Indivisible Ventura’s Voting Guide for the 2026 Primary Election

Note: this post will be periodically updated! (05/18/2026)

VOTER GUIDE – QUICK LINKS TO:

Indivisible leaders throughout California asked our people to wait to return their ballots…

(cahighways.org) Bottom Line Up Front: Here’s the bottom line for the Governor’s Race, as the Republican Candidates are unacceptable, and all of the top tier Democratic candidates are. Vote for the top polling Democratic candidate as of May 15 or later, to ensure a Democratic candidate gets into the General election. You can’t go wrong with any of the top tier Democratic candidates. And remember: Perfect is the enemy of “Good Enough”. We can’t get a perfect candidate; good enough will do.

Many voters didn’t realize that it wasn’t just Democrats telling voters to wait!

An extreme right wing group, “Reform California,” run by Assemblymember Carl “Mini-Trump” DeMaio, who just succeeded in getting a toxic SAVE Act-type proposition on the November ballot, has exactly the same advice for their people!

(Reform CA) “Both Steve Hilton and Chad Bianco are good men and would make a great Governor. However, there is a risk of a shut out if Republicans split their votes – thus allowing two Democrats to advance into the runoff. While Reform California is not endorsing one candidate over the other, we strongly recommend that voters review the latest polling on this race to unite behind whichever candidate is in the lead and has the best chance to make it into the runoff. Review the latest polling analysis on CA Governor’s Race here.“

People have been taking this advice.

(Calmatters)The race is still up in the air. Only 3% of ballots have been returned, and 12% of likely voters remain undecided, according to the latest poll from Emerson College Polling/Inside California Politics. Becerra has eked out a lead with 19% of respondents favoring him, followed by Hilton, a Republican, and billionaire environmental activist Tom Steyer, who both polled at 17%. 

The polls show Becerra in the lead, with Steyer and Hilton in a dead heat right behind. However, the news about Becerra’s minions and their involvement in a campaign finance scandal has his rivals from both parties suggesting that he may face additional legal liability from Trump’s politicized Department of Justice, especially if he and Hilton are the finalists for the November ballot.

We agree with columnist Brent Molnar that “None of [our three] candidates have done anything that justifies handing the keys of the fourth-largest economy in the world to a candidate aligned with the national Trump agenda.

IT’S TIME TO VOTE!

Guaranteed our voter guide will contain recommendations you don’t agree with, and we ask that any contrary comments remain civil. We try to provide enough information about different options to help people make up their own minds. We researched so many rabbit holes, especially for those mysterious “NON-PARTISAN” candidates, so that you and our husbands don’t have to. It’s now on all of us to fix what we can and to create a path to a more just and sustainable future for this country that we love. At a polling booth, or at our own kitchen tables, armed with a pen and a ballot, we are going to fight for the American dream for everyone and for democracy to continue. Here’s how:

  • DO NOT LEAVE BLANK SPACES ON YOUR BALLOT! We try to give out information on reasonable candidates for every office, even those weird ones, like judicial candidates.
  • THERE ARE NO UNIMPORTANT PUBLIC OFFICES: The beliefs of the candidate matter at every level, even those running for offices that are deemed “non-partisan.” Republicans now consider Democratic governance fundamentally illegitimate. Do not give them a foothold or increased name recognition.
  • ENDORSEMENTS YOU SHOULD WATCH OUT FOR: Beyond the basic GOP clubs, there are a number of endorsing organizations that represent far-right political views.
  • Note – WE NEVER RECOMMEND VOTING FOR SOMEONE WITHOUT ENDORSEMENTS!
    • How can we believe a candidate can lead a city, a county, or a state if they can’t even persuade people or organizations to endorse them?
  • CHECK YOUR OWN BALLOT: Not all the people/races listed in our guide are on your ballot. Click here.
  • WATCH OUT FOR SLATE MAILERS: Read political flyers carefully! Who paid for it? Is it from a political party, or are they pay-to-play “slate” mailers?
    • (calmatters) Slated for deception? Beware of all those glossy mailers telling you how to vote.
  • YOU DON’T NEED TO BE AN EXPERT TO BECOME INVOLVED!: Phonebanking! Textbanking! Letter Writing! and other great things to do!: Click here.
  • This post will be updated as more endorsements come in.

DEMOCRATS MUST WIN EVERY CONTEST FROM NOW ON! What we said would happen in our 2024 voter guide if Trump took office has already occurred!

  • He threw out civil service workers who’ve sworn an oath to the constitution and replaced them with his lickspittles.
  • In exchange for being able to enrich himself and punish his enemies without guardrails or consequence, he has let Heritage Foundation operatives, like Russ Vought, install Project 2025, its anti-democratic, anti-LGBTQ, anti-immigrant, anti-environment, anti-woman, anti-public education, White Supremacist and Christian Nationalist agenda.
  • Former Obama White House speechwriter, Ben Rhodes, described the existential threat in plain sight – “One major political party no longer accepts democracy
  • Our country, as predicted, is now a “democracy-in-decline,” which the GOP is intent on replacing with a White Nationalist one-party minority-controlled rule, starting by destroying the protections of the Civil Rights Act. Victor Orbán, model for Project 2025, has finally been ousted, but he was in power for 16 years.

Voting Fast Facts!

  • The League of Women Voters has a great informational page on all aspects of voting here.
  • Voting Schedule:
    • Primary Election – June 2, 2026
    • The last day to register to vote for the June 2, 2026, Primary Election is May 18, 2026.
    • All California active registered voters will receive a ballot for the June 2, 2026, Primary Election.
    • County elections officials began mailing ballots on May 4, 2026.
    • Secure ballot drop-off locations opened on May 5, 2026.
    • Ballots can be dropped off at a drop-off location, county elections office, or returned by mail.
    • The first vote centers open for early in-person voting in all Voter’s Choice Act counties on May 23, 2026.
    • In person early voting locations throughout California will be open on Saturday, May 30, 2026.
    • June 2 is the last day to vote in-person or return a ballot by 8:00 p.m. Polls are open from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Vote-by-mail ballots must be postmarked no later than June 2. If mailing on Elections Day, get a hand-stamped postmark from a postal employee inside a United States Post Office.
  • Returning your ballot: Not sure about the post office right now? You can return your ballot securely at a lot of places!
  • Election Observation information: Information page
  • Registration: Information page to do the following:
    • Check your voter status,
    • register online,
    • pre-register if you’re 16 or 17
    • Make changes – changed your address, name or political party preference?
    • Questions? Call (805) 654-2664
  • Sign up for “Track my Ballot”: https://california.ballottrax.net/voter/

VOTER GUIDE – QUICK LINKS TO:

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