Three nonpartisan polls released last week showed Democrat Xavier Becerra leading the field, while Republican Steve Hilton and Democrat Tom Steyer were running closely for second place. Under California’s top-two primary system, the two candidates who receive the most votes advance to the general election regardless of party.

A major factor clouding the race is the pace of ballot returns among Democratic voters. Although millions of Californians have already voted by mail or returned ballots, turnout remains low compared with general elections. As of Sunday, 15.10% of ballots statewide had been submitted, according to Political Data Inc., a voter data firm. That is nearly in line with the June 2022 primary, when 14.53% of ballots had been returned three days before Election Day.

But the partisan breakdown shows a notable shift. Democratic voters have returned 15% of their ballots so far, down from 17% at the same point in 2022. Republican voters, meanwhile, are moving faster than they did four years ago, with 19% of GOP ballots returned, compared with 17% in 2022.

Paul Mitchell, vice president of Political Data Inc., said several factors may explain the difference. Republican voters have a simpler choice, with two major candidates in the race, while Democrats are weighing a larger field that includes six leading contenders. Republicans also have a long history of voting early by mail, a habit Mitchell said may be returning after former President Donald Trump discouraged mail voting in 2020.

Among Democrats, Mitchell said the slowest ballot returns are coming from older white voters, many of whom may still be undecided or waiting to vote strategically. Because California’s primary rules allow two candidates from the same party to advance, some Democratic voters may be concerned about how best to ensure at least one Democrat reaches the November runoff.

“All the stories about two Republicans making the runoff, they might be calculating their vote to make sure that they’re voting in a way that is strategic to make sure that a Democrat gets onto the general election,” Mitchell said.

Kevin Callan, also with Political Data Inc., said some Democrats may not be deeply enthusiastic about any one candidate but still recognize that the June result could effectively decide the state’s next governor.

“Democrat voters know that whichever Democrat candidate makes it into the runoff will be our next governor,” Callan said. “That adds more weight to their decision.”

For voters across Southern California and the Inland Empire, the outcome of the primary will determine who remains in contention to lead the nation’s most populous state for the next four years. With many ballots still outstanding, the final hours of voting could prove decisive.

Original source: CalMatters

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The survey of 986 likely voters, conducted earlier this month, found Becerra leading with 23% support, followed by Hilton at 20%. Democrat Tom Steyer was at 15%, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco at 13% and former Rep. Katie Porter at 12%.

The numbers are especially significant in California’s top-two primary system, where the two candidates with the most votes advance to the November election regardless of party. For months, the crowded Democratic field raised the possibility that two Republicans — Hilton and Bianco — could finish first and second, shutting Democrats out of the general election.

Becerra, a former California attorney general who later served as health secretary under President Joe Biden, has gained ground since U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell left the race amid allegations of sexual misconduct.

Jonathan Underland, a spokesperson for Becerra’s campaign, said the poll reflects growing support for the former Biden administration official.

“Becerra has built real momentum — strong poll numbers backed by working Californians who are energized and ready,” Underland said.

Steyer’s campaign disputed the PPIC survey’s findings in a written statement, arguing that the poll failed to capture recent gains for the liberal billionaire. The campaign pointed to its own internal tracking and to another poll conducted for Hilton.

The PPIC poll also offered a broader look at California voters’ mood ahead of the midterm elections, which will determine control of Congress during the final two years of President Donald Trump’s second term.

Three-quarters of likely voters said the country is moving in the wrong direction, the highest share recorded by PPIC in more than 20 years. While 92% of Democrats expressed that view, so did 50% of Republicans. The share of Republicans who said the country is headed in the right direction dropped from 64% in a February PPIC poll to 49% in the latest survey.

The poll also showed a strong advantage for Democrats in congressional races. If the midterm election were held today, 64% of likely voters said they would support the Democratic candidate in their local U.S. House race, compared with 35% who said they would vote for the Republican candidate. Those findings could signal trouble for Republicans as they try to keep control of the House of Representatives.

