California’s primary for the 2014 midterm elections in California is set for this Tuesday, June 3.
Below is an overview of who is running for the major offices to represent portions of the Westside in Washington, D.C., Sacramento, and Los Angeles County. Also included is a brief overview of the two ballot measures on the June 3 ballot. All information provided by www.smartvoter.org.
U.S. Representative – 33rd District:
In the race to succeed Henry Waxman, whose congressional district includes most of the Westside, there are 18 listed candidates on the Smart Voter website, though two – Brent C. Roske and James Graf – have dropped out of the race. Also, at least one write-in candidate has entered this race: Theo Milonopoulos, a PhD student and long-time resident of the district.
• Elan S. Carr, criminal gang prosecutor, Republican, priorities include education, jobs and the economy, and public safety
• Vince Flaherty, entrepreneur, historian, and producer, Democratic, priorities include fighting for reform on 434 issues from agriculture to water
• Tom Fox, lawyer, party affiliation and priorities not listed
• Lily Gilani, lawyer and CEO, Republican, priorities not listed
• Wendy Greuel, businesswoman and former Los Angeles council member, Democratic, priorities include environment and climate change, equal pay, open space, and public transit spending
• Mark Matthew Herd, neighborhood council board member, Libertarian, priorities not listed
• Kristie Holmes, social worker and professor, Democratic, priorities include closing tax loopholes for corporations and legalizing marijuana as federal law
• David C. Kanuth, public defender, Democratic, priorities include reform to education, environmental, and immigration policy
• Ted Lieu, current State Senator, Democratic, priorities include campaign finance reform, combating climate change, and job creation
• Matt Miller, radio show host, Democratic, priorities not listed
• Kevin Mottus, environmental health advocate, Republican, priorities include double level freeways and more subways, no offshore drilling or GMOs, and minimizing radio frequency radiation exposure
• Barbara Mulvaney, human rights attorney, Democratic, priorities include environment, foreign policy, women’s rights
• Zein E. Obagi, Jr., educational equality advocate, Democratic, priorities not listed
• Michael Ian Sachs, environmental technician, Green, priorities include immigration and tax reform, job creation
• Michael Shapiro, sports executive and filmmaker, Democratic, priorities include balancing individual privacy with national security, continuing Waxman’s progressive agenda, and guaranteeing the future of Medicare and Social Security
• Marianne Williamson, author and non-profit founder, priorities include ending poverty, combating climate crisis, and ending “system of legalized bribery,” party affiliation not listed.
U.S. Representative – 37th District
Karen Bass has represented the 37th Congressional District in Washington, D.C., since January 2013. The district includes Century City. Bass, a Democrat, is facing off against two other opponents: Republican R. Adam King and Democrat Mervin Evans.
On smartvoter.org, Evans, an author and management consultant, stated his priorities were to protect kids, military families, and Social Security. Neither Bass nor King listed their respective priorities on the website.
Since there are three candidates for this seat, only the top two vote getters will move forward after the June 3 election.
State Senate – 26th District
Thanks to redistricting in 2011, parts of the Westside now fall within the Senate’s 26th District. There are eight candidates – none a declared Republican – seeking to represent an area mostly represented by Ted Lieu, himself one of the candidates hoping to succeed Waxman’s seat in Washington, D.C.
• Ben Allen, Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District board member, Democratic, priorities include increasing investment for public education, preserving open space, reducing underemployment and unemployment, and stopping global climate change
• Barbi S. Applequist, attorney, Democratic, priorities include economy, protecting the environment, and safer communities
• Betsy Butler, former state legislator, Democratic, priorities include environment, seniors, and veterans
• Sandra Fluke, social justice attorney, Democratic, priorities include affordability of higher education, growing the middle class, and solving California’s water crisis
• Amy Howorth, education advocate and former mayor of Manhattan Beach, Democratic, priorities not listed
• Vito Imbasciani, California State Surgeon, Democratic, priorities not listed
• Seth Stodder, law professor, party affiliation and priorities not listed
• Patric M. Verrone, attorney and television writer, Democratic, priorities include educational opportunities, high-wage jobs for middle class families, improved home care for seniors.
