California 2024 Guide: You Get to Vote Twice for US Senator

For those of you who were busy building bunkers for the apocalypse over the past year, one of California’s US Senators died. Desperate to hang on to a slim majority, her fellow democrats wheeled her near-death corpse in to vote on important legislation for weeks. When she could no longer sit up in the chair, it was game over.

I don’t fault Democrats from doing what they felt was necessary- these are strange (and maybe the end) times. Most adherents to a political party that used to stand for conservative economics and mainstream protestant values has become a shill for monsters crawling out of the bowels of civilization.

Inspired by the Salem witch trials and funded by billionaire bros who think their shit doesn’t stink, an all-out attack on democracy is unfolding. The Republicans in the US Senate, generally speaking, are the ones allowed to pretend this ongoing insurrection isn’t really happening. 

Gov. Gavin Newsom, a democrat who has clarity about what’s going on, found himself a well-connected stand-in unlikely to cause controversy. Laphonza Butler promised to vacate the seat once people voted for a replacement. And the race was on.

There are two elections at once occurring in the primary contests headed into Super Tuesday.

First on the ballot, we’re asked to vote for a Senator who will serve a full-term, effective next year. There are 27 candidates vying for the job. The top two will go on the General Election ballot.

It’s my goal here to tell readers a little bit about all the candidates, reserving extra space for those already showing up near the top of the polls. And you can’t handle my sassiness and/or stark, you probably should have given up reading this post by now.

Secondly, we’re asked to select a replacement for the remainder of Diane Feinstein’s term, could end up serving only seven weeks.

Seven candidates, all of which are also going for the full term are on the ballot. Two candidates will appear again on the November ballot, provided nobody scores over 50%.

In a normal world the interim winner of the Senate contest would have a boost in momentum heading into November. These aren’t normal times. 

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For full term ending on January 3, 2031

Notable Democrats

Barbara Lee, Democrat, House of Representatives
Website
Until the attack on Israel on October 7th, there might have been cause to debate whether Congresswoman Barbara Lee or her colleague Katie Porter was the most progressive Democrat running for US Senate.

The issues that once made Lee seem radical –Medicare for All, student-debt cancellation, marijuana-conviction relief, a national rent-control standard, and a repeal of the Hyde Amendment, —have become mainstream issues for Democrats. She and her House colleagues  have voted the same way 94% of the time.

Lee, whose anti-war stances have made her a standout in the House, immediately called for a permanent cease-fire between Israel and Hamas. While this initially might have seemed to be a controversial position, the course of the conflict has made her stand one shared by many younger voters with progressive leanings

When Berkeley’s Congressman Ron Dellums retired in 1998, Lee won a special election to replace him, and she is now the longest serving Black member in the House. She’s now 77 years old and, given that Feinstein stayed in her seat longer than she should have, age has been raised as an issue.

Because Lee has shown that she won’t compromise on issues requiring moral clarity, she is my choice in this contest. The other two Democrats are acceptable to me, but I would admit to being afraid of being disappointed down the road.

Lee, as a politician motivated by conscience; Schiff, as a committed adversary of Trump; Porter, as the foil of corporations; and Garvey as a former baseball player. The night was laden with baseball puns. After Garvey refused to say whether he would support Trump in the general election, Porter quipped back: “Once a Dodger, always a Dodger.” “That was a swing and a miss,” Schiff tried following up, to groans and guffaws from the room.

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Adam Schiff, Democrat, House of Representatives
Website
Adam Schiff, once regarded as a Blue Dog deficit hawk, gained notoriety as a committed adversary of former Donald J Trump during the January 6 hearings. He withdrew his application for the House Progressive Caucus after it became clear they weren’t buying what he was selling.

Now, the many in the Democratic establishment in California have apparently decided he’s their man. Former Senator Barbara Boxer, former Speaker Nancy Pelosi, the LA Times, and a significant number of unions have all endorsed the congressman from Burbank.

His stance on the conflict in Gaza/Israel mirrors President Biden’s stance along the lines of  Israel has the right to defend itself and the U.S. must do all it can to assist Israel. And Schiff’s embrace of dark/PAC money has provided fodder for attacks from the left.

