Though you are surely plumbing the depths of CalMatters’ comprehensive voter guide, let’s highlight two parts in particular: The race for state treasurer and California legislative elections:
State treasurer: Six candidates are vying to be California’s next money manager, but the race is largely between two top Democrats: Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis, whom Gov. Gavin Newsom endorsed, and state Sen. Anna Caballero of Merced. Caballero is a longtime legislator and formerly served as Business, Consumer Services and Housing Agency secretary under Gov. Jerry Brown. Though the two candidates agree on most issues, they do take different stances on clean energy alternatives.
Under California’s electoral system, the two candidates who get the most votes advance to the November ballot, regardless of party. That means a Republican could also claim a spot. The California GOP has endorsed Jennifer Hawks, a Bay Area Republican Party activist, over Republican businessman David Serpa. Both candidates say they want to rein in spending from California Democrats.
Read more from CalMatters’ Ben Christopher.
California Legislature: Two seats in the Assembly that Republicans recently flipped are up for reelection. But the GOP faces a twofold challenge this time: President Donald Trump’s approval rating has been slipping and the president’s party almost always loses in downballot races during the midterms.
Two years ago, Republican incumbent Jeff Gonzalez of Coachella pulled off a stunning upset when he won his election for Assembly District 36, a left-leaning Latino-majority district. Now he faces three Democratic challengers who are linking him to Trump’s immigration enforcement. Gonzalez, in a statement, said he blames both parties for using immigration as “a political chess piece.”
Read more from CalMatters’ Yue Stella Yu.
The CalMatters Ideas Festival convenes policymakers, journalists and community leaders for conversations about the issues shaping California, including a main stage discussion with The Lincoln Project. Join us on May 21 in Sacramento. Purchase tickets before early bird pricing ends May 4.
Other Stories You Should Know
Successful mental health service on the chopping block
California counties are scrambling to figure out how to sustain their mobile crisis response teams as support from the federal and state governments wind down, writes CalMatters’ Ana B. Ibarra.
Response teams help stabilize and assess residents in the throes of a mental health crisis, without police intervention. These programs help reduce the number of unnecessary psychiatric holds, and research shows these teams do a better job than law enforcement at keeping people out of emergency rooms.
California made mobile crisis response a statewide benefit in 2023 after the federal government upped its portion of covering costs, enabling counties to expand their services. But with federal aid expected to end, mental health advocates and counties are ringing alarm bells over Newsom’s budget proposal, which would eliminate state funding for the programs in 2027 and leave counties footing the bill.
- Sen. Caroline Menjivar, a Van Nuys Democrat who supports preserving the services, at a recent hearing: “We’ve invested so much money into creating and uplifting an infrastructure to not fully continue with it. Is that a waste of our money?”
CA puts the screws to State Farm
California’s insurance department is accusing State Farm of hundreds of violations related to its handling of claims of last year’s deadly Los Angeles-area fires, reports CalMatters’ Levi Sumagaysay.
After launching its investigation last June, the department said Monday that State Farm — the state’s largest individual property insurance provider — “showed a troubling pattern of claims handling practices” after the wildfires.
- Ricardo Lara, insurance commissioner, in a statement: “State Farm delayed, underpaid, and buried policyholders in red tape at the worst moment of their lives.”
If the courts side with the state, State Farm could be fined up to $4.3 million and face a possible temporary suspension of its license in California.
A spokesperson for State Farm said the insurance department has “distorted” the picture of the company’s response to the fires. The company also called the department’s threats to suspend its license “a reckless, politically motivated attack.”
California Voices
CalMatters columnist Dan Walters: Newsom advocated for single-payer healthcare while campaigning for governor, but his signoff on a 2023 law to merely study how healthcare could be expanded ensured that the issue could be stretched out until he’s out of office.
The Legislature must reject a bill related to smoke-damaged homes, which would lock in the inspection industry’s status quo and weaponize accepted safety standards as a defense against future remediation disputes, writes Michelle Meyers, lawyer in Sacramento and San Diego representing Eaton Fire homeowners.
Other things worth your time:
Internal ICE records reveal widespread use of force in detention centers // The Washington Post
Kamala Harris endorses slate of CA candidates — but not for governor // San Francisco Chronicle
How CA elections officials are addressing concerns about ICE and voting // Los Angeles Daily News
Newsom scores early win in his $787M lawsuit against Fox News // SFGATE
After criticism of how CA rolls out education programs, a new bill would trigger evaluations // LAist
Turner’s Outdoorsman sold the largest share of guns traced to crimes in CA // The Trace
County releases first investigation report documenting sustained findings against election official // Shasta Scout
Trump closes SF’s immigration court for good // KQED
Prosecutors say arson suspect in LA’s Palisades Fire was angry ‘at the world’ // AP News
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