by Jan Goodman
THE JUNE 2, 2026 PRIMARY
Ballots for the June 2nd California Primary Election have been arriving in our mailboxes. Every time an election rolls around, we always hear everyone saying that this one is the most important election of our lifetimes. Well, this next election is certainly one of the most. This is an opportunity to start to undo the creeping Fascism that Trump and his enablers have brought us. We can’t be sure that November’s general election won’t see ICE agents guarding the polls, a corrupt Justice Department confiscating ballots, or even Trump declaring a state of emergency to try to cancel the election altogether. Which is why we have to be vigilant and engaged. We don’t just have an opportunity to take back the House and Senate this next year, we have the opportunity to support actual progressives who stand with us on all the issues in the primary, so they can go to the general election in November and challenge centrist and far-right candidates who are in the pay of Corporate America.
The last day to register to vote for the June 2, 2026, Primary Election is May 18, 2026. So call your friends & family who might not be registered and tell them to register ASAP. Click here to Register to vote.
VOLUNTEER &/OR DONATE
Don’t just cast a vote. Please check out some of the excellent public servants we have endorsed and consider donating to their campaigns, or volunteering – particularly Marissa Roy, who is running for City Attorney. She is a terrific candidate and can make a dramatic difference for people living in Los Angeles. We don’t just have to take back the House of Representatives from the MAGA Republicans – we have to take back the California statehouses from the corporate centrist Democrats who rule there. We have a chance to elect an actual progressive for Governor. Make a plan to get involved and be part of the transformation that we so desperately need! And CONSIDER DONATING! A $5 or $10 donation (or more), along with hundreds more makes a huge difference. As we know, $ is the mother’s milk of politics. Don’t let the billionaires be the only ones to support candidates!
ORDER OF THE ENDORSEMENTS
In general, I have attempted to put these endorsements in the order that they appear on my ballot, to make it as “user friendly” as possible, assuming yours will be in a similar order. I have put recommendations regarding city elections, other than LA at the end. Forgive the formatting deviations. I find that trying to get the spacing and other formatting to make the recommendations look as good as I would like them to look will often take many hours to complete. I have therefore made the executive decision to forego perfection in formatting in favor of getting these recommendations out as soon as possible.
IF YOU ARE MAILING IN YOUR BALLOT, PLEASE SEND IT LONG BEFORE JUNE 2ND , AIM FOR MAY 25TH, SINCE TRUMP IS TRYING TO PREVENT COUNTING BALLOTS THAT ARRIVE AFTER JUNE 2ND, INSTEAD OF “AS LONG AS THEY ARE POSTMARKED ON OR BEFORE JUNE 2nd. TAKE NO CHANCE!
YOUR BEST BET IS A COUNTY DROP BOX, THEY ARE CHECKED EVERY DAY UNTIL 8 pm June 2. All votes in these boxes will definitely arrive to be counted.
An interesting new addition to the Registrar site, or at least one I hadn’t seen in the past, is a page that contains links to the tax returns of all of the gubernatorial candidates. Click here to check them out.
Those seeking information about where to vote or who is on their ballot, should go to LAVote.net. For information on early voting, click here.
Credit Where Credit Is Due
These recommendations are my best judgement, based not only on my being involved in interviewing a number of these candidates mostly as part of the Americans For Democratic Action (ADA) Board, but also after reviewing the recommendations of my friends, Sharon Kyle, Dick Price (Of the LA Progressive), Jackie Goldberg and Mona Field, some of whose comments I have reproduced verbatim. I will probably send out a second, edited set, including updates and additions, so stay tuned!
JAN GOODMAN’S RECOMMENDATIONS FOR
ELECTION ENDING JUNE 2, 2026
The Headlines
GOVERNOR OF CALIFORNIA—TOM STEYER
MAYOR OF LOS ANGELES—KAREN BASS
Tom Steyer for Governor because he is the only candidate for Governor who will try to put California healthcare on a single payer program. During the debates, he continuously speaks to issues of importance to all Californians.
Any of the Democratic candidates would be better than the
Republicans, however, Javier Becerra expresses many of the same political views on key issues as Tom Steyer, however he is supported by Big Oil & etc., and has moderated his opinion accordingly. A big difference is that Tom Steyer will go BIG and take BOLD action to get things done like,”single payer” healthcare, where Becerra says that’s a good idea, but he is unwilling to say he will work to get it done.
I am voting for Karen Bass because she is the most progressive Mayor this City has ever had. I believe she is unjustly accused for the loss of houses during our Great Fire. Those winds and dry hills meant that no one could have stopped that fire, even though some mistakes were made. She saved jobs of City Employees in how she negotiated the budget matters with the City Unions.
The Details
CITY OF LOS ANGELES
MAYOR: Karen Bass
L.A. CITY ATTORNEY: Marissa Roy
L.A. CITY CONTROLLER: Kenneth Mejia
L.A. CITY COUNCIL
District – 1 Eunisses Hernandez
District – 3 Barri Worth Grivan
District – 9 Estuardo Mazariegos
District – 11 Faizah Malik
District – 13 Hugo Soto Martinez
L.A. UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT
District – 2 Rocio Rivas
District – 4 Ankur Patel — An extremely well qualified candidate, a product and supporter of LA public schools. A perfect example of why this election is important: One of his opponent’s supporters was the head of one of the DOGE teams which took private info from Social Security, passing it on to other recipients—the donor is a New Yorker and maxed out on his donation.