He’s leading in the polls, and has drawn criticism for ads boosting the candidacy of Republican Steve Garvey, taking advantage of California’s top two primary system to keep his Democratic challengers off the November ballot.

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Katie Porter, Democrat, House of Representatives
Website
She’s the Congresswoman who’s gained fame for taking corporations to the woodshed using a white board to illustrate her points. And it’s not just the captains of industry who have felt her wrath.

Democrats get included in Porter’s criticisms of members of Congress, including those using earmarks to fund pet projects in their districts.  She’s crossed powerful members like former Speaker Nancy Pelosi of San Francisco — who has endorsed Schiff.

On the one issue most divisive for Democrats  these days, Porter has tried to walk a middle path, starting with calling for a humanitarian pause in Gaza, and most recently a bilateral ceasefire.

A recent Los Angeles Times profile highlighted the balancing act Porter maintains as a single mother to three, social media celebrity and Senate candidate. She’s obviously driven in what she does, and schmoozing in DC just isn’t on her agenda. She’s turned her challenges into an asset, working for the good of the country and being a devoted mom; lots of Californians find they can identify with her struggles. 

If we had ranked choice voting in California, Porter would be second on my list. 

Notable Republican

Steve Garvey, Republican, Former Baseball Star
Website
The Republicans have found themselves another celebrity athlete who has enough name recognition to get media coverage. It’s too bad they couldn’t find a candidate who could debate his way out of a paper bag. Or actually live up to his claims about family values.

His first standup next to the Democratic congress members running for Senate at a USC debate was by any measure –except perhaps thru MAGA goggles– disaster. You could say he was entertaining, as the audience repeatedly laughed at his statements. The Dems on stage took turns battering him like a pinata, which should be good for some GOP votes. 

The Los Angeles Times profile of Garvey was a brutal takedown, refuting his claims about being a devoted family man. He’s estranged from some of his children, been sued multiple times, and impregnated two women before running off to marry his current wife. I guess if you’re holding up Donald Trump as a role model, Garvey fits right in.

Columnist Robin Abcarian asked a serious question after witnessing the debate, 

• Please help me understand how the man is different from an artificial intelligence bot programmed to utter the most anodyne phrases he thinks voters want to hear: “I’m common sense. I’m compassionate. I’m consensus building.”

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Minor Party & No Party Candidates

Laura Garza, No Party, Freight Railroad Worker
Socialist Worker Party Website
This so-called socialist party that claims to think Donald Trump is being unjustly persecuted (so they’ll appeal to their imaginary working class voter) hasn’t been able to get enough support to be recognized as legit in California. Let’s keep it that way.

Don J. Grundmann, No Party, Doctor of Chiropractic
Website
Speaking of wannabe parties, Grundman is the candidate of the Constitution Party. His opening web page captures the supposed terror of drag queens recruiting children at the library.

Forrest Jones, Amer. Independent,  (No ballot description)
Website
Third in our lineup of wannabe political parties, we have Forest Jones, who claims to be affiliated with the American Independent Party. The California branch of that organization hasn’t endorsed Jones, who thinks his names are an anagram of Forrest Gump and Indiana Jones.

Gail Lightfoot, Libertarian, Retired Registered Nurse
Website
She really is connected to the Libertarian Party, which wants big gubment outta our lives. She’s run for office an astonishing 13 times and never come close to the top in votes gathered.

Mark Ruzon, No Party, Software Engineer
Solidarity Party Website
I’m pretty sure the Solidarity Party is a Catholic front group.

Major Singh, No Party, Software Engineer
Website
He’s good at memes.

Assorted Democrats

Christina Pascucci, Democrat, Local Television Journalist
Website
She sounds like a reasonable (centrist) Democrat. Pascucci made the news recently when CA Secretary of State Weber’s office forgot to list her profession on printed ballots. (It’s been corrected in online materials.)

