Democratic Senator Jon Ossoff and Republican opponent Mike Collins made their final appeals to voters in Georgia ahead of the November 3 US midterm elections.
Published On 3 Nov 20263 Nov 2026
Share
As Americans head to the polls on Tuesday in the much-anticipated midterms, the record number of voters identifying as independent could prove decisive for control of the US Congress and state legislatures.
Nearly half of US voters – as many as 117 million adults – now identify as politically independent, with the two major parties, Democrats and Republicans, jockeying for their votes.
list of 4 itemsend of list
At the same time, independent or third-party candidates win few federal or state seats. The Democratic and Republican parties have dominated US politics, from state legislatures to the US Congress and the presidency, for generations.
“The whole [electoral] system is built to frustrate the independence of voters,” says Rick Bennett, the former Republican Party chair in Maine, where he is running to become only the third independent governor in the state’s history.
Bennett’s candidacy runs headlong into one of the most stubborn contradictions in US politics: While millions of eligible voters reject Republican and Democratic labels, far fewer will cast their ballots for independent candidates.
“For decades, candidates outside the Democratic and Republican parties have struggled to achieve [a high] level of support,” political scientist AJ Simmons said. “[But] 2026 is shaping up to be one of the strongest election cycles for independent candidates in recent memory.”
According to the Pew Research Center’s annual National Public Opinion Reference Survey, 44 percent of US adults identify as politically independent. This is in contrast to 29 percent who identify as Democrat and 28 percent as Republican.
But there is a caveat: Most self-described independents still gravitate towards one of the major parties. Independents who express absolutely no partisan leaning make up only about 7-10 percent of the total electorate.
These “true” independents are sought after by candidates because they are persuadable, the core of the coveted so-called swing vote in a deeply divided and partisan electorate and political system.
In the 2026 midterm elections, 52 percent of likely independent voters are supporting Democrats, while 39 percent back Republicans, polling firm Marist suggests.
Frustration with President Donald Trump is permeating the midterm electoral landscape, with independent respondents more than three times as likely to say their vote is mainly against the president, and 28 percent saying they are voting for “change”.
The US does not legally restrict elections to two parties, and many local officials are not party-affiliated.
But for more powerful federal and statewide seats like Tuesday’s House of Representatives and Senate races, the winner-take-all electoral system and single-member congressional districts work against outsiders and can discourage voters from backing them.
Even substantial support for a minor party is rarely concentrated enough in one district to win a congressional seat.
Voters, too, can unknowingly reinforce the system.
Polling trends and data further suggest that voters who identify as or prefer an independent will often instead back a Republican or Democrat they see as more politically viable. Voters are also reluctant to support “spoilers”, who may peel away votes from one of the two major-party candidates.
Bernard Tamas, a political scientist at Valdosta State University who studies third parties, said that although laws are often blamed for keeping third-party candidates off the ballot, “there is very little evidence that legal barriers are undermining these candidates”.
The real barrier, he says, is money.
A total of $14.8bn was spent on federal elections during the 2024 presidential cycle, and the 2026 midterms are projected to surpass that, reaching up to $11.6bn in political advertisement spending alone.
The Democratic National Committee (DNC), which heads the Democratic Party, raised nearly $252.3m during the 2026 midterm campaign cycle while the Republican National Committee (RNC) took in about $341m.
Unlike other democracies, the US “offers virtually no public support” or funding to political parties and does not set limits on campaign spending”, Tamas said. Independent candidates “raise very little money” and are less well known by voters.
Lesley Shedd, a Republican strategist, told Al Jazeera that the surge in voters identifying as independents obscures their support for one of the two major parties.
“When somebody says they are independent, they really are a Republican or Democrat but they maybe don’t agree with the party on absolutely every issue,” Shedd said. “Or they [just] don’t want to feel as though they are part of the culture of the swamp of [Washington] DC.”
The real test for independent candidates is persuading Americans to vote for them, not just a “protest vote” against the system. And voters are reluctant to cast a “wasted” ballot, Simmons said, given the most competitive candidates are Democrats or Republicans.
There are efforts to support independent candidates. The Independent Leadership Council, launched in July by former Democrat-turned-independent Senator Joe Manchin, provides donors and campaign resources for independent congressional candidates. The project has raised more than $10m.
But the longer-term test, analysts maintain, is whether independent candidates can be viable across multiple races and election cycles.
There is currently one independent in the US House and two in the US Senate. None holds a state governor seat.
Bennett, the independent Maine candidate, is one of just 11 independent or third-party candidates vying for gubernatorial or US Senate seats whom Simmons expects to surpass the 5 percent vote threshold often used to gauge electoral viability.
Additionally, Simmons sees several ways independent congressional hopefuls could throw the midterm map into disarray, mainly in two key states: Nebraska and Montana.
He identified Nebraska’s independent Senate candidate Dan Osborn, a 51-year-old Navy veteran, as the “most likely alternative candidate to win” across the country, given the race has been deemed a toss-up by RealClearPolling, an election analysis website.
The Nebraska Democratic Party chose not to field a replacement nominee after its candidate withdrew, leaving Osborn as the principal challenger to Republican Pete Ricketts.
In Montana, Simmons sees another opening for an independent, though the race is complicated by the possibility of an unpredictable “spoiler” effect.
Seth Bodnar, a former University of Montana president and Army veteran, is running against Republican Kurt Alme for the US Senate seat. He is being backed by the Independent Leadership Council, which is also supporting California Congressman Kevin Kiley, who left the Republican Party to seek re-election as an independent.
Democratic US Senate candidate Alani Bankhead could siphon off support from the same centre-left and anti-Republican pool of voters that Bodnar draws from, risking a three-way vote and potentially leaving the Republican to collect the spoils.
“Montana is the second most likely,” Simmons said, adding that “if that were to happen, the Republican Party would be having an extraordinarily bad night”.
In Idaho and South Dakota, independent candidates are not forecast to win, but they are expected to make Republicans pay for treating those seats as safe, diverting money, campaign time and attention to races Republicans may have otherwise taken for granted.
The greatest impact of independents may be the pressure they have historically brought to bear on the major parties to “implement a new policy or govern more effectively”, Simmons said.
Spearheading the campaign in opposition of Proposition 38 is Robert Kaplan, senior scholar at the Clinical Excellence Research Center at Stanford School of Medicine, and David Panush, who served as a senior health policy and budget advisor to five state Senate presidents.
Kaplan stated, “As written, Proposition 38 is deceptive,” because the proposed criteria for awarding the grant funding would appear to create an extremely minuscule pool of qualified recipients.
To qualify, a recipient institution must be established since Jan. 1, 2025, and have at least 200,000 square feet of research space it controls. From that start date, the recipients also must have an affiliation agreement with a UC campus and be affiliated with a UC Health system that records more than 35,000 inpatient admissions and 3.5 million outpatient visits annually. The qualification requirements also include having identified at least $250 million in philanthropic support and securing two $50-million commitments for designated research programs.
Kaplan argues medical research grants should be awarded through a competitive process that gives all applicants equal opportunity. Instead, his campaign states, only the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy, co-founded by billionaire Gary K. Michelson, would qualify under the proposed criteria. In a Cal Matters report, a UCLA spokesperson confirmed that among all nonprofit entities affiliated with the school, “only the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy could satisfy the stipulations of Prop. 38.”
Robin Swanson, spokesperson for the Yes on 38 campaign, said that “lots of institutions would qualify for funds under this measure.”
“But it is very likely that [the California Institute for Immunology and Immunotherapy], which is a research institute affiliated with UCLA, will qualify for half of the funds under the current criteria,” she added during a virtual news conference in mid-September.
Swanson said it was likely that other research institutions from Stanford, Scripps Research, USC and Cedars Sinai would qualify for the other 50% of funds, “and that really is what we wanted to ensure that we had research institutes that were ready to hit the ground running.”
