fuels to renewables along the way. Her affordable housing plan is transit-oriented, ensuring that families can more conveniently and affordably access buses and trains.
Carmen Ramirez is a three-time Oxnard City Council member and mayor pro tempore. From 1975 through 1998, Ramirez worked for legal-aid programs in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, and Ventura Counties, and served as executive director of Oxnard’s Channel Counties Legal Services Association for sixteen years, addressing the legal needs of low-income and disabled clients. During her tenure on the city council, she made all local government proceedings accessible via Spanish-language translation, essential for District 5’s 85 percent Latinx population. She is a longtime supporter of environmentalism and ensuring that local businesses prioritize local citizens during hiring.
Carmen Ramirez is endorsed by many progressive groups in the district and is, according to our analysis, the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
Each of the 58 counties in California is governed by a five-person board of supervisors. A board of supervisors has legislative and executive power to manage county services and resources, including courts, jails, public health, and public lands. They also have quasi-judicial powers, which gives them the right to hold hearings, conduct investigations, and make decisions in a manner similar to judicial courts. Laws passed by Boards of Supervisors are generally called ordinances. Because counties include both incorporated cities, which are administered by their own city councils and unincorporated areas, which are directly administered by the county, ordinances may or may not apply in different areas of the county. Supervisors are typically limited to three terms, or 12 years in office total.
Ventura County is California's 13th most populous county. Ventura County’s Board of Supervisors oversees the needs of approximately 846,000 people and manages an estimated budget of $2.4 billion annually. According to the County Charter, Ventura is governed by a five-member Board of Supervisors, elected at large for a staggered four-year term in their respective districts. Chairmanship rotates annually.
In the primary, challenger Carmen Ramirez trailed challenger Tim Flynn by a margin of 6.7 percent. Ramirez’s campaign has raised $47,334 and has committed to not accept any money from the fossil fuel industry. Flynn’s campaign has raised $11,987 and has not committed to any such pledges.
Carmen Ramirez, a legal-aid attorney and Oxnard City Council member, is from the San Gabriel Valley and has lived and worked in Ventura County since 1972. According to campaign materials, Ramirez is running to protect the environment, advocate for disaster preparedness, and help bring modern jobs to Ventura County.
Carmen Ramirez’s priorities for Ventura County this term include housing and homelessness, addressing climate change, and emergency preparedness, particularly in regard to public health crises. She believes that Ventura County can and should be running on 100 percent renewable energy by 2030, providing training and employment for workers transitioning from fossil fuels to renewables along the way. Her affordable housing plan is transit-oriented, ensuring that families can more conveniently and affordably access buses and trains.
Carmen Ramirez is a three-time Oxnard City Council member and mayor pro tempore. From 1975 through 1998, Ramirez worked for legal-aid programs in Los Angeles, Santa Barbara, and Ventura Counties, and served as executive director of Oxnard’s Channel Counties Legal Services Association for sixteen years, addressing the legal needs of low-income and disabled clients. During her tenure on the city council, she made all local government proceedings accessible via Spanish-language translation, essential for District 5’s 85 percent Latinx population. She is a longtime supporter of environmentalism and ensuring that local businesses prioritize local citizens during hiring.
Carmen Ramirez is endorsed by many progressive groups in the district and is, according to our analysis, the strongest choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
Proposition 14 asks voters to authorize a total of $5.5 billion in state general obligation bonds to continue the California stem cell agency that funds research, therapy, and grants to educational, nonprofit, and private entities for Alzheimer’s, Parkison’s, epilepsy, strokes, and other central nervous system and brain conditions and diseases. Prop 14 is an extension of Prop 71, which created the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine (CIRM) in 2004. The CIRM ran out of the original Prop 71 funds in 2019 and has not been funding new projects since then.
Vote YES to continue the CIRM, a state agency that has distributed a significant source of funding to scientific research programs and enterprises across the state, both nonprofit and for-profit.
Vote NO to not authorize the sale of $5.5 billion in state bonds for the CIRM and eliminate a financially burdensome stem cell research program that no longer has significant impact on medical research.
Robert N. Klein II, a Silicon Valley real estate developer and the top donor for Prop 14, was also the chief author of Proposition 71, which authorized $3 billion in bonds to create and maintain the California Institute for Regenerative Medicine in 2004. There is no registered financial opposition.
There is no notable misinformation about Proposition 14.
Proposition 15 asks California voters to raise an estimated $6.4 billion to $11.5 billion in funding for local schools and governments by increasing property taxes on commercial and industrial properties based on current market value instead of the price they were purchased for. Based on the most recent report by Blue Sky Consulting Group, 10% of the biggest corporate property owners will pay 92% of the funding and more than 75% of total revenues will come from properties that have not been reassessed since prior to 1990 -- just 2% of all commercial and industrial properties! Proposition 15 will maintain the existing commercial and industrial property tax at a 1% limit and will also maintain existing exemptions for small businesses, homeowners, agricultural lands, and renters.