John Rose, Democrat, Office Manager
Website
There are one-issue candidates in every election; Rose is on the ballot to advocate for bi-partisan campaign finance reforms via a Constitutional Amendment. Part of his platform involves encouraging civic participation and voter engagement. e.g., giving people a cookie or other reward for being attentive and knowledgeable on current events.

Harmesh Kumar, Democrat, Psychologist
Website
He’s the man with a plan, according to his materials. Mental health treatment is his priority. Society’s chaos is the fault of politicians influenced by lobbyists and their money, he says.

Sepi Gilani, Democrat, Physician
Website
The terms “Homelessness, Healthcare, Education” are what her campaign is about. Nary a word can be found about unhoused humans and the economic factors at play. 

David Peterson, Democrat, Small Business Owner
Website
His big three issues, generally described as something he’ll ‘work on’ if elected, are Medicare For All (take the bribes out of medicine), Solar Liberty, and permanent infrastructure for fire protection..

Perry Pound, Democrat, Small Business Owner
Website
He’s got movie star looks, and a platform chock full of vanilla generalities. Could this platform have been produced with Artificial Intelligence? I don’t know, but it seems too generic to be true.

Douglas H Pierce, Democrat, Missing Persons Investigator
Website
He’s the law and order candidate for Democrats, with one of the longest resumes ever in a campaign site. You name it, he’s done it. Says he is a special investigator but doesn’t name an agency that employed him.

Raji Rab, Democrat, Aviator
Website
His issues page starts with an allegation of “massive election malconduct in the counting of early votes.” Rab needs professional help, like a writer with a command of the English language and a photographer with a better cell phone capable of taking pictures that make him look ugly.

Assorted Republicans

Jonathan Reiss, Republican (No ballot description)
Website
He’s the “America First” Republican candidate, with a platform ripped from the back pages of an old Barry Goldwater notebook.

James “Jim” MaCauley, Republican, Sales Associate
Website
Describes himself as a “Teddy Roosevelt 1910 Conservative.” running on a UNITY platform, which includes declaring war on Mexico and impeaching Biden/Harris if they won’t follow his orders.

Denice Gary-Pandol, Republican, Retired Security Analyst
Website
She posed for a campaign picture with retired Gen. Michael Flynn, the conspiracy cloaked former national security advisor to Donald Trump.  

Sara Sun Liew, Republican, Pastor
Website
She’s promising to rebuild the Christian state Trump fought for.

Sharleta Bassett, Republican, Businesswoman
Website
Her campaign slogan is “Free Our Nation.” She’s on the bandwagon for the “ReAwaken America” tour and also features retired Gen. Michael Flynn along with an endorsement message from dirty trickster Roger Stone.

James Bradley, Republican, CEO
Website
As a US Senator he promises to repeal AB5, the STATE law addressing worker misclassification. Number one on his list of non-business no-nos is Critical Race Theory.

Martin Vaprauskas, Republicans, Retired Operations Manager
Website
If you read between the lines in his platform rhetoric about homelessness, you’ll find a commitment to a humane concentration camp system.

Eric Early, Republican, Attorney
Website
He’s NOT a politician. Early promises to “stand-up to the Socialist woke interests that control Washington, DC.” Oh, and …Hunter Biden, Hunter Biden, Hunter Biden.

Stefan Simchowitz, Republican, Art Dealer
Website
Finally, a Republican in favor of Big Government, i.e., federalizing homelessness.

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Partial Term Candidates (Serving until January 3, 2025)

My comments in the prior section apply here, since they’re appearing on the ballot twice.

Adam Schiff, Democrat, House of Representatives
Website

Steve Garvey, Republican, Former Baseball Star
Website

Eric Early, Republican, Attorney
Website

Sepi Gilani, Democrat, Physician
Website

Barbara Lee, Democrat, House of Representatives
Website

Christina Pascucci, Democrat, Local Television Journalist
Website

Katie Porter, Democrat, House of Representatives
Website

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That’s it for today. Those post-it notes won’t take themselves out of my research process.

Previously: CA’s Presidential Primary, CA Proposition One
Next Up: San Diego Mayor, City Attorney