Ultimately, she said, the decision lies with the California Department of Public Health.
Michelson’s institute first became a nonprofit in 2022, and the co-founder has donated at least $120 million to the research organization. The billionaire is the board chair of the institute, which is housed at a research center owned by UCLA, according to the opposition campaign.
The Vote No on Prop. 38 campaign also argues against the financial model of the measure, saying a bond would saddle taxpayers with decades of debt and that any potential future revenue from the research is uncertain.
Donning a creepy mask of Democratic rival Xavier Becerra, Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton dashed around a children’s Halloween event dishing out candy and warnings about potential liberal tax policies.
“Vote for Becerra, and your parents will have to pay every mile they drive. Isn’t that great?” Hilton sarcastically said at a Trunk or Treat gathering Saturday in Highland Park. “These children are very pricey because if their parents vote for Becerra, they will be taxed every mile they drive. Yay! Yay! Mileage tax! Mileage tax! Mileage tax!”
Becerra was not spooked when he heard of Hilton’s get-up and put-down.
“I suspect, if he takes off that mask, you’ll see Donald Trump right underneath,” Becerra, a former congressman, state attorney general and member of President Biden’s Cabinet, said at a campaign event in Sacramento on Saturday. “That’s who he really is. Either that or he’s a clown.”
With Tuesday’s election barreling toward them, Becerra and Hilton traded barbs and did their the best to gin up support as they crisscrossed California in what has been a relatively sedate race to succeed Democrat Gavin Newsom, who is wrapping up his final term as governor. Recent polls show Becerra leading Hilton by at least 20 percentage points, which is not a surprise in a state where Democratic voters vastly outnumber Republicans and GOP candidates last won a statewide election two decades ago.
Xavier Becerra, Democratic nominee for governor, speaks during a reception Friday in San Francisco.
(Lea Suzuki / San Francisco Chronicle / Getty Images)
Becerra has spent the waning days of the campaign stumping for Democrats in competitive House races in the Central Valley and Southern California.
Party leaders are trying to capitalize on broad anti-Trump sentiment to juice the state’s liberal electorate and win House seats that were redrawn to favor Democrats, including a Sacramento-area seat currently held by Republican-turned-independent Rep. Kevin Kiley.
“We’re not just gonna take back these seats in California. We’re gonna take back the House and the Senate,” Becerra told costumed and cheering volunteers during a quick Saturday stop in support of Richard Pan, the Democrat challenging Kiley. Trump, Becerra said, wants to “destroy democracy. That’s why we’re getting out to vote.”
The Republican president is a big motivator for Democrats this year. California’s high cost of living was among the top concerns of California voters this election, but that was recently eclipsed by fears about Trump’s policies and their desire for a governor to fight back against his administration.
“Everything the Trump administration has done so far is something I disagree with,” 19-year-old Arthur Galvan said after Becerra spoke at Pan’s campaign headquarters. But the UC Davis sophomore said his top priorities are education and one day being able to afford a home, even in Lincoln, the semi-rural and fast-growing town he grew up in.
“Compared to the rest of the state, housing over there is slightly cheaper. But even still, that’s not attainable,” Galvan said. “I don’t think that there’s many easy ways to go about this but it’s something that we have to look into.”
Asked about his support for a proposed mileage tax — which would require drivers to pay a fee based on the total number of miles driven in a period of time — Becerra said he is considering all options to maintain road funding as more Californians adopt electric vehicles and stop paying the gas tax.
“We need to pay for our roads and our bridges and our highways. We need to pay for mass transit. You can’t do it if you don’t have the money,” he said. “I’m not gonna say exactly how it will be, because that’s work we have to do with the Legislature, and with every community having a chance to speak up.”
Hilton, a former Fox News commentator and political advisor to British Prime Minister David Cameron, has embraced his underdog status. The quick-witted Republican has pinballed from California’s deeply-red northern territories to Democratic strongholds in San Francisco and L.A., generating enough heat to remain in the spotlight but not enough to catch fire. He tailgated with Chargers and Rams fans at SoFi Stadium on Sunday, and had planned to rally voters at a Bakersfield demolition derby the night before, but pulled out when rain was forecast.
He has promised to lower gas prices to $3 per gallon, and on Thursday held a $3-a-gallon fill-up event in the San Joaquin Valley. Hilton also vowed eliminate state taxes on workers’ first $150,000 of income, scuttle the behind-schedule, over-budget high-speed rail project and abolish the DMV.
Though endorsed by Trump, Hilton has framed his campaign around the many ills facing California — including the lack of affordable housing, a persistent and worsening homelessness crisis, entrenched budget deficits and high gas prices — all of which he blames on years of Democratic rule.
At the Halloween event on Saturday, Hilton asked Italia Sandoval’s 3-year-old daughter Milania if she would prefer candy or a potential mileage tax. The toddler, understandably confused, opted for candy. Her mother, 31, jumped in, saying that such a levy would mean less story time, field trips and park and library visits for her family’s home-schooled children and further hamper their dreams of one day buying a home.
“Taxes are killing Californians. I want to buy my own home. Can’t afford it,” said the Huntington Park resident, a registered Republican who become politically engaged after studying theater at Cal State LA.
The daughter of a Mexican immigrant said her husband proposed moving to Idaho because of the cost of living in California, but she balked because their families live here. So they found other methods of cutting their budget.
“I shop at Goodwills, yard sales, Facebook Marketplace, you name it,” Sandoval said. “I even sadly say I pick up clothes off the side of the street sometimes. … It’s taught me to be resourceful in this state. But it’s like, come on.”
Aided by his Halloween mask and cardboard cutouts portraying Becerra as a hand puppet controlled by Newsom, Hilton has turned his opponent into a symbol of California’s high cost of living and “killjoy” rules. During a Friday night rally in Sacramento, the Republican candidate lamented local bans on gas appliances and a statewide prohibition on flavored tobacco products.
“It’s ridiculous. They don’t mind the fentanyl, they give out free drugs to hopeless addicts, but you try getting flavored Zyn in California — no way. That is insane,” he said, drawing cheers mostly from younger audience members. Lawmakers approved the ban in 2020 and voters upheld it two years later.
GOP gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton campaigns at a Trunk or Treat block party Saturday in Highland Park.
(David Butow / For The Times)
Though Becerra is considered unbeatable in blue California in the race, many Hilton fans are clinging to hope that the Republican candidate will overcome the odds.
“We need help. I bought a hybrid and still am like, the gas, it’s killing me,” said Marina Gabel, adding that the paycheck from her school district job is “crumbs.” The Roseville Republican wore a shirt to Hilton’s Sacramento rally that described Newsom as a “California Horror Story” in a nod to the long-running FX anthology series.
In the final days of his campaign Becerra seized on voter anxiety about Trump’s policies, heightened by the administration’s recent efforts to wrest control over state voting processes.
Becerra forcefully argued that Tuesday’s election is a referendum on the president, and accused Hilton of being beholden to a White House that has attacked immigrants, launched an unnecessary war against Iran and created economic havoc by imposing tariffs and other unhinged policies.
“We see that wolf in that sheep’s clothing. We see right through you, Donald Trump,” Becerra said Friday at a social club in San Francisco’s Castro district, one of the nation’s most iconic LGBTQ+ communities. “In California, we say no mas. …. that’s why this election is so important, because we gotta prove that California does not take a knee to Donald Trump.”
Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and her challenger Nithya Raman darted across the city over the weekend, foraging for votes as the clock ticks down before Tuesday’s election.
The former allies, and now competitors, took veiled shots at each other as they each hit multiple campaign stops Sunday morning, with both attending church services and other events.
Bass’ first stop Sunday morning was at South L.A. Cafe, where she spoke with alumnae of the Divine Nine, a group of historically Black fraternities and sororities. She then did a hit on the KBLA radio station.
