Vince Fong’s ballot battle isn’t over

Your afternoon must-read briefing on politics and government in the Golden State

Mar 28, 2024 View in browser   By Sarah Grace Taylor BACK TO COURT: There’s another wrinkle in the race to replace former Rep. Kevin McCarthy. Next week, the Third District Court of Appeal in Sacramento is expected to hear an appeal from the California Secretary of State to disqualify McCarthy’s chosen successor, his one-time staffer-turned-Assemblymember Vince Fong, from ballots in the May election to replace the former congressman. “This is an unprecedented argument by the Secretary of State. And I don't think they've really thought through the ramifications of what they're talking about,” Matt Rexroad, an adviser for Fong, told Playbook. “It seems to be kind of a ridiculous legal argument.” Fong emerged from the March 5 primary in first place in the race for the solidly red Bakersfield district. He had rushed to file for a congressional bid when his former boss’ seat unexpectedly became available in December and then the presumed frontrunner dropped out — after Fong had already filed to run again for the state Assembly. California Secretary of State Shirley Weber sued to block the move, saying he couldn’t file for the congressional run after throwing his hat into the Assembly race. A judge rejected Weber’s claim in a December court decision. Weber appealed the ruling and that motion is what’s headed back to court next Thursday. The Secretary of State’s office didn’t immediately respond to requests for comment, but has previously argued that Fong is not eligible for the House seat because he had already qualified to run for the Assembly and missed the deadline to withdraw. Assemblymember Vince Fong | AP Fong glided through the primary with 41 percent of the vote and endorsements from former president Donald Trump and McCarthy, but now he’ll now have to fight to stay on the ballot. It’s “undemocratic” for Weber to pursue the appeal after ballots have been counted because an adverse ruling would disenfranchise thousands of voters, Rexroad said. Opponent Mike Boudreaux — a Republican Sheriff who came in second with 25 percent of the primary votes — said his opponent should be disqualified, even though he’s running with the expectation that Fong can stay in the race. “You look at the letter of the law, and to me it’s clear,” Boudreaux told Playbook. “But the court has ruled, so in my opinion he’s in the race.” Still, Boudreaux worries about the continued whiplash to voters in such a prominent election for McCarthy’s seat. “It is so confusing. You’ve got double elections; triple elections. Voters are confused. I was confused,” Boudreaux said. IT’S THURSDAY AFTERNOON. This is California Playbook PM, a POLITICO newsletter that serves as an afternoon temperature check on California politics and a look at what our policy reporters are watching. Got tips or suggestions? Shoot an email to sgtaylor@politico.com or send a shout on X. DMs are open.   SUBSCRIBE TO GLOBAL PLAYBOOK: Don’t miss out on POLITICO’s Global Playbook, the newsletter taking you inside pivotal discussions at the most influential gatherings in the world, including WEF in Davos, Milken Global in Beverly Hills, to UNGA in NYC and many more. Suzanne Lynch delivers the world's elite and influential moments directly to you. Stay in the global loop. SUBSCRIBE NOW.     BILLS BILLS BILLS MONUMENTS MEN: A new bill could make it easier for Californians to recover stolen art. An appellate court in Pasadena recently allowed a Spanish museum to keep a valuable painting stolen from a Jewish family by the Nazis during WWII, citing Spanish law. Now, Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel wants to make it easier for people to recover property stolen during the Holocaust or “other acts of genocide or persecution.” “This bill will ensure that Holocaust survivors and other victims of persecution can secure justice through our legal system and recover property that rightfully belongs to them and their families,” said Gabriel, who co-chairs the Legislative Jewish Caucus and represented Holocaust survivors in his private legal practice. The newly introduced AB2867 would make California law take precedence over other laws in related property cases, and is set to go before the Assembly Judiciary Committee in the coming weeks. Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel | Rich Pedroncelli/AP CAMPAIGN TRAIL SEEING RED: The Democratic Congressional Committee added two new California Democrats to its list of flippable red districts today, including the seat held by … Rep. Katie Porter? But, you say, she’s a Democrat, not a Republican! Still the DCCC added California’s 45th and 47th districts to a roster of red seats it’s trying to flip to win control of the House. The 47th is the purple Orange County district currently held by Porter, a Democrat, making it an outlier on the list that’s otherwise populated by seats currently held by Republicans. “There is no path to 218 without Southern California,” DCCC spokesperson Dan Gottleib said about the inclusion. The group may just be trying to support Dems in contentious purple districts, or, perhaps, they think Democrat Dave Min, who’s running to replace Porter and claimed around 26 percent of primary votes, needs the extra help to stave off Republican Scott Baugh. The DCCC’s “Red to Blue” list includes former state Rep. Adam Gray, who lost to GOP Rep. John Duarte for a Central Valley seat by 564 votes last time around. It also has former state Rep. Rudy Salas, who came within about 3,000 votes in 2022 of unseating GOP Rep. David Valadao in a nearby district and Democrat Will Rollins, the former federal prosecutor from Palm Springs who nearly toppled GOP Rep. Ken Calvert two years ago. Lastly, there’s Democrat George Whitesides, a former CEO of Virgin Galactic, running against GOP Rep. Mike Garcia in a competitive district north of Los Angeles.   In celebration of Earth Month, the USC Wrigley Institute for Environment and Sustainability and the USC Dornsife Center for the Political Future, in collaboration with POLITICO, host “Climate Forward 2024: Climate at the Crossroads” on April 4, 2024 at USC. Top experts from politics, government, media, and academia will discuss climate change issues with a focus on finding practical policy and business solutions as well identifying ways to remove political obstacles to implementing those changes. Register to attend in person or virtually.     WHAT WE'RE READING TODAY LEGAL LIMBO: The state Supreme Court will hear a case to strip former Trump attorney John Eastman of his license to practice law in California. (Orange County Register) DOUBLING DOWN: Civic groups in LA are pushing to double the county’s quarter-cent homelessness sales tax. (Los Angeles Times) AROUND THE STATE CENTRAL VALLEY: A public debate has erupted among officials after the seven-figure salaries of Valley Children’s Hospital executives were made public. (San Joaquin Valley Sun) OAKLAND: A $177 million budget shortfall may require major cuts to city services. (San Francisco Chronicle)   Follow us on Twitter POLITICO California @politicoca   Subscribe to the POLITICO Playbook family Playbook  |  Playbook PM  |  California Playbook  |  Florida Playbook  |  Illinois Playbook  |  Massachusetts Playbook  |  New Jersey Playbook  |  New York Playbook  |  Ottawa Playbook  |  Brussels Playbook  |  London Playbook View all our political and policy newsletters Follow us

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