Younger voters are another group drawing attention in the election. Californians under 29 make up nearly one-fifth of the state’s eligible voters, and many cite concerns about inflation, health care and housing as they weigh their choices.

In a separate election-related development, Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a new law Wednesday barring local police from seizing ballots from election officials.

The law was rushed through the Legislature after Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco, who is running for governor, seized more than 600,000 ballots from the county registrar of voters earlier this year. Bianco said the action was part of a “fact-finding mission” into election accuracy, though he did not present evidence that the ballots had been improperly cast.

The new law took effect immediately, ahead of the June 2 primary. It prevents county registrars from turning over ballots or voting equipment to law enforcement and reaffirms that the attorney general, secretary of state or county election officials can sue any person, business or entity that takes ballots from an election official’s custody.

“We have to step up, and we have to draw the line,” Newsom told reporters. “We have to clarify the rules of engagement. It’s a warning to the folks out there that think they can do the bidding of the Trump administration.”

California lawmakers also are considering a proposal aimed at helping young people affected by gun violence, including in San Bernardino County.

The bill would create a pilot program offering free mental health and counseling services to young people who were shot, witnessed a shooting or lost a family member to gun violence. The program would serve youth in Alameda, Los Angeles, San Bernardino and Solano counties.

Nicole Kravitz-Wirtz, an associate professor with the Centers for Violence Prevention at UC Davis, said young shooting survivors often receive treatment for physical injuries but are left without a clear path to continuing mental health care.

The Assembly advanced the bill to the Senate on Tuesday. However, the proposal does not yet include a funding source. A legislative analysis estimated the grants would cost about $7,800 per survivor each year.

Original source: CalMatters

The post Where the California Governor’s Race Stands Now appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

Only about 8% of ballots statewide had been returned so far, according to ballot-tracking data, leaving a large share of the electorate to make decisions in the final stretch. For voters in Southern California and the Inland Empire who are still undecided, the governor’s race remains especially crowded and fluid.

A recent Democratic Party poll showed Republican Steve Hilton narrowly ahead at 22%, followed closely by Democrat Xavier Becerra at 21%. Democrat Tom Steyer was in third place with 15%, according to the poll.

California’s primary system can add to the uncertainty for voters who are used to party-based contests. Under the state’s “top two” open primary, all candidates appear on the same ballot, and the two candidates who receive the most votes advance to the November general election, regardless of party affiliation.

That means two Democrats, two Republicans or candidates from any combination of parties could move forward. California adopted the system after voters approved Proposition 14 in 2010, allowing voters to choose any candidate in a primary election, no matter their own party registration.

With a large field of candidates and no clear frontrunner, the possibility of two candidates from the same party advancing is a real one this year.

For those voting by mail, timing is now critical. Ballots must be postmarked on or before Election Day and received by county elections offices within seven days. Election officials recommend mailing ballots at least five days before June 2 to reduce the risk of delays.

Voters who prefer not to mail their ballots can return them at an official drop box or vote in person. Polls will be open on Election Day from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. Voters can find polling places and ballot drop-off locations through the California Secretary of State’s election websites.

The campaign has already made stops in Southern California, including an April gubernatorial debate at Bridges Auditorium on the Pomona College campus in Claremont, where candidates appeared before voters and media less than six weeks before Election Day.

Voters looking for additional information can review nonpartisan voter guides that include details on statewide offices, legislative and congressional races, and candidate responses in the governor’s race. CalMatters is also holding voter information events this month in partnership with local news organizations, colleges and nonprofits, with upcoming events scheduled in Merced, Fresno and Modesto.

Original source: CalMatters

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As of the latest statewide ballot-tracking figures cited by Political Data Inc., about 92% of California voters had not yet returned their ballots. Voters still have time, but election officials urge residents not to wait until the last moment, especially if they plan to vote by mail.