“You know who I am. I am the same person as I have been,” Bass said, citing her roots in South L.A., where she was a community organizer as a young adult. “No matter what position I have held, this community — my community — has always been front and center of the work that I have done.”
Woodrow Bailey, a 63-year-old University of Southern California grad who was a member of Phi Beta Sigma, said he knew Bass when she was working at her nonprofit Community Coalition in the 1990s, just down the street from where South L.A. Cafe now stands. His long relationship with Bass made him confident in her leadership
“I understand what she’s trying to accomplish here,” Bailey said.
After the event Bass left to attend Mass at four churches and one Sikh temple. She also planned to cast her ballot Sunday.
Raman started the day in Boyle Heights at Dolores Mission Catholic Church. The council member has spent significant time in Boyle Heights following the Lineage fire, which burned down a massive cold food storage facility, sending noxious smoke into the heavily Latino neighborhood.
Raman attended Mass at 9 a.m. then chatted with parishioners in English and Spanish and grabbed food from a taco stand set up in the church’s courtyard. Children splashed in the fountain and played with a soccer ball as the mayoral hopeful introduced herself to voters.
“My calendar is so packed. I’m actually scared to look at it,” Raman told reporters outside the church, before noting she was going to a canvass in Northridge and at a Día de los Muertos (Day of the Dead) event in Canoga Park. The council member added that she was taking a brief pause in the middle of the day to go to an 11th birthday bowling party for her twins.
“L.A. is frustrated and I will bring change,” Raman said. “I brought that urgency to services in my district. I’ve reduced homelessness. I’ve addressed the residents’ issues that they’ve brought to me, and I want to bring that same responsiveness and urgency to every block of Los Angeles.”
The campaigns last week reported their final fundraising numbers before Election Day. Bass has now raised a total of just over $5.4 million, compared to $2.7 million for Raman.
In the final period, between Oct. 18 and 28, Bass reporting raising $139,737.28 while Raman took in $122,498.83.
Bass and Raman are locked in a dead heat, with the final poll from the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies, cosponsored by The Times, finding that 40% of likely L.A. voters said they supported Raman, while 40% supported Bass. But 19% were still undecided.
Times data and graphics journalist Sandhya Kambhampati contributed to this report.
The proposition creates a down payment loan program, totaling up to $25 billion, for middle-income families looking to buy a new home in California. The program would be run by the California Housing Finance Agency, which already oversees several homeownership assistance programs.
The state would sell bonds to fund the program. It would pay back investors using interest and loan payments from the program — not taxpayer money. The California Housing Finance Agency would administer the program, including setting interest rates for the loans.
To qualify, prospective borrowers would need to buy a newly constructed home or a home that never has sold before, such as a commercial building that was converted into condos. Borrowers wouldn’t need to be first-time homebuyers, but they would need to earn no more than 200% of the median local income; for a family of four in Los Angeles County, that amounts to no more than $216,200 a year.
There also would be limits on the sales prices of homes bought with help from this program. While the exact price would depend on the county, generally the homes would need to sell for between $1 million and $1.5 million. Homebuyers would need to put at least 3% down, and the state finance agency could provide a loan up to 17% of the sales price.
The loans would function like fixed-rate second mortgages.
According to the California Budget and Policy Center, the earnings that would qualify a family for down payment assistance could vary greatly depending on where they planned to buy a home. Per the center’s calculations, a family of four buying a home in Madera County would have to earn no more than $166,800 a year, while a family in Santa Clara County could earn up to $375,800 a year and still qualify.
Other specifics would be worked out if voters pass the measure. That includes the interest rates charged on this second mortgage, which, according to the Budget and Policy Center, likely would be higher than the current rates for conventional mortgages, which have hovered around 7% for a 30-year mortgage.
Because revenue bonds, which would be used to fund this program, are riskier than other bonds, investors might demand a higher return, translating to a higher interest rate.
Israel’s parliamentary election on Tuesday produced no clear winner, with nearly 90 percent of ballots counted and both major political blocs falling short of the 61 seats needed to form a government.
Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s bloc is on course to win 53 seats in the 120-member Knesset, while the opposition bloc led by Gadi Eisenkot is expected to secure 48 seats.
The Arab-majority parties won 19 seats, a historic high, driven by record turnout among Palestinian citizens of Israel of about 80 percent. That has placed the Arab parties at the centre of coalition arithmetic, even as several party leaders ruled out governing with them.
So what did the main contenders say in the run-up to and during the vote, and how did they fare? Here is a look:
Pre-election: In the build-up to the election, Netanyahu expressed confidence, telling The Jerusalem Post on October 22, “I’m gonna have five more terms.”
On Sunday, he targeted the opposition, with Haaretz citing a broadcast on Israel’s Channel 14 that Netanyahu warned if they win, they will “give citizenship to hundreds of thousands of Palestinians”, a move that would signal the “end of the Jewish state”.
Election day: On Tuesday, he said forming a government with Arab-led parties would be “a shame and a disgrace”.
“It is forbidden – simply forbidden – to endanger Israel and to establish a government that relies on anti-Zionist Arab parties,” he told supporters.
Post-election day: After the elections, Netanyahu’s Likud party took aim at Palestinian citizens of Israel who voted.
In a party statement shared by Netanyahu, it claimed the elections “were stolen by Arab parties that support terrorism and the elimination of the Jewish state through serious criminal offences”. According to The Times of Israel, police and the Central Elections Committee have already dismissed these claims.
What the results show: Likud is on course for 26 seats, the largest party, with 20.65 percent of the vote. But his bloc has 53 seats, eight short of a majority.
Pre-election: In a September interview with The Jerusalem Post, he dismissed the idea he would need to form a coalition with Arab parties: “I believe the majority we receive will be much larger than what the polls currently show,” adding “I do not see an Arab party that accepts my principles.”
He also said his “inner feeling is that I now have the ability to defeat Netanyahu”.
Election day: Eisenkot rallied Israelis to get rid of “the worst government Israel has known”.
However, he acknowledged how tight the race was, saying, “We are on perhaps the most critical day since the founding of the state.”
Post-election day: On Wednesday, Eisenkot told his supporters the Israeli public “voted against” Netanyahu and promised, “to ensure that the people’s decision is translated into a Zionist government”.
What the results show: Yashar is on course for 21 seats, with 16.16 percent. His bloc has 48, 13 short of a majority, and he cannot reach 61 without the Arab-led parties.
Pre-election: In February, months before the vote, Bennett told a closed conference of party activists that he stood by his 2021 decision to govern with Ra’am, but said he would not repeat it.
He said, “We will establish a unity government under my leadership … We are going to win, and we are going to form it,” Israel National News reported.
Election day: “Netanyahu has lost, and the October 7 government is going home,” Bennett told supporters in Tel Aviv.
Post-election: In a post on X, Bennett told Israelis to “lift your heads” and said he will do everything “to establish a Zionist Alliance of Servants government”.
What the results show: Together is on course for 12 seats with 9.07 percent, narrowly behind the Joint List.
Pre-election: In his election campaign, Ben-Gvir expressed his most genocidal views yet, saying in August that there are Palestinians in Gaza “who are not worthy of life. They shouldn’t live. They’re not even people.” He called for Israel to kill “30 to 40” people in Gaza every night.
Election day: “If you want this country to stay Jewish and Zionist, if you don’t want it to be in the hands of (Israeli Knesset members) Mansour Abbas and Ahmad Tibi, go out and vote,” he told supporters at the entrance to the Arab city of Kafr Qasim.
What the results show: Otzma Yehudit is on course for seven seats, with 5.58 percent, less than half of the 15 he wanted.
Pre-election: In a statement he issued in August, he promised an expansion of his settlement “revolution” with a programme for the “Judaization of the Negev and the Galilee” at the expense of Palestinians, as part of his campaign.