Prop 15’s main opponents include realty and industrial property owners, while the California Teachers Association and SEIU California State Council are main supporters.
Proposition 15 asks California voters to raise an estimated $6.4 billion to $11.5 billion in funding for local schools and governments
Proposition 16 asks California voters to amend the Constitution of California to repeal Prop 209’s restrictions on local and state governments from considering race, sex, color, ethnicity, or national origin in public employment, education, and contracting. If passed, Prop 16 will permit governments to consider those protected categories in order to promote inclusive hiring and admissions programs in California’s public universities, government, and public agencies.
Proposition 16 asks California voters to amend the Constitution of California to repeal Prop 209’s restrictions on local and state governments from considering race, sex, color,
Proposition 17 asks California voters to amend the Constitution of California to restore voting rights to persons who have been disqualified from voting while on parole. If passed, Prop 17 will restore voting rights to approximately 50,000 Californians currently on parole.
There are no contributions recorded for support or opposition to Prop 17.
Proposition 17 asks California voters to amend the Constitution of California to restore voting rights to persons who have been disqualified from voting while on parole.
Proposition 18 asks California voters to amend the Constitution of California to allow 17-year-olds to vote in the primary election if they will turn 18 by the following general election. At the age of 18, Californians are technically given the right to vote in all elections. However, those who are not 18 by the time of the primary are not able to have input on who would or would not appear on their ballot in the general election. A YES vote on Prop 18 solves this problem.
There are no recorded contributions in support of or opposition to Prop 18.
There is no prominent misinformation about Prop 18.
Proposition 18 asks California voters to amend the Constitution of California to allow 17-year-olds to vote in the primary election if they
Proposition 19 asks voters to amend sections of 1978’s Proposition 13 to increase the number of times a property tax base can be transferred to three times for longtime homeowners. Prop 19 is almost exactly the same as Proposition 5, which was on the 2018 California ballot and overwhelmingly defeated by voters, with 60 percent having voted against the proposition. The main difference in the proposition this year is that Prop 19 includes an additional amendment to Prop 13 that narrows an existing inheritance property tax break and promises to distribute any revenue generated from that amendment toward fire protection agencies and schools.
Realtor associations have contributed $36,270,000 in support of Prop 19. There is no registered financial opposition.
There is no prominent misinformation about Proposition 19.
Proposition 19 asks voters to amend sections of 1978’s Proposition 13 to increase the number of times a property tax base can be transferred to three times for long
If passed, Prop 20 increases penalties for low-level offenses and would create a state database that collects DNA samples from persons convicted of specified misdemeanors for use in cold cases by repealing parts of Props 47 and 57. Prop 20 would expand the list of offenses that disqualify inmates from a parole program, consider an individual’s collective criminal history and not just their most recent offense, and impose stronger restrictions for a nonviolent offender’s parole program. Additionally, Prop 20 would reclassify theft between $250 and $950 as a felony.
If passed, Prop 20 increases penalties for low-level offenses and would create a state database that collects DNA samples from persons convicted of specified misdemeanors for us
Proposition 21 asks voters to amend state law in order to allow (not require) local governments at the city and county levels to establish and regulate rent control on residential properties. This proposition would affect residential properties over 15 years old and exempts individuals who own up to two residential properties. Additionally, Prop 21 would allow rent in rent-controlled properties to increase up to 15 percent over a period of three years with the start of a new tenancy. Prop 21 is more or less the same proposition voters rejected in 2018.
California has the highest rate of homelessness in the nation, which can be attributed to the overwhelmingly high median rates for rent throughout the state forcing residents to pay 50 percent of their income just toward rent.
The Costa-Hawkins Rental Housing Act prohibits rent control on residential properties built after February 1, 1995. Since then, housing built in California has become accessible only to those who can afford uncontrolled rent increases, and low-income families have largely been shut out from newer housing developments.
According to a Stanford study, those who lived in rent-controlled properties when Costa-Hawkins passed ended up saving a cumulative total of $7 billion over 18 years, which confirms that rent control is an effective way to prevent displacement from the city.
Proposition 21 asks voters to amend state law in order to allow (not require) local governments at the city and county levels to establish and regulate rent control on residential p
Proposition 22 asks voters to exempt companies like Lyft, Postmates, Uber, DoorDash, and others from a recently implemented state worker protection law, Assembly Bill 5 (AB5), so they can classify gig economy drivers from ride-share and delivery companies as independent contractors, not as employees. Additionally, Prop 22 would restrict local regulation of app-based drivers and would criminalize the impersonation of drivers.
