Your next Assemblyman from the 80th District:

Coachella, CA – Early this morning Manuel Perez declared victory in the Democratic primary in the 80th Assembly District. Perez won an overwhelming victory by building a strong multi-ethnic and diverse coalition in Riverside County and Imperial County.

“People power made the difference in this election,” declared Democratic nominee Manuel Perez. “My message of hope and values resonated across both counties as voters yearned for new leadership, new energy and common values.”

Progressives around the state could really learn from this guy.  I met Manuel Perez almost a year ago and was really thrilled by the transformative nature of his candidacy, someone who understands the issues facing California but can also put together the progressive argument in a broad and powerful way.  Plus he can reach out and help build a new generation of Hispanic leadership in the desert area that will leave its mark long after he’s out of the picture.  Mark my words, there’s a leadership position in this guy’s future, sooner rather than later.

The great thing is that the best chance we have for a pickup in November is not a Lou Correa-type Democrat but a real fighter for progressive values.  You don’t have to be afraid of your beliefs, you can speak to them and win.  That’s what Perez’ victory signifies.

(and a little labor money didn’t hurt either)

Periodically between now and the primaries on June 3, I’ll be checking in with some brief election news.

• CA-04: Charlie Brown has released his first ad of the cycle.  It’s a bio spot, and it’s a good one.

I would have liked to have seen some specifics about the veterans care challenge, but I understand that it’s well-known inside the district so maybe the allusion to it was all that was necessary.  Certainly he’s taking an above-the-fray stance in the midst of the brutal primary on the other side.  I like it.

• AD-80: I bet you didn’t to see CNA and SEIU supporting the same candidate in virtually anything, especially at this sensitive time, but both of them have come out in favor of Manuel Perez, in addition to the California Medical Association PAC.

• At Election Track, you can follow contributions to all of California’s candidates as we head to the primary.

• CA-08: Cindy Sheehan says she has $130,000 for her challenge to Nancy Pelosi, running as an independent.

• SD-03: Here’s a Joe Nation ad (over the flip) focusing on the environment. Is this running anywhere?

This is actually a pretty important weekend for Congressional and legislative Democratic candidates across California.  State party delegates will get together tonight and Saturday in pre-endorsement conferences to vote whether or not to endorse particular candidates for the June primary elections.  There’s been a lot of organizing to woo delegates into endorsing one candidate or another, even in races where there is no opponent.  Every delegate gets one vote in Congressional districts, Senate districts and Assembly districts, based on where they live.  These endorsements become the official Democratic Party endorsement if a candidate receives 70% of the vote (If a candidate gets between 50 and 70 percent, it goes to caucuses at the state party convention in two weeks). UPDATE: That’s the short version; the long version is below.  

And then their names get sent out on all Democratic mailers, and that’s not a little thing.  Endorsed party candidates are in a very strong position.  It doesn’t mean the voters won’t have their say, but it’s a big help.  In fact, there’s a credible argument to be made that the party shouldn’t endorse one Democrat over another in a primary.  But that’s the system we have now.

Throughout the weekend, it’d be good to hear from those party officials and delegates with reports on who, if anyone, received endorsements in the various districts.  I’m particularly interested in AD-80, AD-78, SD-03, and some of the Congressional seats with multiple candidates like CA-24 and CA-42, among others.  

I am firmly committed to getting a 2/3 majority in both houses of the state Legislature by 2010.  Fabian Nuñez believes that, in the Assembly, we can get halfway there by November.

Speaking at the Sacramento Press Club yesterday, Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez said Democrats should add three seats to their 48-32 majority in the California Assembly in November’s elections.

Nunez made the prediction after new figures from the Secretary of State show a surge in Democratic registrations in all but two Assembly districts, including three held by incumbent Republicans who will be forced to leave office.

They include the desert/Riverside area seat held by Assemblywoman Bonnie Garcia, the San Diego seat of Assemblywoman Shirley Horton, and the Contra Costa/Sacramento Delta seat held by Assemblyman Guy Houston.

These are clearly the three seats to target.  AD-80 (Garcia’s seat) has some excellent candidates on the Democratic side, including Greg Pettis and the Hispanic Barack Obama, Manuel Perez.  We have good candidates in AD-78 (Horton’s old seat) and AD-15 (Houston’s) as well – as those Caliticians in those districts can attest.  Plus, we not only have registration advantages, but the advantage of a game-changing Democratic nominee at the top of the ticket (whether it’s Obama or Clinton) that will bring new Democratic voters to the process.  These three seats are prime opportunities, and there are other Assembly opportunities like Greg Aghazarian’s seat (he’s also termed out), and more in the Senate (Hannah Beth Jackson’s bid in SD-19, the possible Jeff Denham recall, Abel Maldonado’s SD-15).

However, I want to highlight this nugget about the way Assembly and Senate elections are managed in California.

If Democrats field strong candidates for these seats, we could be looking at a pickup of 2/3+ seats.

Each of the marquee races are expected to be $1 million+ contests. The new Assembly Speaker will be responsible for raising funds and overseeing the campaigns.

on the flip…

I’ve talked about this with party leaders several times, and nobody has given me an adequate explanation about this.  In a way, it’s a lot like the DCCC as the House-based campaign arm for national elections.  But I’m struggling to understand why the Speaker (and the President Pro Tem of the Senate) have the sole responsibility of overseeing these elections and creating advertising, GOTV, etc.  It seems to me that the California Democratic Party would be able to do a much better job in these districts, with their membership already on the ground and involved, and with a larger fundraising base to conduct the operations necessary.  Yet for some reason, there is this bifurcation: the CDP deals with statewide races and Congressional seats, and the Assembly and Senate leadership do the legislative races.  Is this just tradition?  Why can’t the CDP play in whatever race they wish?

This problem, or at least what I consider a problem, is compounded by the fact that we will have new leadership in the Assembly and Senate, leadership that may be unused to running multiple campaign operations out of their offices.  I think Darrell Steinberg is a fine man (so does George Skelton) who’s going to do a great job as the Senate leader, but I don’t know how he’s going to do facilitating Hannah Beth Jackson’s race in the Thousand Oaks area.  Furthermore, the new Assembly Speaker won’t be picked for a month, and we have to start on these races right now.  Obviously the Presidential race is going to take up all the oxygen in the fall, so ensuring that the Democratic candidates get their message out and the Republicans in these open seats are defined is crucial.  And right now, for the next month, there’s literally nobody to do that.

(Also, the proliferation of independent expenditure money in this state necessitates some organizational and financial help for legislative candidates that may otherwise just get swamped.)

I can hold judgment on the efficacy of this and bow to those wiser in the ways of California elections if I were given a satisfactory explanation for this structure.  But nobody has done so, and I’ve spoken to a lot of people inside the CDP about this.  I think 2008, in a favorable environment for Democrats, with no statewide races on the ballot at all, and with a badly broken Republican Party in California that is broke and rife with internal squabbling, would be an excellent time to shift this tradition, and for the CDP to exercise some muscle in these legislative districts, helping solid Democrats get elected and moving us ever closer to the desired 2/3 majority that we need to make the real changes necessary to move the state forward.

This is not an accusation, but a dialogue.  I’m looking for ways for my party to be more effective.