Election day: He warned on Facebook of high turnout in communities of Palestinian citizens of Israel, claiming that failing to mobilise right-wing voters could let “terror supporters” into government.
That night, he told supporters “Jewish settlements will be established in Gaza.”
What the results show: Religious Zionism is on course for six seats, with 4.78 percent.
Pre-election: In August, he stated that only “a large and strong Joint List will work with all its might to send the Netanyahu/Ben-Gvir/Smotrich government home”, according to The Jerusalem Post.
Election day, night: In a video statement, he said Netanyahu knew “we can put an end to his bloody reign.”
Post-election: He wrote on X that his party was ready for the “ousting of the Netanyahu government”, which he called one of “bloodshed”.
“Against a politics of supremacy, racism, and exclusion, we offer a completely different alternative. The change comes through Jewish-Arab partnership, a true and equal partnership,” he wrote.
What the results show: The Joint List is on course for 12 seats with 9.14 percent, making it the third-largest party by vote share.
Election day, night: In July, Abbas set Ra’am a goal of at least seven seats, enough, he argued, to make it the balance of power in a “government of change”.
Election day: He hit back at Netanyahu’s posts about Palestinian citizens of Israel, stating in a video that he was “lying and inciting against Ra’am, using it as a scare tactic to mobilise right-wing voters and drive them to the polls”.
What the results show: Ra’am is on course for eight seats, with 6.09 percent, beating his target of seven.
Pre-election: On October 15, he claimed: “We will reach 61 seats or more for the change bloc.”
Election day: He urged patience, saying on Friday, “we’ll be able to talk about a much better and more optimistic picture.”
What the results show: Yisrael Beiteinu is on course for seven seats, with 5.93 percent.
Pre-election: In September, he posted a statement which said, “Netanyahu ignored every warning before October 7, and now, 28 days before the election, he’s suddenly busy fear-mongering.”
Election day: He declared victory, stating, “The Netanyahu bloc has suffered a crushing defeat.”
What the results show: Together, which he co-leads with Bennett, is on course for 12 seats, with 9.07 percent.
A New York Times investigation links Democratic operatives to a namesake candidate in Alaska’s Senate race.
Published On 29 Oct 202629 Oct 2026
US President Donald Trump has called for the removal and prosecution of two candidates in Alaska’s Senate race, accusing Democrats of orchestrating a scheme to mislead voters.
Trump’s demand on Wednesday followed a New York Times investigation into efforts by people linked to Democrat Mary Peltola’s campaign to recruit candidates who could draw support from Republican Senator Dan Sullivan, including a retired teacher with the same name.
list of 3 itemsend of list
The November 3 vote could help determine control of the US Senate, Congress’s upper chamber.
In Truth Social posts on Wednesday, Trump accused Peltola and Daniel J Sullivan Jr of election fraud and called for both to be removed from the ballot and prosecuted.
He described the alleged operation as “Voter Fraud at the Highest Level” and accused Democrats of lying under oath.
The Times noted that recruiting candidates to split an opponent’s vote – a practice known as ballot stacking – is generally legal and has been used by both parties in Alaska.
The two Sullivans are among four candidates in Alaska’s ranked-choice election.
Voters rank candidates by preference, with votes transferred if a first choice is eliminated. The ballot identifies the sitting senator as an incumbent Republican.
His namesake says he entered the race independently.
The Times reported that the effort began in 2025, when a Peltola aide was asked to identify Alaskans named Dan Sullivan.
Citing interviews and messages, it said Peltola advisers and officials from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee, which supports Democratic Senate candidates, discussed ways to reshape the ballot.
The newspaper identified Democratic operative Jerid Kurtz as a recruiter who approached potential candidates, sometimes under an assumed name.
It also reported that another Democrat withdrew after an approach from Kurtz, opening a place for Republican Gerald Heikes, who said he too had been encouraged to run.
Peltola’s former campaign manager, Elisa Rios, told the Times that Peltola knew about the operation but did not participate directly.
Rios later sought to withdraw her statements and the newspaper said other evidence supported its reporting.
Peltola’s campaign and the Democratic campaign committee denied recruiting candidates. Her campaign said political threats from Washington would not stop her candidacy.
Senator Sullivan accused Peltola of deceiving voters on Fox News on Wednesday.
Recruiting candidates to divide an opponent’s support is generally legal, the Times noted, and both major parties have used such tactics in Alaska.
The state’s Supreme Court upheld the retired teacher’s right to stand in June.
Trump’s Justice Department, the federal government’s legal arm, sued Alaska last week, seeking to delay certification if Senator Sullivan loses and votes for his namesake could have affected the outcome.
Alaska has asked the court to dismiss the case, arguing that it lacks legal grounds.
Following a series of scandals that shook public trust in local government, Los Angeles City Council launched a massive charter reform to boost accountability across city departments. Charter PRT emerged from that reform.
McOsker, who co-sponsored the amendment, said it would offer greater public access and participation into government processes. He believes it is important that those overseeing LAX and Van Nuys understand how neighboring communities are affected by airport decisions.
“The folks that live and work and drive around and experience the impacts of the airport operations should have some say in the future of airport operations,” McOsker said. “They know the best of what the impacts are on the tens of thousands of folks that live around each of those facilities.”
McOsker stressed that the port is on public land and another space that residents should have greater insight into by offering transparency into how leaseholder agreements affect the local economy.
The two sides disagree sharply over what the changes to the law would mean in practice.
Dan Dunmoyer, president and chief executive of the California Building Industry Assn., a trade group supporting the measure, said the state is the slowest in the nation when it comes to reaching a conclusion about whether projects can be built. Per Dunmoyer, it’s one of the top two reasons housing here is so pricey.
Supporters point to accumulating interest on loans, shelling out for litigation and rising costs for materials.
Dunmoyer believes the measure would make the review process faster and easier. He estimated it will reduce the cost of building single family homes by $75,000 a pop.
“We think … it will allow us to provide more housing of all types, not just for sale, but for rent and legally defined affordable housing, even homeless shelters, more quickly than under the current environmental review process,” he said, “and we think that’s beneficial to Californians who very much want a place to call home.”
Proponents of the measure characterize the effort as procedural: It will firm up timelines, but projects still will be reviewed. But those fighting it, as well as some legal experts, say the 41-page proposal essentially guts CEQA for projects that qualify.
Aruna Prabhala, a senior attorney at the Center for Biological Diversity, a conservation group opposing the measure, said it would eliminate the need to analyze a project’s specific impacts, such as how it affects people living nearby. Instead, the process would become a “checklist” to see if the project complies with existing environmental laws.
The measure also states it “should be interpreted and implemented to afford the fullest possible weight to the interest of, and the approval and realization of, essential projects.” Prabhala and others believe it flips the purpose of CEQA to approve projects, rather than protect the environment.
“So much of what’s in the initiative mirrors what we’re seeing from the federal level and the Trump administration from rolling back environmental review, from really limiting public participation,” she said. “For not only failing to enforce protections for our air and water quality, but making it that much harder for agencies to do that.”
In California, fuel prices often are higher than anywhere else in the country, a reflection of the state’s high cost of living that voters want their next governor to address.
The two candidates running to replace termed-out Gov. Gavin Newsom — Democratic former U.S. Health and Human Services secretary Xavier Becerra and Republican former Fox News host Steve Hilton — have vastly different views on climate and energy policy.
Here is where they stand on gas prices, electric vehicle mandates and California’s long-delayed high-speed rail project.
California is the most expensive gasoline market in the nation, according to AAA, with an average price of $6.01 per gallon. Nationally, the average price was $4.28 per gallon, and this month was expected to become the most expensive for gas prices on record, according to AAA.
