Trouble for Harder on redistricting? + Another Lara endorsement + Anti-tobacco event
Good morning and welcome to the A.M. Alert!
SWIPE RIGHT FOR A NEW CONGRESSIONAL MAP
Groups of right-leaning San Joaquin Valley residents and farming families want to make one Democratic congressional district just a bit more Republican as the state prepares to redraw its legislative boundaries.
The changes they want would tilt the 10th Congressional District away from Democratic Rep. Josh Harder, who has held the Modesto-centered district since the 2018 midterm when he unseated Republican Rep. Jeff Denham.
One plan submitted by San Joaquin County farmers to California’s nonpartisan redistricting commission might make Harder’s district more Republican by stripping it of southern San Joaquin County commuter cities like Tracy.
San Joaquin County in that proposal would have its own congressional district, which likely would lean Democratic because it would contain Stockton, while Republicans likely would gain a Modesto-centered seat.
The other plan recommended by Republicans in Stanislaus County also would strip Harder’s district of Tracy, but it would redraw boundaries to replace Tracy with Lodi north of Stockton.
It also would make the district look like a tinfoil swan-neck. The district would stretch from Modesto to Lodi without touching Tracy or Stockton.
“Interestingly shaped districts are not shocking,” said Andrew Acosta, a Democratic political consultant who is from Lodi, one of the towns that would be at the swan’s beak.
Some Republican residents in Stanislaus County, which is entirely in Harder’s district, told the redistricting commission that want their congressional district to include conservative farming communities. They contend that kind of district would make sense because the communities share economic interests, like wineries and agribusiness.
One of the caucus chairs of Stanislaus County’s GOP, Samuel Bosshardt, penned a memorable letter to the redistricting commission.
“As a resident of the Modesto/Ceres area, I don’t have anything close to a feeling of community with Tracy,” he wrote. “I don’t even seriously consider dating there — I swipe left on everyone from Tracy, Livermore, and Stockton.”
Read more on the battle over the battleground boundaries in Gillian Brassill’s report today.
EQUALITY CALIFORNIA ENDORSES LARA
Democratic California Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara has picked up an endorsement from LGBTQ advocacy group Equality California.
Lara is up for reelection in 2022, and is set to defend his job against Democratic challenger Assemblyman Marc Levine, D-Marin County.
“Equality California is proud to stand with Ricardo because his bold, transformative representation has been critical to improving the lives of LGBTQ+ Californians & people living with HIV,” said outgoing Executive Director Rick Chavez Zbur and incoming Executive Director Tony Hoang in a joint statement. “From his leadership during the COVID-19 pandemic to his work to end insurance discrimination against people living with HIV, Commissioner Lara has been there for our LGBTQ+ community and for all Californians. We are ready to do everything necessary to push Ricardo onward to victory, and we look forward to his reelection.”
In a statement, Lara, who was California’s first openly LGBT statewide elected officer, said that he was honored to have Equality California’s support.
“Together, we’ve made so much progress, but we won’t stop until all voices are heard, respected and honored,” Lara said in a statement.
The primary election is set for June 7, 2022.
LAWMAKERS TO ATTEND ANTI-TOBACCO EVENT
Current and former California lawmakers are set to appear at an event aimed at supporting SB 793, the 2020 law banning the sale of most flavored tobacco products in the state. A reminder that SB 793 is set to face a voter referendum in November of 2022.
The Campaign to Protect California Kids is sponsoring a “Campaign for the Culture” event on Wednesday aimed at raising awareness “about Big Tobacco’s decades-old scheme to trap Black neighborhoods in a cycle of nicotine addiction, disease and death,” according to a statement announcing the event.
Among the attendees of the virtual event are former Sen. Jerry Hill, who authored SB 793, and Assemblywoman (and doctor) Akilah Weber, who will be part of a panel discussion entitled “History of Big Tobacco’s predatory practices on Black communities.”
The event begins at 4 p.m. on Wednesday. You can RSVP for it by clicking here.
QUOTE OF THE DAY
“.@GavinNewsom is announcing a lot of bill signings lately but not many vetoes, which makes one wonder if we’ll get a heap of rejections near the Saturday deadline.”
- Politico California reporter Jeremy B. White, no doubt voicing the fears of many a California lawmaker via Twitter.
Best of the Bee:
Speaking to teachers and students at Fresno’s Sunset Elementary School on Tuesday, California Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a trio of bills; part of a $123.9 billion legislative package that delivers record-level investments in public schools, via Joshua Tehee and Ashleigh Panoo.
Californians earning below $75,000 a year can expect to see more money in their bank accounts soon after the state on Tuesday issued its latest batch of stimulus payments, via Kim Bojórquez.
California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday signed a bill into law prohibiting restaurants and other food facilities from providing single-use foodware accessories or condiments — such as forks or soy sauce packets — unless they are specifically requested by the customer, via Andrew Sheeler.