California Has A Ton Of Down-ballot Races Worth Your Attention

California offers a big reward to presidential candidates on Super Tuesday with its largest-in-the-nation haul of delegates, but there’s plenty of down ballot action happening across the Golden State.

With its unique jungle primary system where the top two finishers regardless of party advance to November, California contests often involve deeper layers of campaign strategizing to ensure parties aren’t locked out of the general election — or are better positioned to win the runoff.

Here’s a look at the political and policy choices confronting voters, from the statewide Senate race to local measures about crime and drug use in San Francisco.

The race to succeed Sen. Dianne Feinstein

Democratic Rep. Adam Schiff and Republican Steve Garvey pulled ahead of Democratic Rep. Katie Porter in the last poll before the March 5 primary for the late Dianne Feinstein’s Senate seat. The two men will likely advance beyond Tuesday, an ideal situation for Schiff who’s all but guaranteed to win in November thanks to the state’s heavily blue electorate. Schiff secured his top spot by leaning into his anti-Trump cred and spending millions in television advertising to boost Garvey, which will likely have its intended effect of boxing Porter out of the contest.

A nightmare scenario in the Central Valley

The political machinations in the Central Valley swing district currently held by GOP Rep. David Valadao are emblematic of just how tangled California’s jungle primary system can get. The Democratic establishment has poured millions into ad buys there to prop up their party pick, former Assemblymember Rudy Salas, over state Sen. Melissa Hurtado, a fellow Democrat. The fear is that Hurtado’s candidacy could pull enough support from Salas in the Republican-leaning primary that he’d fall into third place behind Valadao and his far-right challenger Chris Mathys. That result would be highly embarrassing for Democrats as the seat is a key piece of the party’s plan to retake the House.

An embattled DA in Los Angeles

Los Angeles has enough political drama on the ballot this year to inspire several Netflix serials. First there’s the fate of City Councilmember Kevin de León, who is seeking voter redemption after getting caught in a racist recording in 2022. Then there’s the reelection of LA District Attorney George Gascón, who’s drawn a dozen challengers sensing vulnerabilities for the progressive prosecutor and his push for lighter sentencing and more police accountability. Finally, there’s an ideological test in the Los Angeles City Council, where fellow progressive Nithya Raman is fending off a challenge by Deputy City Attorney Ethan Weaver, who’s run to her right on issues like homelessness and crime.

Policing and drug testing in San Francisco

Voters in the liberal bastion of San Francisco are expected to pass two local ballot measures that would have been anathema to Democrats across the nation in the aftermath of George Floyd’s death. The city’s moderate Democratic Mayor London Breed has proposed the measures in large part to help save her own political hide as she faces reelection this fall. The first — more familiar to red state leaders — would require drug-testing for people receiving county welfare. The second raises alarms for civil libertarians by expanding police officers’ ability to pursue suspects with drones and video surveillance. It’s part of a shift to the center in San Francisco as it struggles to control a triple epidemic of crime, fentanyl and homelessness.