Becerra and Hilton both blame the high costs on the opposing political party — Becerra says President Trump’s war in Iran has increased prices by $2 per gallon, while Hilton blames California’s prices on policies pushed by Newsom and Democratic lawmakers.
Hilton has made the promise of $3 a gallon gasoline at California’s pumps a central plank of his affordability campaign. He argues he can achieve the target by repealing “outdated” environmental regulations and issuing more drilling permits in California.
Pumps in the McKittrick oil field, just north of the town of McKittrick on State Route 33.
(Carolyn Cole/Los Angeles Times)
“We could be producing most of it here in California, [in] Kern County, and sending it to the refineries in a nice clean pipeline,” Hilton said during an August town hall in Modesto. “Instead of that, we’re shipping it halfway across the world, and giant super tankers spewing out carbon emissions. It’s insane.”
While he has expressed a desire to lower costs, Becerra has released scant details about how he would do it.
He took heat from fellow Democrats during the primary for defending Chevron after the oil producer donated half a million dollars to a committee supporting his campaign. He clarified that his statements were about keeping oil refineries in California, especially since several have shut down in recent years.
“We need to continue to have refineries so that we can process the petroleum, so we can have gasoline, so we don’t have prices that are even higher than what they are right now,” Becerra said during an August event with Politico.
The next governor will decide whether to continue Newsom’s ambitious plan to accelerate the transition to zero-emission vehicles by banning the sale of new gas cars in California by 2035.
While Becerra supports transitioning away from gas-powered vehicles, along with California’s broader carbon neutrality goals, he has raised concerns about costs.
“The goal is great. What we have to do is make sure that goal matches the reality of our families,” he told CalMatters this year. “And if our families can’t afford to keep pace with the goal, then what good is the goal?”
Becerra would be open to revising or delaying the goals to prioritize affordability.
Hilton would end the state’s climate goals, which he blames for driving up energy and other costs.
A car charges at an EV station.
(Allen J. Schaben/Los Angeles Times)
“I’m not against reducing carbon emissions,” Hilton said during a town hall with The Times and LAist this month. “I just want to do it in a way that both helps with the fight against climate change, but doesn’t hurt working people and small businesses.”
He argued that increasing domestic oil production and overhauling vegetation management to reduce the risk of megafires would reduce emissions more effectively than decades of heavy-handed climate rules.
Hilton has railed against “nanny-state” regulations, including new fuel efficiency standards for car tires.
“We are gonna shut it all down, rein it in, merge all of these regulators so we have common-sense regulation instead of this out of control, costly bureaucracy,” he said, standing outside a state office building in August to protest the tire regulations. He also has pledged to abolish the Department of Motor Vehicles and reduce registration fees to $73.
The Tied Arch Bridge construction site, which will take high-speed trains over State Route 43 in Fresno County.
(Godofredo A. Vásquez / Associated Press)
Hilton would “cancel” all high-speed rail funding, which he said would save more than $3.7 billion per year.
While supportive of high-speed rail, Becerra is concerned by the project’s delays and cost overruns. He would “clean shop” at the authority, which signed off on hundreds of thousands of dollars in travel expenses that should not have been approved, according to a recent audit.
“If we build, it’s gonna be because we can get this done the right way. We’re not gonna have this overspending, we’re not gonna have this misspending,” he said during a recent campaign stop in Sacramento. “California is the fourth-largest economy, with the most innovation. We can get it done too, but it won’t be done this way.”
From judicial reform to conscription and the Palestinians, here’s where candidates stand on the key issues dominating the campaign.
For an election often billed as the most consequential in Israel’s history, many issues that outsiders might expect to divide the candidates are, in fact, points of consensus among the frontrunners.
None of the leading contenders in Tuesday’s election has questioned the case for unleashing a genocide on Gaza in response to the Hamas-led attack of October 7, 2023, or the wars that have followed, including the one on Iran. Nor have most candidates for the premiership offered a clear path towards implementing a two-state solution to the Israel-Palestine conflict that was envisaged in the 1990s, or towards an equitable settlement with the Palestinians whose territory Israel occupies.
list of 4 itemsend of list
Instead, the points of division centre almost exclusively on Israel’s internal politics and how voters see the future character of their country. The choice is between the hard-right government of incumbent Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, unconstrained by the judicial oversight he has railed against, and the future outlined by the disparate coalition of his opponents, which promises a broadly similar policy agenda but within the confines of the law and without the more extreme elements of the current governing coalition.
So, what have the leading candidates said about the main issues?
Despite having committed to working towards a two-state solution in the 1990s’ Oslo Accords, with many of their allies adjusting their policies towards Israel to reflect that commitment, few of the contenders in Tuesday’s election appear ready to honour it. Instead, their government stands widely accused of abetting the settler pogroms now raging across the West Bank, while supporting continued construction in the occupied territory in defiance of international law. This includes the E1 settlement plan, which ministers openly boast will bury the two-state solution.
Here’s what some of the contenders have said:
The conscription of Israel’s growing ultra-Orthodox, or Haredi, population into the army is an issue largely unique to Israel, and one whose prominence has grown as the human and economic costs of the wars in which many refuse to take part have mounted.
Netanyahu has continued to rely on the two main Haredi parties, Shas and United Torah Judaism (UTJ), for support in the Knesset. They have in turn insisted that he pass legislation overturning the Supreme Court ruling of June 25, 2024 and offering ultra-Orthodox youth a legislative shield against conscription.
![Ultra-Orthodox Jewish men gather on and below the Chords Bridge during the "Million Man" protest against Israeli military conscription [Ammar Awad/Reuters]](https://i0.wp.com/www.aljazeera.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/2025-10-30T152925Z_1381634771_RC2EMHA0QTYR_RTRMADP_3_ISRAEL-PALESTINIANS-CONSCRIPTION-PROTEST-1761838434.jpg?w=640&ssl=1)
Here is what leaders have said:
Days after taking office in 2022, Netanyahu’s government unveiled a plan to curb the powers of Israel’s courts, which triggered months of mass protests in 2023 before the war on Gaza paused the fight.
The coalition has passed measures reshaping how judges are appointed, while in July a law stripped Attorney General Gali Baharav-Miara of many of her powers, allowing the government to reject her legal advice and choose its own lawyers in court. Both are due to take effect after the election and most of the opposition has promised to reverse them.
The government has also boycotted Chief Justice Isaac Amit. Critics call it a deliberate assault on democracy by a prime minister embroiled in a long-running corruption trial of his own, while Justice Minister Yariv Levin says the election is a historic chance to finish the job.
Here are some of the contenders’ statements:
While the killing of more than 74,000 people in Gaza has been entirely absent during the campaign of the two main alliances, questions over political accountability for security failures ahead of and during the Hamas-led attack in 2023 have dominated this election cycle.
Inquiries into failings by the security services ahead of and during the Hamas-led attack led to the resignation of Chief of Staff Herzi Halevi, announced in January 2025. They also fed a long, drawn-out and bitter fight with the prime minister that ended with the departure of Shin Bet head Ronen Bar in June last year.
However, despite recent news reports suggesting that Netanyahu was warned by both the UAE and Egypt ahead of the attack, and longstanding criticism of his policy of keeping Hamas in power in Gaza as a bulwark against the Palestinian Authority, no similar inquiry into his own alleged failings before October 7 has happened.
Here are some of the leaders’ statements:
The 16 candidates vying for three seats on the board that overseas the Los Angeles Community College District have diverse backgrounds and varying ideas — and near unanimous agreement that district leaders need to do more to meet the basic needs of students struggling to pursue their higher education goals.
The candidates include those with experience both within and outside the district, with many citing the need to better connect students in the largest community college district in the nation with good paying jobs after they graduate. The seven-member Board of Trustees are managing a 2022 voter-approved $5.3 billion bond-funded construction boom to revitalize aging campuses and build student housing and at the same time are grasping to find ways to meet the basic needs of students, the majority of whom are low-income, juggling school with jobs.