State Senate – 30th District
Holly Mitchell, who currently represents Century City in Sacramento, is seeking re-election in the 30th Senate District. The district includes Century City and other neighboring communities such as Culver City and Mar Vista.
Mitchell, a Democrat, is facing one opponent in the primary: fellow Democrat Isidro Armenta. Since there are only two candidates in the primary, both candidates will also face off against each other in the Nov. 4 general election.
On smartvoter.org, Armenta lists himself as an “Education Policy Deputy.”
According to the California Secretary of State, Mitchell has accepted campaign spending limits for the 2014 election. No campaign information on Armenta was available on the Secretary of State website.
State Assembly – 50th District
Almost two years after Richard Bloom defeated Betsy Butler in a hotly contested race that took several weeks after the November 2012 election to announce the winner, the Assemblyman who represents the Westside in Sacramento is back on the circuit seeking reelection. Unlike many other races in this year’s primary, Bloom is facing off against only one opponent: Bradly S. Torgan (environmental attorney, Republican, priorities not listed).
Both candidates will advance to the Nov. 4 ballot.
State Assembly – 54th District
Earlier this year, Sebastian Ridley-Thomas was elected to represent Century City in the State Assembly. Currently the youngest legislator in California, Democrat Ridley-Thomas is seeking reelection just a few months after he took the oath of office for his first term.
There is only one challenger: Republican Glen Ratcliff, an owner of a professional event staffing company.
According to the Secretary of State’s website, Ridley-Thomas has not yet accepted campaign spending limits for the 2014 election. No information was available on the same website for Ratcliff.
Both candidates will advance to the Nov. 4 ballot.
County Supervisor – Third District
Zev Yaroslavsky is termed-out from the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors after 20 years on the job. A field of eight candidates seeks to step in and fill in his shoes. The district includes most of the Westside. Candidates for supervisor do not run with a party affiliation.
• John Duran, former mayor of West Hollywood, priorities include public safety, transportation, and being a “watchdog” over county finances
• Douglas P. “Doug” Fay, environmentalist, priorities include encouraging “maximum participation” in the County General Plan process, improving educational, employment and healthcare opportunities, and transparency
• Yuval Daniel Kremer, educator and business owner, priorities include doubling current Metro bus service, fiscal prudence, and stopping the killing of cats and dogs at county shelters
• Sheila Kuehl, college institute director and state legislator, priorities include accessible and affordable health care, county-wide public transportation system, and improving safety and well-being of children in the foster care system
• Rudy Melendez, artist and laborer, priorities include assisting the homeless, environmental stewardship, improving county services and infrastructure, public safety, and welfare of children
• Eric Preven, consultant, producer and writer, priorities include fiscal pragmatism, government ethics reform, and justice reform
• Bobby Shriver, former mayor of Santa Monica, nonprofit director, priorities include conserving water resources, job creation, and expanding transit
• Pamela Conley Ulich, attorney, professor, and former mayor of Malibu, priorities include education, environment, and Sheriff’s Dept. oversight.
There are also two statewide propositions on the June 3 ballot. These two propositions will not be on the November ballot, so the final vote for the initiatives would be final.
Proposition 41 – Whether or not the State should sell $600 million in new general obligation bonds to fund multifamily housing for low-income veterans. Since the obligation bonds would be repaid with state tax revenue, any housing built under this proposition would be done so with taxpayer money.
This bond would fund construction, renovation, and acquisition of affordable multifamily housing. The target audience is veterans who have families and earn less than 80 percent of the average family income proportional to family size and county. Homeless veterans would also be included in this program.
Proposition 42 – If approved, the State Constitution would be amended to require local governments to comply with laws providing for public access to local government body meetings and records of government officials. Any costs associated with complying with public records laws and the Brown Act would be eliminated should this proposition pass.
Essentially, if Proposition 42 passes, local governments would be required to keep up with providing access to meetings such as city council, school board, and other public entities under the Public Records Act and Brown Act, but the State would not be responsible to reimburse local governments for any costs associated with keeping up with both laws.
