Nancy Pelosi will retire after historic 20-term career in Congress
Chronicle, JOE GAROFOLI/ALEXEI KOSEFF: "Nancy Pelosi — the first female speaker of the U.S. House of Representatives, the architect of the Affordable Care Act, and a top leader of the Democratic Party during some of its most stirring victories and darkest moments — will not seek reelection in 2026, she said Thursday.
Pelosi plans to complete her term, which ends in January 2027. Her departure — which will follow the death of her friend and neighbor, Sen. Dianne Feinstein, in late 2023, as well as Kamala Harris’ exit from the White House in 2024 — marks the end of a historic chapter for three of the most powerful women on Capitol Hill, all boundary breakers from the Bay Area."
READ MORE -- Rep. Nancy Pelosi announces retirement after 38 years in Congress -- CALMatters, MAYA C. MILLER; Rep. Nancy Pelosi, trailblazing Democratic leader from San Francisco, won’t seek reelection -- LAT, KEVIN RECTOR; Nancy Pelosi, first woman to be speaker of U.S. House, will retire from Congress -- Sac Bee, DAVID LIGHTMAN
These are the top contenders to replace Nancy Pelosi in Congress
Chronicle, JOE GAROFOLI/J.D. MORRIS: "The contest to replace Speaker Emerita Nancy Pelosi had begun before she announced her decision to retire Thursday. Now it’s likely to intensify quickly, becoming one of the highest-profile battles heading into the critical 2026 midterm election.
The House of Representatives has 435 seats, and the one representing all but a few southern neighborhoods in San Francisco wields no unique power. But Pelosi did, adding intrigue to a race also heightened by President Donald Trump’s past efforts to target the city."
Exclusive: Newsom says Trump is ‘doubling down on stupid’ as climate change battle heats up
Chronicle, KURTIS ALEXANDER: "Gov. Gavin Newsom said Wednesday he’ll attend this month’s climate summit in Belém, Brazil, to demonstrate U.S. leadership as the Trump administration retreats from the fight against climate change.
A day after California voters resoundingly approved the anti-Trump redistricting measure Proposition 50, the second-term governor and potential presidential candidate blasted the president for not recognizing the threat of the warming planet and for exacerbating its risks with his unflinching support of the fossil fuel industry."
Is this the beginning of the end of the Trump era?
LAT, MICHAEL WILNER: "Ahead of Tuesday’s election, when Americans weighed in at the ballot box for the first time since President Trump returned to office, a vicious fight emerged among the president’s most prominent supporters.
The head of the most influential conservative think tank in Washington found himself embroiled in controversy over his defense of Nick Fuentes, an avowed racist and antisemite, whose rising profile and embrace on the right has become a phenomenon few in politics can ignore."
Gavin Newsom ‘light years ahead’ in 2028 Democratic field after Prop. 50 win
CALMatters, JEANNE KUANG: "Gov. Gavin Newsom has a message for Democrats around the country: Follow my lead.
Declaring victory for Proposition 50, his Democratic redistricting ballot measure, he named five other states led by Democrats and urged their governors to tilt their own congressional maps in favor of the party and help it secure the U.S. House in next year’s midterms."
CA governor race heats up: Ad slams Xavier Becerra’s oversight of child migrants
Sac Bee, NICOLE NIXON: "A new ad from Democratic gubernatorial candidate Antonio Villaraigosa takes aim at his opponent Xavier Becerra’s handling of vulnerable child migrants as a top official during the Biden administration.
The 30-second spot cites a 2023 New York Times investigation into migrant children trafficked and exploited to work grueling jobs at factories, construction sites, farms and other dangerous work places."
California Republicans sue to block Prop 50
Chronicle, SOPHIA BOLLAG: "California Republicans announced Wednesday that they are suing over California’s new congressional maps, a day after voters passed them overwhelmingly.
Assembly Member David Tangipa of Clovis (Fresno County), 18 California voters and the California Republican Party say they filed a lawsuit in federal court in Los Angeles on Wednesday morning challenging newly passed Proposition 50, which they say violates the Constitution."
READ MORE -- GOP challenges Prop. 50 in court, hours after Democrats’ decisive victory -- Sac Bee, LIA RUSSELL
California backs down on AI laws so more tech leaders don’t flee the state
LAT. QUEENIE WONG: "California’s tech companies, the epicenter of the state’s economy, sent politicians a loud message this year: Back down from restrictive artificial intelligence regulation or they’ll leave.
The tactic appeared to have worked, activists said, because some politicians weakened or scrapped guardrails to mitigate AI’s biggest risks."
More insights on drafting legislation in California, Part II
Capitol Weekly, CHRIS MICHELI: "During his recent review of the more than 900 bills sent to the desk of Gov. Gavin Newsom, intrepid McGeorge law professor, Capitol lobbyist and regular Capitol Weekly contributor Chris Micheli compiled a number of legislative drafting notes and decided to share them with our readers. This is the second of three parts. Part I can be found here."
S.F. Mayor Lurie taps political novice to replace recalled Supervisor Joel Engardio
Chronicle, J.D. MORRIS: "Mayor Daniel Lurie has chosen political novice Isabella “Beya” Alcaraz, a 29-year-old teacher and former pet store owner, to fill the San Francisco Board of Supervisors seat recently vacated by Joel Engardio after he was decisively recalled in September.
The selection ends two months of speculation about who Lurie would pick to succeed Engardio representing District 4, which includes the Sunset. Alcaraz will serve until at least next summer, when Sunset voters will decide who finishes the final months of Engardio’s term."