Members of the board are elected to at-large seats and do not represent a specific area. The 900-square-mile district includes the city of Los Angeles and nearby cities, including Culver City, Montebello and Burbank.
In Seat 2, incumbent Steve Veres is being challenged by three candidates: writer Robert Payne, business owner Kristina Irwin and educator Adriana Cabrera. Roy Payan is also on the ballot for Seat 2, but told The Times he has suspended his campaign.
Veres has served on the Board of Trustees for multiple terms and also works as a staff director and policy advisor for state Sen. Maria Elena Durazo, who previously ran the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor and will soon take a seat on the powerful Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors.
In responses to a Times questionnaire, Veres said during his 13 years on the LACCD Board he’s been able to strengthen job training programs, improve graduation rates and helped push to give students access to free and discounted food and emergency housing shelter.
Veres has the endorsement of the Los Angeles Democratic establishment, including Durazo, Mayor Karen Bass and the county Democratic party. Four members of the board of trustees support him, as does the district’s faculty and staff unions.
Between Sept. 20 and Oct. 17, a campaign committee sponsored by the faculty union has paid for nearly $150,000 worth of slate mailers in support of Veres, according to campaign finance records.
An online database of campaign finance records show the other candidates, Payne, Irwin and Cabrera, have not received campaign contributions. Those candidates did not respond to a request for comment about their fundraising.
Seat 4 is an open race, with seven candidates running. Incumbent Sara Hernandez is stepping down and running for state senate.
The most well-funded Seat 4 candidate is Darryn Harris, a government and community affairs officer for St. John’s Community Health, who recently started teaching a class on student skills at Santa Monica College, which is not an LACCD campus.
Harris has the support of a wide swath of Democratic politicians and organizations, as well as labor unions and six of seven current LACCD trustees.
Others running for Seat 4 include environmentalist and former board member Nancy Pearlman; therapist Adam Bruno; healthcare workforce specialist Elaine Alaniz; sign language educational interpreter Priscilla Umana; fire department employee Isidro Armenta; and business owner Jason Aula, who in response to the Times questionnaire, as well as in a recent press release, included comments about the Chinese Communist party and cannibalism.
Perhaps the most contested race is Seat 6, where incumbent Gabriel Buelna is facing off against Randall Winston, who serves as deputy mayor of infrastructure and climate resilience under Bass.
Buelna failed to gain a key endorsement of the district’s faculty guild, whose executive board endorsed Winston.
James McKeever, president of the faculty union, AFT Local 1521, declined to discuss many details of the union’s decision to endorse Winston, but said the executive board wanted to go “in a different direction” and saw Winston as the best candidate.
AFT 1521A, the guild representing district clerical and technical staff, issued a dual endorsement of both Winston and Buelna and has given money to both campaigns.
“I absolutely really love both,” said Andrea Edwards, president of the staff guild. “I could not choose.”
Others running for Seat 6 are community college professor Roberto David LaCarra and realtor Tonia Arey.
Buelna and Arey have accused Winston of misleading the public by listing architect as his occupation on the ballot, as well as describing himself as an educator and a teacher at West L.A. college during the campaign.
“The public doesn’t understand who he really is,” Buelna said.
Arey, who was endorsed by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Assn., has vowed to ensure there’s more transparency and accountability surrounding the district’s nearly $10-billion annual budget.
Asked in an interview why he didn’t list deputy mayor of infrastructure as his occupation when it’s his day-to-day job, Winston said “architect seemed to resonate the most and architect is my first professional degree and fundamentally part of still how I think and act.” Winston said he is currently licensed to practice architecture but doesn’t practice day to day.
Winston said he will also start teaching a leadership class at West L.A. College later this fall and is currently helping to teach a workshop at the college on climate solutions. He also said he has mentored UCLA students.
“I believe I have met the qualifications of an educator,” he said.
The Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk‘s Office disagreed and declined to allow Winston to list educator as his occupation on the ballot, according to an Aug. 27 email from the registrar’s office to Winston.
Winston said that at the time “West LA College was still completing the administrative processing for my adjunct instructor appointment.”
Before becoming deputy mayor, Winston also ran the California Strategic Growth Council, which helps fund sustainable development.
McKeever of the faculty union said he saw Winston’s long experience in development as an architect, deputy mayor and head of the growth council as an asset to the district as trustees deal with the bond-funded building program.
“This will help maintain the integrity of the bond process as the district moves forward with new construction projects,” McKeever said.
Despite not receiving the endorsement of the faculty guild, Buelna retains the support of a number of faculty members, including the president of the academic senate, Angela Echeverri.
Echeverri said Buelna “really cares about students and education” and helped successfully push for state legislation to make it easier for students to take courses in languages other than English.
The law “really opened up community colleges to people who previously couldn’t access education,” she said.
President Lula da Silva rallied in Sao Paulo and Flavio Bolsonaro in Minas Gerais, on the eve of Sunday’s runoff election. The candidates are now polling at 50% each, according to a Datafolha poll.
Published On 24 Oct 202624 Oct 2026
Share
Gomez, 51, won a special election to Congress in 2017, replacing Becerra, who stepped down after then-Gov. Jerry Brown nominated him for state attorney general.
On Aug. 17, the House Ethics Committee announced it was investigating Gomez for “inappropriate sexual contact with a House staffer.”
Two days later, attorneys Lisa J. Banks and Sarah E. Nesbitt said in a statement that they represented a woman the committee interviewed. The woman accused Gomez of sexual harassment and assault, according to the attorneys, who declined further comment.
Gomez acknowledged in a statement earlier this year that he made “personal mistakes outside my marriage,” but said that his “actions were consensual in nature and haven’t violated the law or House Ethics rules.”
He declined an interview request and is keeping a low profile during his reelection campaign. He successfully fended off challenges from David Kim, a progressive Democrat targeting him from the left, in 2020, 2022 and 2024. Kim has endorsed Gonzales-Torres.
Since Trump’s immigration crackdown, Gomez has focused on the treatment of immigrants and congressional oversight of federal detention centers. He and 12 other House members successfully sued the Trump administration after he was blocked from entering a detention facility and has said he trained legal observers to document ICE abuses.
His campaign touts his record as chair of the affordability-focused Congressional Renters Caucus and his support for proposed legislation that seeks to lower housing costs, expand supply and strengthen pathways to ownership.
He also backs two hallmark progressive initiatives, the Green New Deal and Medicare for all.
Gonzales-Torres, 31, previously worked as a part-time counselor for formerly incarcerated Pasadena City College students, interned in Mayor Karen Bass’s administration and volunteered on the Metro Public Safety Advisory Committee.
She is backed by the Los Angeles branch of the L.A. chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America, as well as Justice Democrats, the influential left-wing PAC known for helping Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-New York) win her first election in 2018.
If elected, Gonzales-Torres would focus on dismantling the U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement and seek a federal wealth tax on the ultra-rich.
She is calling for a moratorium on new data center construction until federal standards are in place and wants to end federal fossil fuel subsidies.
Gonzales-Torres has not held elected office beyond her two years — one as president — on the Historic Highland Park Neighborhood Council in 2023-25.
Several board members criticized her tenure. One, Caroline Aguirre, filed a police report alleging Gonzales-Torres thrust a finger into her face at a meeting. Aguirre shared the incident report with The Times but said police ultimately took no action.
Darren Gold, who is now board president, said Gonzales-Torres falsely accused him of shaking her, prompting a city investigation. Gold denied the interaction, accused Gonzales-Torres of lying and won reinstatement.
Both Gold and Jens Jonasson, another board member, described Gonzales-Torres’s leadership as chaotic, adding that she used the position to express personal views on gentrification and out-of-neighborhood issues such as Gaza.
“She was not effective at turning priorities into results, working through disagreements and staying with the job when things didn’t go her way,” said Jonasson.