The June 2 primary features a wide-open contest for governor, with several well-known Democrats and Republicans competing for just two spots on the November ballot. Under California’s primary system, the top two vote-getters advance to the general election regardless of party.

The field became especially fluid after some of the state’s most prominent Democrats, including former Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, opted not to run. Former Rep. Eric Swalwell had appeared to be gaining support among Democratic voters earlier in the year, but he left the race after allegations of sexual misconduct.

The candidates include Xavier Becerra, a Democrat and former U.S. Health and Human Services secretary who previously served as California attorney general; Chad Bianco, a Republican and Riverside County sheriff; Steve Hilton, a Republican, former Fox News host and former adviser to British Prime Minister David Cameron; Matt Mahan, a Democrat and mayor of San Jose; Katie Porter, a Democrat and former Orange County congresswoman; Tom Steyer, a Democratic billionaire entrepreneur and former presidential candidate; Tony Thurmond, a Democrat and California’s superintendent of public instruction; and Antonio Villaraigosa, a Democrat, former Los Angeles mayor and former Assembly speaker.

Recent polling has not shown a decisive front-runner. A Democratic Party poll showed Hilton at 22%, Becerra at 21% and Steyer at 15%, leaving open the possibility of a closely contested finish.

California’s top-two primary system has been in place since voters approved Proposition 14 in 2010. Supporters said it would encourage candidates to appeal beyond their party bases, while critics warned it could narrow choices by allowing two candidates from the same party to advance to November. With so many contenders in the governor’s race, that remains a possibility this year.

Voters who still plan to mail their ballots should make sure the envelopes are postmarked on or before Election Day and received by county election offices within seven days. Election officials generally recommend mailing ballots at least five days before June 2. Those mailing close to the deadline should consider taking the ballot inside a post office and requesting a hand-stamped postmark.

Ballots also may be returned at official drop boxes or voting locations. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m. on Election Day. Voters can look up polling places and ballot drop-off sites through the California Secretary of State’s office or their county elections office.

Results will begin coming in on election night, but final tallies will take longer. County election officials must begin reporting results to the secretary of state no more than two hours after they start counting. Counties have 30 days to complete their counts and submit final results, and the state has 38 days to certify the election.

In addition to governor, voters will see several statewide offices on the ballot, including superintendent of public instruction, lieutenant governor, controller, secretary of state, treasurer and insurance commissioner.

Another office on the ballot is the Board of Equalization, an elected tax board created by the state in 1879. Its authority is now limited largely to property tax oversight, though the office has also served as a steppingstone for politicians seeking higher office.

For Inland Empire voters, the governor’s race carries a local connection through Bianco, the Riverside County sheriff, who is among the Republicans seeking a place in the November runoff. But with the field divided and many ballots still unreturned, the outcome remains uncertain heading into the final days of voting.

Original source: CalMatters

The post Get up to speed fast on the California election with our guide for the undecided appeared first on The Hemet & San Jacinto Chronicle.

The amount of drugs seized included 376 pounds of methamphetamine, 1.4 kilograms of cocaine, 37.4 pounds of fentanyl and 600,000 fentanyl tablets with the potential to provide  ingredients for nearly 10 million lethal doses and were worth an estimated $16 million. 

The news does not end there. These drugs were part of a Mexican cartel trafficking operation and the investigation also resulted in the arrest of 15 people. Unfortunately, the arrests included that of an allegedly corrupt Riverside County Sheriff’s deputy. 

Details of the deputy’s involvement were passed to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department which led to the deputy’s arrest with 104 pounds of fentanyl pills in his possession.

Although Riverside County Sheriff Bianco may spin the story and point to the deputy’s arrest as proof his department is cleaning house, it begs a question regarding why the deputy was operating as a corrections officer in the first place, especially with all the attention placed on the department with the spike in incustody deaths in Riverside jails in 2022, where drug overdoses played a major role as recorded in a Black Voice News in a special report released in January. 