Kevin Kiley says he’s running for re-election. He’s not sure where
Sac Bee, DAVID LIGHTMAN: "Reps. Kevin Kiley and Ami Bera slugging it out to win the Third District congressional seat? Maybe not.
Kiley, R-Roseville, told The Sacramento Bee on Wednesday in an interview in his Capitol Hill office that while he plans to seek re-election, he’s not sure where he’ll run."
Capitol Spotlight: Lourdes Ayon, San Diego Gas & Electric
Capitol Weekly, LEAH O'TARROW: "For Lourdes Ayon, lobbyist by day and a comedian by night, “the policy brain and the comedy brain are totally different.” She’s found a way to conquer both.
In 1984, Ayon’s family packed up their bags and headed to San Diego from their Tijuana home. At 11, she found herself in a “culture clash.” She didn’t speak the language, she didn’t sport the same labels as her classmates and was teased for being different."
California can’t afford to go backward on wildfire prevention (OP-ED)
Capitol Weekly, BOB DEAN: "Wildfires in California are no longer a seasonal threat; they have become a year-round crisis. Over the past decade, they’ve destroyed tens of thousands of homes, claimed hundreds of lives, and burned more than 7 million acres. Today, one in eight Californians lives in a high or very high fire-hazard zone, and insurance companies are pulling out of the state, leaving families and businesses unable to protect what they’ve built.
That’s the reality that led lawmakers to pass SB 884 in 2022, a landmark law requiring utilities to submit 10-year undergrounding plans to permanently reduce wildfire risk. The goal was to move from reactive, project-by-project fixes to a coordinated statewide plan that hardens the grid, improves reliability, and keeps communities safe."
Melatonin for sleep linked to 90% higher risk of heart failure, study finds
Chronicle, AIDIN VAZIRI: "Taking melatonin to fall asleep might come with an unexpected side effect, according to new research from the American Heart Association.
A review of health records from more than 130,000 adults found that people who used melatonin for a year or longer were significantly more likely to develop heart failure, be hospitalized for it, or die from any cause within five years."
We’ve been living in the age of flavssor-blasted food. Are our taste buds finally burning out?
Chronicle, MACKENZIE CHUNG FEGAN: "One weekday afternoon, I retrieved my toddler from my mother’s apartment to find his face covered in a fine neon orange powder, as if he’d just had his cheeks enthusiastically smooched by an Oompa Loompa.
“Out of curiosity,” I asked my mom, “what have you been feeding him?”"
ETS, once the SAT’s administrator, to lay off 757 workers in California
Chronicle, AIDIN VAZIRI: "A familiar name in the world of standardized testing is preparing for another major shake-up.
Educational Testing Service, the company best known for developing the GRE and formerly administering the SAT, plans to lay off 757 employees in California by the end of the year, according to a state filing."
As rain pounds parts of California, the year’s closest supermoon spurs king tides, coastal risks
LAT, ANDREW J. CAMPA/KAREN GARCIA: "A supermoon — the closest such moon to the Earth this year — is wreaking havoc with ocean tides up and down the state’s coast just as an atmospheric river storm moved through Northern California.
The “Beaver Moon” has brought with it king tides. And forecasters say that Southern California could see dangerous rip currents and an increased risk of drowning from large breakers, as well as the chance of coastal flooding over the next two days."
Edison blacks out more customers to stop utility-sparked fires
LAT, MELODY PETERSEN: "Southern California Edison has cut power to hundreds of thousands of its customers this year, more than ever before, as it attempts to stop its electric lines from sparking wildfires.
The utility has told communities in fire-prone areas in recent weeks that they should expect more of the power shutoffs than in prior years and that the outages could last for longer periods of time."
Federal prosecutors subpoena L.A. firefighter text messages
LAT, ALENE TCHEKMEDYIAN/PAUL PRINGLE: "A federal grand jury subpoena has been served on the Los Angeles Fire Department for firefighters’ text messages and other communications about smoke or hot spots in the area of the Jan. 1 Lachman brushfire, which reignited six days later into the massive Palisades fire, according to an internal department memo.
The Times reported last week that a battalion chief ordered firefighters to pack up their hoses and leave the burn area the day after the Lachman fire, even though they complained that the ground was still smoldering and rocks were hot to the touch. In the memo, the department notified its employees of the subpoena, which it said was issued by the U.S. attorney’s office in Los Angeles."
SFO travel could worsen as U.S. plans 10% air traffic cut amid shutdown
Chronicle, AIDIN VAZIRI/RACHEL SWAN: "Travel through San Francisco International Airport could become even more chaotic this weekend as federal officials plan to cut nationwide air traffic by 10% if Congress fails to reach a deal to end the ongoing federal shutdown.
The Federal Aviation Administration announced Wednesday that it would order airlines to reduce scheduled air traffic at 40 major airports — likely including San Francisco International Airport — starting Friday, an unprecedented move aimed at preserving safety amid deepening staffing shortages."
Exclusive: S.F. is considering two tax scenarios to save Muni from financial collapse
Chronicle, RACHEL SWAN: "A parcel tax measure to save Muni from financial collapse has begun to take shape.
Officials in San Francisco Mayor Daniel Lurie’s office are floating two possible structures for the tax, according to slides obtained by the Chronicle. Aimed for the November 2026 election, the tax measure would help patch an estimated $307 million annual budget deficit that could grow to $434 million in five years, sparing the city’s transit agency from painful service cuts."