District – 6 Kelly Gomez
STATE SENATE:
District 20 – Caroline Menjivar
District 24 – Scion Roy
District 26 – Sara Hernandez
STATE RACES
STATE ASSEMBLY:
District 40 – Pilar Schiavo
District 44 – Nick Schultz
District 52 – Jessica Caloza
District 55 – Isaac Bryan
District 61 – Tina Simone McKinnon
District 65 – Fatima Iqbal-Zubair
District 67 – Ada Briceño
FEDERAL
US CONGRESS /UNITED STATES REPRESENTATIVE
District 26 – Chris Espinosa
District 28 – Judy Chu
District 30 – Laura Friedman
District 32 – Chris Ahuja
District 34 – Angela Gonzales Torrez
District 37 – Sydney Kamlager-Dove
District 38 – Hilda Solis
District 45 – Derek Tran
District 52 – Frances Yasmeen Motiwalla
LA TAX MEASURES
Measure CB – YES – Tax unlicensed cannabis businesses in LA city. How the city will find them, who knows? YES because the city needs every bit of money it can find.
Measure TC – YES – taxing online travel companies. More little tricks to bring in some bucks from visitors to our beleaguered city.
Measure TT – YES – A measure to increase our hotel guests’ taxes to take advantage of the alleged huge crowds coming to the Olympics. Opposed by the hotel owners, naturally.
CITY OF LOS ANGELES, SPECIAL ASSESSMENT FOR STREET LIGHTS
This is a very strange special situation, with a completely separate ballot. Only property owners vote in this election, vote YES for IMPROVING STREET LIGHTING. You will just mail back the ballot when you get it.
COUNTY
L.A COUNTY SHERIFF:
COUNTY ASSESSOR: Jeffrey Prang
JUDICIAL ENDORSEMENTS (uncontested races are not listed)
Office #2 – Tal Valbuena
Office #14 – Angela Christides
Office #39 – Binh Q. Dang
Office #64 – Rhonda Haymon
Office #65 – Anna Slotkey Reytano or Justin Allen Clayton
Office #66 – Ben Forer or Cheryl C. Turner
Office #81 – David Walgren
Office #87 – David Dejute
Office #116 = Paul Thompson
Office #131 – David Ross
Office #176 – Zachary Smith
Office #181 – Ryan Dibble
LOS ANGELES COUNTY SUPERIOR COURT JUDGE Voter Guide
(uncontested races are not listed)
County Measure ER – YES to sustain healthcare services for our low income neighbors. This is backfilling the cuts in health care funding due to the Trump class warfare agenda. YES ON MEASURE ER
L.A. COUNTY BOARD OF SUPERVISORS
District 1 – Maria Elena Durazo
District 3 – Lindsey Horvath
CALIFORNIA STATE OFFICES
GOVERNOR:
Tom Steyer – Because he is the only candidate for Governor who will try to put California healthcare on a single payer program. Also on the debates, he is the best candidate because he continuously speaks to issues of importance to all Californians.
LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR:
Alice Stek I encourage you to vote for Dr. Alice Stek, the Peace and Freedom candidate to keep the Peace and Freedom party on the ballot, and a friend. It is important to keep P&F on the ballot. They must show some level of voter support in order to keep their ballot status. Alternatively, Michael Tubbs is also a good candidate.
SECRETARY OF STATE: Shirley N. Weber
CONTROLLER: Meghann Adams (Peace and Freedom) (Again, it is important to keep P&F on the ballot, but they must show some level of voter support in order to keep their ballot status, and the only Dem running, Malia Cohen will win handily)
TREASURER: Tony Vasquez
ATTORNEY GENERAL: Rob Bonta — Bonta has been doing a fabulous job, filing dozens of lawsuits against the Trump administration, defending our constitutional rights in so many ways.
INSURANCE COMMISSIONER: Jane Kim – Former SF Co. Supervisor, She is endorsed by Bernie and the Working Families party and is a strong advocate for Single Payor health Care.
BOARD OF EQUALIZATION 3RD DISTRICT: Samuel P. Sukaton
SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION: Nichelle M. Henderson
OTHER CITIES AND JURISDICTIONS (Beyond LA)
Burbank City Council: Eddie Polon
Glendale City Clerk: Suzie Abajian,
Treasurer: Rafi Manoukian
GLENDALE UNIFIED SCHOOL BOARD: INGRID GUNNELL, KAT CROSS
GLENDALE COMMUNITY COLLEGE BOARD: KHATCHATRYAN, MANUEL MAGPANIAN.
Glendale City Council: Alek Bartrosouf. Dan Brotman, Elen Assatryan
Occupancy Tax: YES
I’M A CANDIDATE TOO AND NEED YOUR SUPPORT (A little detour on the way to my recommendations)
No, I’m not running for public office, but once again I’m asking for your support as I run for a seat on the Pacifica National Board –seeking the opportunity to continue the work of strengthening KPFK 90.7 FM and the Pacifica Radio network at a time when independent media matters more than ever. I’ll write more about this race later, but hoping that you can rejoin Pacifica now….
For more than twenty years, I’ve worked alongside or on behalf of many of you to help build the kind of listener-supported, community-powered radio network our democracy urgently needs: one willing to tell the truth, elevate voices too often ignored, and create space for thoughtful dialogue in difficult times.
Please support KPFK and become eligible to vote in the upcoming election, by visiting: KPFK Donation Page
A contribution of at least $25 will renew or activate your membership. When asked which show inspired you, you can fill in California Solartopia — or any favorite program of your choosing.
And if you’d like to learn more about KPFK, Pacifica, or the work ahead, I’d be glad to talk with you.
We are also looking for committed volunteers to serve as:
- Local Station Board Secretary
- Chair of the Fundraising Committee
- If you’re interested in helping lead and strengthen this important institution, please reach out. Your voice, your energy, and your participation truly matter.
& Back to the June 2nd Election: STILL TIME TO REGISTER
Categories: City of L.A., Elections