By classifying workers as contractors and not employees, companies like Lyft, Uber, and DoorDash are exempted by state employment laws from ensuring basic protections to their workforce including minimum wage, overtime, unemployment insurance, and workers’ compensation.
Currently, rideshare and delivery workers are entitled under AB 5 to labor rights that every other employee in California receives, such as the right to organize, health insurance, and Social Security benefits. Prop 22 would take those rights away.
AB 5 also guarantees paid family leave, paid sick days, and unemployment insurance to those classified as gig employees. Proposition 22 asks voters to make gig-economy employees exempt from this law and replaces their rights with fewer benefits of much less value to their workers.
More than 2,000 drivers have filed claims against Uber and Lyft for over $630 million in damages, expenses, and lost wages. Prop 22 will codify Uber and Lyft’s abilities to systematically steal wages from drivers.
Uber and Lyft currently owe California $413 million in unemployment insurance contributions due to misclassifying drivers as independent contractors under AB 5. If Prop 22 passes, Uber and Lyft would get away with not paying what they owe.
"Prop 22 will guarantee 120% of minimum wage to all drivers." -- FALSE. The UC Berkeley Labor Center released a report that estimates Prop 22’s “pay guarantee” for their Uber and Lyft drivers would only end up being $5.64 per hour after accounting for all the expenses that drivers are responsible for themselves. At that rate, even if an individual worked 10 hour days, 7 days a week under Prop 22, they would be living below the California poverty line.
"Prop 22 will give health insurance to all drivers." -- FALSE. Under Prop 22, companies do not pay for health insurance, but instead provide a stipend to drivers. This stipend is valued at only 82% of the minimum coverage provided by state law, and is actually worth even less because workers would owe state and federal income taxes on the stipend. Prop 22 forces drivers to work more than 39 hours a week to qualify for the health stipend, so many workers would never even qualify for the stipend. For drivers who do qualify, Health Access California estimates that the health stipend would be just a couple hundred dollars—and could be just tens of dollars for younger workers—not enough for drivers to cover the purchase of their own health insurance.
If Prop 22 is passed, all future labor legislation surrounding Uber and Lyft would have to be approved by 7/8 of the total California State Legislature. Making this happen is virtually impossible considering Uber and Lyft have donated $2 million to the California Republican Party campaign committee. This is why Uber and Lyft are spending millions of dollars: to make their operations virtually untouchable in terms of regulation.
Proposition 22 asks voters to exempt companies like Lyft, Postmates, Uber, DoorDash, and others from a recently implemented state worker protection law, Assembly Bil
Prop 23 would add sections to the California Health and Safety Code about how dialysis facilities can operate, requiring a physician to be on-site at every dialysis clinic to oversee operations, and mandating that each chronic dialysis clinic submit quarterly reports on dialysis-related infections to the California Department of Health. The on-site physician would assume a non-caregiving role, as they would not be required to be specially trained in nephrology or interact with patients at all. Additionally, Prop 23 would prohibit discrimination against patients based on their coverage or care.
Prop 23 would add sections to the California Health and Safety Code about how dialysis facilities can operate, requiring a physician to be on-site at every di
Proposition 24 asks voters to amend the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA) to include pay-for-privacy schemes, which provide better services and internet connection to those who pay more in order to protect their personal information while providing suboptimal services for Californians who cannot or do not want to pay more. Additionally, Prop 24 caters to tech companies by allowing them to upload a California resident’s personal information as soon as that resident’s device, computer, or phone leaves the state’s borders, and permits tech companies to completely ignore a programmable universal electronic “do not sell my information” signal. Under current law, privacy follows a Californian wherever they go, and businesses must honor the electronic signal.
Proposition 24 asks voters to amend the California Consumer Privacy Act of 2018 (CCPA) to include pay-for-privacy schemes, which provide better services and internet connection to those who pay more in order
Vote YES on Prop 25 to eliminate the use of cash bail in pretrial incarceration.
Proposition 25 is a referendum, which asks voters to directly weigh in on whether to keep or reject SB 10, a bill originally passed in 2018. Voting YES on Prop 25 will keep SB 10 in place and eliminate the cash bail system of pretrial incarceration in California, which is directly responsible for the disproportionate incarceration of Californians who cannot afford bail. The bail bond industry is directly responsible for placing Prop 25 on the ballot and calling SB 10 into question.
There are three major components to grassroots groups' objections to Prop 25. Here we provide our assessment of these concerns and how they can be addressed in the future if Prop 25 passes.
The bail bond industry has invested heavily in a No on the Prop 25 campaign in an attempt to spread misinformation and save the industry.
Vote YES on Prop 25 to eliminate the use of cash bail in pretrial incarceration.