Gonzales-Torres declined to comment on the incidents Aguirre and Gold alleged. She said that she was proud of her work connecting businesses with city services and other achievements.
She said she stepped down as president to volunteer for Kim’s 2024 campaign.
The American Israel Public Affairs Committee has repeatedly backed Gomez’s re-election campaigns, including this cycle, prompting criticism by both the Justice Democrats and Gonzales-Torres.
Gomez’s campaign points to his call for Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s resignation, a push for humanitarian aid in Gaza and a ceasefire.
In July, Gomez voted against an amendment to cut off aid to Israel, even as many other Democrats supported the initiative.
Gomez told Politico the amendment was “overly broad and would also restrict programs that facilitate humanitarian aid for Palestinians and refugee resettlement, peace-building efforts, and our ability to confront terrorist organizations like Hamas and Hezbollah.”
“It would empower the Trump administration to determine what gets funded and what does not,” he said.
AI is also an issue in the race, although both candidates support regulation.
Guardrails Alliance, a political action committee seeking stricter regulation of the tech industry, backs Gonzales-Torres.
A PAC affiliated with the AI industry, Leading the Future, supports Gomez, though it has yet to announce spending in his race.
This runoff election for an open seat features two veteran attorneys with extensive experience as public defenders: Justin Allen Clayton and Anna Slotky Reitano.
Clayton is in charge of the Inglewood branch of the public defenders office and has defended three cases with life sentences.
Reitano represented juvenile and adult clients, many of them accused of felonies, before joining the county counsel’s office.
The Los Angeles County Bar Assn. considers both qualified to serve. Here’s more of what you need to know about the candidates.
Justin Allen Clayton, L.A. County deputy public defender
Bar rating: Qualified
Clayton is a Los Angeles native who attended public schools, earned a bachelor’s degree in criminology and passed the bar in 2012. He joined the public defender’s office two years later and since 2023 has served as deputy in charge of the Inglewood branch.
Clayton describes himself as a “working supervisor” who conducts arraignments and represents clients at preliminary and other hearings. He has completed dozens of trials, including three with life sentences, according to his website.
The position involves overseeing and training attorneys, as well as law clerks and summer interns, on misdemeanor and felony case preparation and trial strategy.
Clayton said a priority is improving court efficiency through pretrial preparation and “firm but fair enforcement of deadlines.”
Time as a candidate, he said, has shown him the importance of effective communication within the court system in bridging language and cultural differences. He called that a guiding principle, particularly for clients who lack counsel.
“Sometimes, one additional question, or one additional statement, can make all the difference in resolving an issue,” he said.
Clayton said running a public defender branch office, which brings him in contact with judges, sheriffs, court clerks, interpreters and others, combined with 14 years as a trial attorney, gives him a “comprehensive understanding” of the courtroom.
“That combination of courtroom experience, leadership and daily interaction with the many people who make our justice system work has uniquely prepared me to serve as a Superior Court judge,” he said.
Sign up for our L.A. City Hall newsletter to get weekly insights, scoops and analysis.
By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service, which include arbitration and a class action waiver. You agree that we and our third-party vendors may collect and use your information, including through cookies, pixels and similar technologies, for the purposes set forth in our Privacy Policy such as personalizing your experience and ads.
Anna Slotky Reitano, L.A. County deputy county counsel
Bar rating: Qualified
Reitano spent the early part of her career in criminal defense, contract law and other sectors. In 2014, she joined the L.A. County public defender’s office. A decade there included three years in juvenile court, where she primarily handled felony cases, and five years at the San Fernando Courthouse, where she represented indigent clients facing felony charges.
Reitano focused on mental health diversion and treatment, aiming to support rehabilitation when possible. Having a brother with schizophrenia and witnessing how families navigate the legal system when dealing with mental illness has informed her approach.
“This has given me a deeper understanding of both the challenges individuals and families face and the ways in which the system can fall short in addressing those needs,” she said.
This is not her first bid for office. She lost a campaign for a judgeship in 2022 and two years later assumed her position in the county counsel’s justice and safety division, where she supervises litigation and advises county departments.
Reitano, a former child actor, volunteers with local schools and, according to her website, mentors “future lawyers” through moot court competitions.
Campaigning, Reitano said, has shown her that constituents, no matter how different, uniformly want “a judge who is experienced, prepared, fair and willing to listen.”
“My experience across criminal, juvenile, civil, administrative and government law has uniquely prepared me to serve wherever the court needs me,” she said.
This race for an open seat pits a former U.S. assistant attorney who represented President Obama, the FBI and NASA against a seasoned Los Angeles County public defender who has taken more than 100 trials, some with three-strikes implications, to verdict.
David DeJute, who defended Obama against the so-called birther claims, spent a decade as vice president of litigation at Sony Pictures Entertainment. He now works in litigation at a private firm.
Anthony “A.J.” Bayne’s background includes nearly two decades serving in the Compton Courthouse, where he for a time served as deputy in charge. He’s now handling serious felony cases at the Torrance branch.
DeJute is rated “qualified” to serve by the Los Angeles County Bar Assn. Bayne is rated a notch higher, “well qualified.”
Here’s what you need to know about the candidates.
Anthony “A.J.” Bayne, L.A. County deputy public defender
Bar rating: Well qualified
Bayne’s 31-year legal career includes more than a quarter-century as an L.A. County deputy public defender. He has taken more than 100 jury trials to verdict, including murder, special circumstances and three-strikes cases, some of which carried sentences of death or life in prison.
“Even during the [election] primary period, I continued taking cases to trial rather than continuing them, because my clients should not be prejudiced by unnecessary delay,” he said.
He spent 19 years at the Compton Courthouse, where for a time he served as deputy in charge, supervising misdemeanor trial deputies. He now is stationed in the Torrance branch, where he handles serious felonies.
Bayne is an inventor, with patent-pending applications for artificial intelligence tools that automate legal workflows. One helps with closing arguments; another uses court reporter transcripts to generate cross-examination questions.
Using AI to address the county’s heavy caseload is a priority. He argues the technology could modernize court infrastructure, aiding in case management, scheduling and document processing.
Bayne, who trains in jiujitsu and Krav Maga self-defense, said extensive jury trial experience has prepared him to be an effective judge.
“Wherever I go, people want the same things: a judge who is prepared and fair, who will listen to their side of the case, and who treats them with respect,” he said.
Sign up for our L.A. City Hall newsletter to get weekly insights, scoops and analysis.
By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service, which include arbitration and a class action waiver. You agree that we and our third-party vendors may collect and use your information, including through cookies, pixels and similar technologies, for the purposes set forth in our Privacy Policy such as personalizing your experience and ads.
David DeJute, law professor/attorney
Bar rating: Qualified
The son of a late judge, DeJute has had a 35-year legal career. After graduating from law school, he clerked for a U.S. district judge and then worked at a boutique litigation firm. He spent nearly a decade as vice president of litigation at Sony Pictures Entertainment.
In 2005, he was appointed as an assistant U.S. attorney. Over more than a decade, he worked on 10 trials, including successfully defending President Obama against “birther” lawsuits that challenged his eligibility to hold office. DeJute represented the FBI and NASA in other cases.
He joined Michelman & Robinson in 2017 and is part of the complex litigation group.
An adjunct professor at Pepperdine’s Caruso School of Law, he’s taught ethics, antitrust, copyright and patent law. After last year’s wildfires, he returned as director of the disaster relief clinic, where he instructed students who provided pro bono legal services to victims of the Palisades and Eaton fires.
“I continue to provide free legal help to wildfire survivors who have asked me to stay involved,” he said, though he no longer runs the clinic.
DeJute said he has experienced discrimination as an openly gay man, which drives his desire to ensure that everyone in the justice system is treated with dignity and respect.