No matter how you slice it, ongoing reports about the antics of Riverside County deputies is bad and getting worse. 

When news broke of this most recent arrest of another Riverside County deputy for their role in illegal activities, it appeared as just another day in an agency that more and more seems rife with malfeasance.  Has the Riverside County Sheriff’s Department become a team of lawless, law enforcement officers who are currently being led by a sheriff with questionable performance as the county’s top law enforcement leader?

I am not challenging what Bianco’s capabilities were as a deputy, etc. while he worked his way up the law enforcement ladder before running for sheriff. We have no way of knowing how he performed as a corrections officer at the Robert Presley Detention Center or while on patrol or working narcotics in the City of Lake Elsinore. Nor can I criticize his performance in his various administrative positions, supervisory or management roles over the years. 

What I will say, however, is that since pinning on the badge of county sheriff, Bianco’s ability to effectively lead an agency with oversight responsibility tor five jail facilities, six court buildings, a civil bureau, the Coroner’s Bureau, Public Administrator’s Office, nearly 20  contract cities, about 4,000 employees and an operating budget of nearly a billion dollars, again and again his leadership acumen is called into question. 

Bianco has remained a lightning rod since he took office in 2019, sparked by a laundry list of curious mishaps that include everything from having to be ordered by a judge during the peak of the COVID-19 crisis to protect people in custody in Riverside County jails to refusing the state vaccine mandate for Sheriff Department employees to having to defend his membership in the now, seditious conspiracy, involved Oath Keepers  to being investigated by the CA Attorney General for alleged Civil Rights violations—the list of his questionable actions has continued to expand.

The infamous list above does not include what appears to be rampant lawlessness by Riverside County sheriff deputies on his watch. 

We can begin by recalling that last September, seven women who had spent time in a Riverside County jail filed federal cases against Riverside County that alleged liability for sexual abuse admitted by correctional deputy, Christian Heidecker, who pleaded guilty to 11 felonies Feb. 23, and was sentenced to five years in prison.  

Also, last September, two Riverside County deputies were arrested and charged with drug possession — Brent Bishop Turnwall, 22, and Jorge Oceguera-Rocha, 25. Although neither were accused of distribution drugs in the jails, Turnwall was arrested while at work at Cois M. Byrd Detention Center. He was charged with being under the influence. 

That same month, another deputy, Oceguera-Rocha, a corrections officer at Larry D. Smith Correctional Facility, was charged with possession of narcotics for sale and transporting it for sale. At the time of his arrest, he purportedly had about 100 pounds of packaged fentanyl pills in his vehicle. 

During an interview with Black Voice News last year, Bianco spoke about the 2022 increase in drug overdoses in the jails stating, “There is a market to purposely smuggle drugs into jail,” he said, claiming that people get arrested so they can bring drugs into the facilities. “They swallow it, they insert it, they’re underneath their fingernails, their toenails. They do everything they can to try and get it in, and unfortunately, sometimes they make it.”

Bianco also acknowledged that the deaths were unfortunate and then went on to say, “but it certainly wasn’t at the hands of our deputies.”  Well, maybe not, but who can say with certainty, because one thing we know for sure is that some of his deputies/corrections officers do not appear to have clean hands.

As rumors began to surface that Bianco is now considering a bid for governor, it leaves one to wonder whether or not this man has any self awareness. Why would we consider electing someone like him to serve as governor when he continues to demonstrate the limits of his leadership skills and abilities to lead the Sheriff’s Department? 

We can not wait to see whether rumors of his run for governor come true. We should act now to spread the word regarding his short comings. This is important because his campaign is certain to be well funded by police unions and other like minded individuals. 

For this reason, it is important that we educate our family, friends and neighbors about the works of Bianco and deputies under his stewardship, so that when, and if, a Bianco campaign for governor is launched, they are well informed and do not believe the hype that is certain to come. 

Of course, this is just my opinion. I’m keeping it real.

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