Millions of California voters are going to pick their favorites tomorrow regardless of party affiliation in the premier statewide test of the "top-two" primary, a process aimed at limiting the hyperpartisanship that has poisoned California politics. For some, fingers are crossed. For others, the yawns are over powering.
From the NY Times' Jennifer Medina: "On Tuesday, for the first time, California voters will participate in a nonpartisan primary. Instead of the top candidate from each party advancing to the general election, the two candidates with the most votes will be placed on the November ballot, regardless of party affiliation."
"This year will be the first test of a new kind of election aimed at breaking the partisan gridlock that has seized Congress and state legislatures all over the country. When the change was presented to California voters by a ballot initiative in 2010, advocates said it would usher in a new era that embraced politicians who would be more pragmatic than ideological..."
"Still, there are signs that candidates are trying to appeal to the middle. A handful of Republican candidates have refused to sign a no-tax pledge, a promise that has long been seen as sacrosanct for Republicans here. And several Democrats have angered the public unions, which have been crucial longtime allies."
Speaking of the election, here are some basic numbers, courtesy of the secretary of state's office.
From Capitol Weekly's John Howard: "Of California’s 23,713,027 eligible voters, some 17,153,699 are registered to vote, or about 72.34 percent of those eligible, the secretary of state’s office reported. The numbers cover registration through the May 21 deadline."
"Of those registered, 43.4 percent identified themselves as Democrats, 30.2 percent said they were Republicans and 5.1 percent listed an affiliation with a minor party."
"Some 21.3 percent registered without listing a party preference, continuing the trend of a steadily expanding proportion of decline-to-state, or independent, voters. The percentage of decline-to-state registration has doubled in California since the mid-1990s."
One constant of California elections is that money talks, and one need look no further than Proposition 29, which would impose a $1-per-pack tax hike on cigarettes. It is opposed by the tobacco industry, which is paying big time to fight it.
From the Mercury News' Steve Harmon: "After riding solid polls out of the gate in March, leading in one survey by 37 points, Proposition 29, the ballot measure that would raise taxes on cigarettes by $1 a pack to fund cancer research, looked like a sure thing. But that was before opponents -- using $46 million from tobacco giants Philip Morris and R.J. Reynolds -- began waging an unrelenting TV and radio ad campaign, featuring the same doctor in a white smock."
"A survey released Thursday by the Public Policy Institute of California showed Proposition 29's lead down to 11 points: 53 percent to 42 percent."
"Though the measure still holds leads in most polls, the downward trajectory bodes ill for proponents heading into Tuesday's election."
Orly Taitz, the loquacious dentist/lawyer from Orange County who is trying to build a political career by challenging President Obama's birth records, is one of a flock of Republicans running for the U.S. Senate against incumbent Dianne Feinstein.
From Carolyn Lochhead in the Chronicle: "Incumbent Democratic Sen. Dianne Feinstein, 78, running for a fourth full term, faces 23 challengers, including 14 Republicans, the best known of whom is litigious Orange County "birther" Orly Taitz, a Russian Israeli emigre who has appeared on national television with her claims that Obama faked his birth certificate."
Polls taken by robocalls, including those commissioned by Taitz, show Feinstein with a wide lead, trailed by a strange assortment of single-digit rivals, in some cases led by Taitz.
Whoever finishes second Tuesday, from any party, wins the chance to take on Feinstein in November."
A second-place finish by Taitz would be seen in both parties as a national embarrassment for the Republican Party, rivaling the candidacy of Christine "I am not a witch" O'Donnell, the 2010 GOP Senate nominee in Delaware."
Meanwhile, the state is cracking down on vocational schools in California to make sure they meet the legal requirements to operate.
From the Bay Citizen's Jennifer Gollan: "State regulators intend to mete out swifter penalties and tighten oversight of dozens of private vocational schools that have been operating without state approval, in some cases for months."
"The California Bureau for Private Postsecondary Education last month directed its enforcement staff to investigate 77 schools with expired approvals. Bureau officials also decided in mid-May that all other schools that fail to renew their approvals on time will be immediately referred to the agency’s enforcement division. Officials also recently began notifying schools before their approvals are set to expire."
"The changes follow an investigation by The Bay Citizen that revealed lapses in oversight by the postsecondary education bureau, including that it had allowed as many as 137 schools, representing 10 percent of the state’s private vocational schools, to operate for months without state approval. The investigation also found that the agency had failed to monitor the quality of educational programs, aggressively investigate complaints, and track and punish unaccredited schools and diploma mills."
And now we take a break from politics and move into something far more interesting -- throwing buns from roof tops. It's all part of Queen Elizabeth II's Diamond Jubilee.
"Top Gear presenter James May has helped throw 6,000 buns in Abingdon as part of Diamond Jubilee celebrations across Oxfordshire."
"The town hosted its 250-year-old royal tradition from the roof of the county hall."
"May was asked to help come up with a contraption to fire buns at the hard-to-reach parts of the crowd as part of his TV show Man Lab."
"There were chants of "we want buns" before the crowd was pelted with them."
Ahhh, buns....