“Justice requires more than achieving certain results,” he said. “It requires a fair process untainted by bias.”
This runoff for a vacant seat on the bench features a longtime public defender running against a veteran alternate public defender. Both boast extensive trial experience.
Donna Tryfman, a deputy public defender, serves in the major cases unit, where she handles homicide and other high-profile defendants. She also has extensive experience in juvenile cases.
David Ross is an alternate in the Torrance branch of the public defenders office and also works in Bellflower and Long Beach. He claims to have represented more than 10,000 clients at hearings and in trials.
The Los Angeles County Bar Assn. rates both attorneys as “qualified” for office. Here’s more of what you need to know about the candidates.
Donna Tryfman, L.A. County deputy public defender
Bar rating: Qualified
Tryfman began with the public defender’s office in 1998, logging more than 100 jury trials. Her experience includes supervising Eastlake Juvenile Court, where she ran a branch with 15 lawyers and represented clients in the collaborative drug court. She is stationed in the major cases unit, focusing on capital homicide litigation.
Tryfman has served as a Superior Court judge pro tem, handling traffic and small claims cases. She has proctored teen courts at Dorsey and Hamilton high schools and last year received the peer-bestowed Gideon felony attorney of the year award.
Conversations on the campaign trail have helped her understand what works and what doesn’t in the justice system.
“It has reinforced for me that experience and knowledge of the law matter enormously, but so does how people are treated when they walk into a courtroom,” she said.
Tryfman said the heavy caseload of a public defender has prepared her for the bench’s rigors. She also cited her life experience as the daughter of immigrants, a single mother and a widow who was faced with the decision of whether to discontinue life support for her husband.
“Experiences like that teach you something about responsibility, compassion and judgment that cannot be learned from a law book,” she said.
Outside the office, Tryfman spent five years as president of the California Public Defenders Assn. and chaired the Rent Stabilization Commission for the city of Beverly Hills. She has served as vice chair of the L.A. County Bar Assn.’s Conference of California Bar Assns., where she helps develop state legislative proposals.
Sign up for our L.A. City Hall newsletter to get weekly insights, scoops and analysis.
By continuing, you agree to our Terms of Service, which include arbitration and a class action waiver. You agree that we and our third-party vendors may collect and use your information, including through cookies, pixels and similar technologies, for the purposes set forth in our Privacy Policy such as personalizing your experience and ads.
David Ross, L.A. County deputy alternate public defender
Bar rating: Qualified
Ross has more than three decades in the legal field, but it was not his original calling. The Los Angeles native served as a legislative aide to the late U.S. Rep. Floyd Fithian (D-Ind.) on Capitol Hill, then worked as a television journalist and documentary producer in Washington, D.C., Tennessee and Kansas.
“I grew up wanting to be Peter Jennings, not Clarence Darrow,” he told The Times.
Ross passed the bar in 1994, joined the Riverside County public defender’s office the following year and began as a Los Angeles County deputy alternate public defender in 2000. He has litigated 113 jury trials, conducted more than 2,000 preliminary hearings and represented some 10,000 indigent clients. Assigned to the Torrance office since 2018, he also has worked in the Bellflower, Long Beach and Pomona branches, among others.
Ross, who lives in Long Beach, said he has spoken with more than 60 Democratic clubs, unions and other organizations on the campaign trail and frequently has heard a desire for qualified and independent judges who will listen to all sides.
A priority would be ensuring that even if a party loses, they walk out of the courthouse knowing the judge paid attention.
Ross said his mix of legal and life experience and his time as a journalist, in which he “listened to real people, gathered the facts and told objective stories,” provide a unique perspective.
Dozens of groups have lined up behind the proposal, including the Trust for Public Land, TreePeople, Friends of the Los Angeles River and many others. At City Hall, the measure is backed by Rodriguez and several other council members as well as City Controller Kenneth Mejia.
Rodriguez and Mejia signed the ballot argument in favor of Charter Amendment PRK, as did Rev. Gregory Boyle, founder of Homeboy Industries, Nicole Chase, president and chief executive of the Boys & Girls Club of the San Fernando Valley, and several others.
Backers of the measure say the parks department provides an essential safety net for the city’s low-income residents, offering summer camps, sports activities and senior programs for free or at reduced prices.
When temperatures soar, the city’s recreation centers welcome residents who lack air conditioning. During emergencies, those facilities are converted into places of refuge from fires, floods or other disasters.
Despite those varied responsibilities, the department has been underfunded for years, said Tori Kjer, executive director of the Los Angeles Neighborhood Land Trust, who pushed for the measure to reach the ballot.
“If you talk to many Angelenos, they are unhappy with their local park, and that is because we have not funded it with the resources it needs,” she said.
Kjer said the department never recovered from the 2008 recession, when city leaders cut staffing by more than 25%, leaving it with about 1,500 workers last year. The city also began charging the department for the cost of water, electricity, trash pickup and other city services.
The measure aims to tackle the cost of what it takes to run a campaign and to broaden the pool of people who could run for office without being tethered to any individual, group or special interest.
“The increasing costs of political campaigns can force candidates to rely on large contributions from wealthy donors and special interests, which can give those wealthy donors and special interests disproportionate influence over governmental decisions,” the measure states.
There have been several attempts to allow for public campaign financing in California. Five charter cities, including Los Angeles, and at least 14 other states already allow some version of it.
“This bill will restore control to local governments and the state by giving counties, districts, general law cities, and the state the same option that charter cities currently have to enact public financing of campaigns,” a Senate rules committee analysis states.
Money generated by Proposition 3, like the current tax, would flow to education, with 89% going to K-12 schools and 11% to community colleges.
Then, because the state constitution requires minimum levels of spending on education, more dollars are freed up to pay for services including healthcare and the University of California and California State University systems, said Kayla Kitson, a senior analyst with the California Budget and Policy Center.
Proposition 3, like the current high-earners tax, has the added effect of raising the minimum levels of funding required to flow to K-12 schools and community colleges, because of the complicated formulas California uses to set its budget, Kitson said.
If Proposition 3 fails, the state could expect to lose between $5 billion and $15 billion annually in tax revenue starting in 2031, according to estimates from the Legislative Analyst’s Office.
The California Democratic Party is backing Ma, whose quarter-century in electoral politics includes stints on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors, in the State Assembly and on the State Board of Equalization. She was elected treasurer in 2019 and is termed out.
The California Republican Party has endorsed Romero, who has been campaigning with Republican gubernatorial candidate Steve Hilton on what the two term a “golden ticket” (though voters elect each office separately).
The Republican designation is relatively new for Romero. She was a Democrat when she served in the Legislature from 1998 to 2010. She became a Republican in 2024, asserting that Democratic party standards no longer aligned with her beliefs.
“I consider myself to be common sense, a new Republican with the values of American exceptionalism that once upon a time the Democratic party stood for, but it’s been overrun by the socialists and the communists that have taken over the party,” she told the Times.
Ma’s parents emigrated from China and eventually settled in New York. Her father started a design and manufacturing firm, and her mother was a high school art teacher. Fiona Ma played sports, was a Girl Scout — “a top cookie seller,” she boasts on her campaign website — and graduated from Rochester Institute of Technology. She moved to San Francisco, started an accounting practice and became a part-time field representative to Assemblymember John Burton. She won her San Francisco supervisor’s seat in 2002 and, four years later, was elected to the Assembly.
Romero grew up in a Catholic household in Barstow, with pictures of the Pope and President Kennedy on the walls. She described her parents, a railroad worker and a mother who once cleaned houses, as “Depression-era Democrats.”
She started in community college and eventually earned a PhD. She was a college professor, an L.A. Community College trustee and a city of L.A. charter reform commissioner before being elected to the state Assembly in 1998. She moved to the Senate in 2001 and became the first female majority leader. Today she lives in El Sereno.