Dem leaders praise woman suing Archuleta as he keeps committees + Is Steyer running? + Bonta’s seat
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!
ARCHULETA UPDATE
Via Hannah Wiley...
Last week, news broke that a former district staffer for Sen. Bob Archuleta, D-Pico Rivera, was suing the lawmaker and the state Senate for alleged sexual harassment, retaliation and discrimination.
The claims — The complaint, filed March 18 in Los Angeles County Superior Court, outlines incidents in which the staffer alleges Archuleta made inappropriate comments about her breasts, detailed affairs he had and publicly reprimanded and embarrassed her. The lawsuit also references a toxic male office culture that perpetuated gender discrimination and made it difficult for the staffer, referenced as “Jane Doe” in the lawsuit, to do her job.
What’s new — Niesha Fritz, spokeswoman for Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, and the California Legislative Women’s Caucus confirmed Wednesday that Archuleta will remain on his committees.
The lawsuit was filed after the Workplace Conduct Unit, according to Doe, failed to act in a timely manner on an investigation into Archuleta’s behavior.
Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins, D-San Diego, said the Senate Rules Committee had been made aware of some of the allegations, but not all. The investigation is now on hold because of the lawsuit.
“As members of the Legislative Women’s Caucus, we take sexual harassment allegations made by any member of the state Capitol community very seriously. Claims of sexual harassment and unwanted advances must always be treated with the utmost gravity, and we remain committed to fostering an environment that protects all Californians from inappropriate behavior, whether in the Capitol or in any other setting,” Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia, D-Bell Gardens, and Sen. Nancy Skinner, D-Berkeley, said in a joint statement.
“However, it’s our understanding that because the former Senate staffer has decided to file a civil action against the state Senate and Sen. Archuleta, the Workplace Conduct Unit’s investigation is now on hold,” Garcia and Skinner said. “We will be watching the civil case in this matter closely, and if it results in substantiating the allegations, we expect there to be swift and transparent consequences.”
Garcia and Skinner said Doe “displayed courage” when she raised her concerns with the unit, and encouraged other employees to “come forward and report instances in which they have been treated wrongly so they can be fully investigated.”
But Doe’s Los Angeles-based attorney Carney Shegerian said the staffer’s career has already been “derailed” after nearly a decade and a half working in the Legislature.
“It’s just unfortunate that she has paid the price of losing her career,” Shegerian said.
Archuleta denied the allegations as “categorically false” and said he looked forward to contesting the claims in court. He also said he’s spent his fighting for the “right of every Californian to feel safe, valued and protected in the workplace.”
A DEMOCRATIC CHALLENGER IN THE RECALL?
Via Lara Korte...
Gov. Gavin Newsom for weeks has been fending off the idea that a Democrat could challenge him in a recall election. Much of his anti-recall strategy has involved sparkling endorsements from Democratic lawmakers and attempts to paint the effort as a Republican power grab.
But billionaire Democratic environmentalist Tom Steyer wants to see how Californians really feel.
The one-time presidential-candidate Steyer has apparently commissioned a poll, Politico reported, asking voters if they would oust the governor right now and, if so, how they felt about a swath of potential Democratic candidates, including Steyer himself.
When asked about the polling at his attorney general announcement Wednesday, Newsom seemed to remain confident that he had the wide support of Democrats.
“I’ve been... very proud to have that almost unanimous opposition to the recall,” Newsom told reporters. “I look forward to working with those that will soon join the cause and I have confidence in our capacity to truly unite the Democratic party against this Republican recall.”
Steyer, for his part, made clear in a statement Wednesday that he was not backing the recall. His team told Capitol reporter Ashley Zavala: “The recall efforts in California are a clear attempt by the GOP to take back control of the state and squelch the progressive momentum that swept through 2020 and will carry forward. That is why I oppose the recall.”
The threat of a Democratic candidate remains a question mark in the recall race. Breaking ranks with fellow party members is a gamble for any California Democrat, but it could be done.
Those who remember 2003 will recall Democrat Cruz Bustamante attempting to carefully toe the line during the recall election of fellow Democrat Gov. Gray Davis. Bustamante’s platform during that race was “No on the recall, yes on Bustamante.”
The gamble, as we know now, didn’t pay off for Bustamante in the end. Could it work for a Democrat in 2021?
WHAT HAPPENS TO BONTA’S SEAT?
With Assemblyman Rob Bonta soon to be Attorney General Rob Bonta, California will have to hold a special election to fill the seat Bonta is vacating.
With all the special elections going on, this may be old hat to you, but just in case, here’s a refresher, courtesy of the Secretary of State’s Office.
Once Bonta officially vacates his seat, Gov. Newsom has 14 days to issue a proclamation for a special election to fill it. That special election can be no more than 140 days after the proclamation, unless there is another election taking place in that Assembly seat district. In that case, the two elections can be consolidated and it can be up to 200 days of the proclamation.
Either way, expect a special election for Bonta’s seat sometime in the fall.
PROTEST OUTSIDE NEWSOM’S HOME
Gov. Newsom can expect an unusual sight outside his front door beginning Thursday: a 15-foot picture of his head, next to the words “I support factory farms.”
Animal activist group Direct Action Everywhere announced they intend to camp out in front of the governor’s private residence for 24 hours beginning Thursday at 11 a.m.
“They will remain awake and active, taking part in activities that draw attention to the impacts of factory farming in the state,” according to a statement from the group.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
”As CA’s first Filipino Attorney General, (Rob Bonta) will fight to reform our justice system & stand up to hate. He has led efforts to end cash bail, ban for-profit prisons, renter protections, and hate crime protections. He will be a staunch advocate for CA values.”
- Office of the Governor Twitter account.
Best of the Bee:
Gov. Gavin Newsom gifted California’s liberal activists an ally in the attorney general’s office by tapping Assemblyman Rob Bonta to become California’s next top cop, via Hannah Wiley.
Gov. Gavin Newsom’s decision to appoint Oakland Assemblyman Rob Bonta as California’s new attorney general makes history in more ways than one, via The Sacramento Bee Editorial Board.
Following Gov. Gavin Newsom’s announcement Wednesday, California Democrats offered words of praise and encouragement for Assemblyman Rob Bonta, who will not only be California’s top cop, but the first Filipino to hold the office. Here’s what lawmakers and other political leaders had to say about Bonta’s appointment, via Lara Korte.