Exclusive: Meet the voter who prompted the CA-16 recount

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

Apr 30, 2024 View in browser   By Sarah Grace Taylor The dramatic recount in California’s 16th Congressional District is nearing the end. | Getty Images PLAYBOOK EXCLUSIVE: A single Silicon Valley voter has been at the center of a dramatic recount in California’s 16th Congressional District. As it draws to a close — with one of two counties completing their recount today — Jonathan Padilla is ready to explain himself. Padilla is a San Jose resident, tech entrepreneur and the voter who called for the recount in the March primary that has Democrats Joe Simitian and Evan Low tied for second behind fellow Dem Sam Liccardo. Santa Clara County said today its recount concluded, with Low gaining 11 votes and Simitian 7, setting Simitian up to be knocked out, unless a change comes in San Mateo County’s final tally. Though Low and Simitian had seemed content to participate in a three-way race, Padilla — a donor and former staffer of Liccardo — called for a recount right before the deadline earlier this month. “I am concerned about the outcome of this election making sure that the votes are counted,” Padilla told Playbook in his first interview about the recount results. “I think this is such a historic event. This tie seems more absurd than just a very close election.” Padilla has obvious ties to Liccardo: He donated to his current campaign in December and worked for the former San Jose mayor, both during his 2014 campaign and time in office. But Padilla claimed he filed the request on behalf of Low... which did not go over well. Low’s team accused Liccardo of coordinating the recount to remove one of his competitors, which Liccardo’s campaign denies. Low’s campaign also asked election officials if there was any way to stop the recount. Padilla said it was solely his idea, though the hundreds of thousands of dollars required for the more than two-week manual recount in two counties has come from a newly-formed political action committee: Count the Vote. “I'm not as close to Sam as people probably think. I’m not one of Sam’s best friends,” Padilla said, claiming their last “meaningful conversation” was Liccardo asking for a donation late last year. Rep. Anna Eshoo — whose seat is at the center of this race — and others have publicly called for more transparency from Padilla about who is funding the PAC, which will ultimately pay somewhere around $350,000-$500,000 for the recount. When asked who was funding the group, Padilla said it was a “regular PAC” and denied any connection with the Liccardo campaign. When asked if the PAC was made up of Liccardo supporters, Padilla said it's funded by “people who have a history of backing candidates in this race” and that the list of names “shouldn’t be a surprise when it comes out” in the PAC’s first mandatory FEC filings in July. Padilla said he is ultimately a dedicated Democrat who cares about the honest outcome of the election. He noted the recount has returned at least a handful of uncounted challenged ballots, making it — in his eyes — a worthy cause. A Liccardo spokesperson declined to comment on Padilla’s remarks, pointing instead to Liccardo’s prior defense of the recount. “We should embrace these lessons to preserve our most hallowed of democratic institutions — the free and fair election — in a moment when the electoral process has come under repeated and unjustified attack,” Liccardo wrote Monday for San Jose Inside. “We can start by ensuring that — without suspicion or political drama — we count every vote.” Simitian’s campaign declined to comment until all results are in. A Low spokesperson said the campaign had seen the Santa Clara results and is waiting to see results from San Mateo, which is waiting on the postal service to confirm when some ballots were received.   THE GOLD STANDARD OF POLICY REPORTING & INTELLIGENCE: POLITICO has more than 500 journalists delivering unrivaled reporting and illuminating the policy and regulatory landscape for those who need to know what’s next. Throughout the election and the legislative and regulatory pushes that will follow, POLITICO Pro is indispensable to those who need to make informed decisions fast. The Pro platform dives deeper into critical and quickly evolving sectors and industries—finance, defense, technology, healthcare, energy—equipping policymakers and those who shape legislation and regulation with essential news and intelligence from the world’s best politics and policy journalists. Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other—with teams embedded in the world’s most active legislative and regulatory power centers. From Brussels to Washington, New York to London, Sacramento to Paris, we bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY.     WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW TODAY UCLA Chancellor Gene Block has been called to the Hill for questioning on alleged incidents of antisemitism on his campus. | MARK RALSTON/AFP via Getty Images HOT SEAT — House Education Chair Virginia Foxx has summoned UCLA Chancellor Gene Block to the Hill for questioning on alleged incidents of antisemitism on his campus, Foxx told reporters today. Should he comply with the request, Block will join the presidents of the University of Michigan and Yale University at a May 23 hearing. Past grillings by the Republican-led committee have subjected higher education leaders to immense national scrutiny. Of the four college presidents who were previously hauled to Washington, two have already resigned: Harvard President Claudine Gay and Penn President Liz Magill. Meanwhile, Columbia President Minouche Shafik faces calls to do the same as her campus’ operations have been roiled by arrests of student protesters and the occupation of an academic building. For Block, 75, the stakes are perhaps lower. He announced in August his intent to resign at the end of the academic year — months before Hamas’ Oct. 7 attack on Israel spurred a war that would divide American college campuses. His last day is July 31. UCLA also faces an investigation launched in December by the U.S. Department of Education’s civil rights arm for alleged violations of Title VI, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of race or national origin. Other details of the probe are not public. — Blake Jones ON THE BEATS SETTING THE PRICE — ​​​​Alameda County’s progressive District Attorney Pamela Price is putting up a fight as the Board of Supervisors meets today to certify a recall election against her. Price urged supporters to show up to the hearing and demand the board block the vote on technical grounds. More than 100 people signed up to speak — both allies and critics. That’s expected to push back a decision from the board until later in the day. Supervisors face a critical choice that could affect Price's chances: They can either call a special election, which would likely give an advantage to recall backers, or consolidate the vote with the higher-turnout November general election. The recall effort against Price is the latest test for a national movement to overhaul the criminal justice system. Price ran on a platform of slashing penalties and prosecuting police officers who use lethal force —, but a spike in crime in places like Oakland, the largest city in her district, has sparked a backlash against her criminal justice policies. — Jeremy B. White PAY-TO-PLAY POLITICS: ​​Lawmakers advanced a bill in the Senate Elections Committee today that dilutes new conflict-of-interest rules for local elected officials related to donors, overriding strong objections from chair Catherine Blakespear. Blakespear’s loss in the 4-1 vote was a win for a formidable alliance of developers, unions and local governments that backed Sen. Bill Dodd’s SB 1243. The bill would roll back parts of a 2022 law barring city and county politicians from voting on matters that affect campaign donors. Business groups argued the 2022 law created barriers that could deter lawmakers from voting on important topics like housing developments, rather than actually preventing corruption. Blakespear wanted to amend Dodd’s bill so that it doesn’t exempt votes on housing projects and matters affecting membership dues — important points for developers and unions, who tend to be politically active. “This is a pay-to-play bill and it's exempting from ethics bills rules these two industries,” she said. But she was up against a potent coalition that included developers, statewide labor groups, as well as representatives of Los Angeles County and the San Francisco city attorney’s office. Lawmakers voted for Dodd’s bill despite expressing reservations about Blakespear being sidelined. More here for POLITICO Pro subscribers. — Jeremy B. White   GROWING IN THE GOLDEN STATE: POLITICO California is growing, reinforcing our role as the indispensable insider source for reporting on politics, policy and power. From the corridors of power in Sacramento and Los Angeles to the players and innovation hubs in Silicon Valley, we're your go-to for navigating the political landscape across the state. Exclusive scoops, essential daily newsletters, unmatched policy reporting and insights — POLITICO California is your key to unlocking Golden State politics. LEARN MORE.     WHAT WE'RE READING TODAY — The Orange County Register, Mercury News and six other publications joined forces to sue Microsoft and OpenAI today, alleging the companies used copyrighted articles to create their AI products. (The Orange County Register) — Californians’ economic optimism hit a 21-month low. (The Orange County Register) AROUND THE STATE — The long-envisioned plan for daily rail service connecting the Coachella Valley to Los Angeles is beginning to take shape. (Desert Sun) — A look inside an effort to crack down on crime in Bakersfield with help from the California Highway Patrol. (Los Angeles Times) — Elk Grove is one of the most liveable cities in the United States, according to a new ranking. (Sacramento Bee)   Follow us on Twitter Sarah Grace Taylor @_SarahGTaylor   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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