Endorsements

Leading up to the vote that created the Twin Rivers Unified school district, the four districts had protracted negotiations about how the new district's board members should be elected.

Californians largely have been spared rancor that afflicts judicial races in many other states, thankfully so.

The newly created 1st Assembly District sprawls across the northeast corner of the state, stretching from north Lake Tahoe to Yreka and including the cities of Susanville and Redding.

Newly redrawn, the 5th Senate District stretches from Galt to Tracy to Modesto, taking in Lodi, Stockton and Manteca. Nearly 43 percent of registered voters are Democrats, and slightly more than 38 percent are Republicans.

The Sacramento County Board of Education runs job training and programs for 30,000 of the county's most vulnerable kids – expelled students, incarcerated youths and severely disabled kids. Three races have drawn an impressive field of candidates.

The face-off between incumbent Kirk Uhler and challenger Pam Tobin is by far the most hotly contested of the three Placer County supervisor races on the June 5 ballot.

Davis voters have an opportunity to infuse the City Council with new blood, tempered with an experienced hand, and ought to seize it.

Colusa County Supervisor Kim Vann, a Republican, and Rep. John Garamendi, a Democrat with a long pedigree in politics, offer voters in a newly redrawn congressional district two solid choices.

The new 11th Assembly District stretches across the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta, encompassing the cities of Vacaville, Oakley, Suisun City and Fairfield. No incumbent is running and partly for that reason the race has attracted a large field of active candidates. Six are vying for the open Assembly seat – four Democrats, one Republican and one candidate who lists no party affiliation.

For nearly eight years, Duane Chamberlain has been a voice for farmers, representing Yolo County's most rural district on the Board of Supervisors.

The Citizens Redistricting Commission's newly redrawn Assembly District 9 has no incumbent. It stretches from the southern reaches of Sacramento County south to Lodi.

District 4 encompasses the hub of Sacramento – midtown and downtown, along with Land Park and a sliver of Natomas. With Rob Fong stepping down from the City Council, this is an open seat, and whoever wins it will be at the center of Sacramento's future.

The reconfigured Assembly District 8 stretches across eastern Sacramento County, encompassing Citrus Heights, Rancho Cordova, Carmichael and Arden Arcade. It has no incumbent. It is a prime example of what political reformers who fought for the citizen's redistricting commission and open primaries were seeking.

Unlike four years ago, the two Sacramento City Council incumbents on the June 5 ballot – Kevin McCarty in District 6 and Bonnie Pannell in District 8 – have challengers and can't just skate back into office.

The road has been bumpy in the merged Twin Rivers Unified School District, yet it has shown progress. Here are five school board candidates to help the district in the future.

Growth and land use issues continue to dominate in El Dorado County.

Voters face a tough choice in the 1st Congressional District that runs from Auburn north to Oregon, an area represented by retiring U.S. Rep. Wally Herger.

In District 2, it's clear what's at stake: North Sacramento has among the region's highest rates of crime, dropouts and unemployment, and many residents complain it is being neglected by City Hall.

Republican attorney Andrew Pugno is challenging Assemblywoman Beth Gaines in the June primary to represent one of the most heavily Republican districts in California – Assembly District 6, which includes parts of Sacramento, El Dorado and Placer counties.

Despite its reputation as an unwelcoming place for smokers, California ranks 33nd among states in taxing tobacco. Smoking-related diseases cost us hundreds of millions of dollars yearly in health care and lost productivity. Thousands of young people get hooked on nicotine each year.

California's version of legislative term limits has proved to be a quick fix that made matters worse, especially in the Assembly.