Guns. Threats. Political theater. Welcome to California’s nastiest Senate race | Opinion
Truthfully, I don’t have a lot of love for state Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil.
In her short tenure in the Legislature, the senator has amassed a deeply embarrassing history of assault allegations, historic party-switching and a dubious voting record that led The Bee to endorse her Democratic opponent, Tuolumne County supervisor Jaron Brandon.
But I don’t think she deserves to be shot.
Yet a new campaign flier that was mailed to homes in California’s Senate District 4 from the race’s far-right candidate, Alexandra Duarte, shows her wearing ear protection along with dark hat and sunglasses while pointing a handgun with flash at the muzzle.
Duarte’s point — and her trajectory — are obvious: She’s aiming right at a picture of Alvarado-Gil.
“Either GOP’er Alexandra Duarte’s team are terrible at political mail design, or they are completely tone-deaf to the moment we are living in,” wrote Tim Rosales, a consultant to Alvarado-Gil’s campaign, in an email to The Bee.
The California Senate’s 4th District is huge, home to more than 1 million people living in the nine, largely rural counties of Alpine, Amador, Calaveras, El Dorado, Inyo, Mariposa, Mono, Stanislaus and Tuolumne. But it only barely leans Republican: 39% of voters are registered Republicans and 34% are Democrats, according to CalMatters.
As Alvarado-Gil well knows — because she only won her seat as a Democrat after six Republicans created a historic vote-split in the district in 2022 — Duarte’s challenge from the right provides a clear path for the Democratic challenger, Brandon, to win it all. And it’s stunts like these that drive Republican voters away, tired of the messy politics that always seem to dog their party.
“At a time when politicians have faced assassination attempts and rising political violence, showing the wife of former Congressman John Duarte pointing a gun with a … muzzle flash in the direction of California State Senator Marie Alvarado-Gil is reckless, disturbing and way over the line,” Rosales said.
Both pictures are on what looks to be tin cans of food, with the “ingredients” of Alvarado-Gil’s can listed as: “Called herself a ‘F***ing Democrat,’ doesn’t support President Trump, holds hands with Kamala Harris, gave free healthcare to illegals, put tampons in boys’ bathrooms, made abortions easier to get, mandated vaccines, supports lockdowns, let Newsom’s germander (sic) pass, facing explosive sexual harassment allegations – and that’s just the start.”
Duarte’s ingredients aren’t listed, but presumably her can would just contain more guns.
The California GOP’s official X account addressed the troubling flier in a post Monday morning, stating it opposes the mailer from the Duarte campaign and calling it “troubling imagery implying violence against Senator Marie Alvarado-Gil.”
“Amid recent assassination attempts against President Trump and increased violence targeting elected officials, it’s important for all campaigns, whether Republican or Democrat, to work towards calming our political climate and encouraging respectful dialogue,” the party posted.
So is this just a case of bad art design, or is Duarte seriously implying that Alvarado-Gil should be shot? The clunky tin can allegory and her political opinions make a strong case for the former.
Duarte would likely argue that it’s just a picture of her love and support for Second Amendment rights. But visual statements can be just as loud as spoken statements, and aren’t the visuals the whole point of sending political mail?
At best, it’s yet another case of the kind of aggressive and even violent political rhetoric Trump’s loyal legions gleefully spew at anyone they deem an enemy, even at those in their own party.
Duarte doesn’t need to point a gun at the incumbent — metaphorically, accidentally or literally — to make a case for her candidacy. No, she seems perfectly capable of shooting herself in the foot, all on her own.
This story was originally published May 11, 2026 at 11:50 AM.
