Federal Candidates – 2022 Primary

Note: this post will be periodically updated! (05/26/2022) Added NRA candidate endorsements.

QUICK LINKS TO: Federal candidates, State candidates, County candidates, Local Measures, Voting/registration information, Ballot drop-off locations, In-person voting locations, Other voting guides/endorsements.

Due to the 2020 census, districts have been redrawn.  YOUR district may have changed. Check new 2021 maps for Board of Supervisors, Assembly, State Senate, Congress

Senator – United States Senate – (Special & Regular Election)

Alex Padilla – CA Senator (D)

Voter’s Edge bio here.

• Age: 55
  City of residence: Santa Barbara
  Occupation: CA Senator
  Education: Master’s degree, Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara
  Funding: here
• Voter’s Edge bio here.
  Courage California bio here. His website and awards here.
  Sample of Padilla’s endorsements below.

• (LATimes) Endorsement: Alex Padilla for U.S. Senate
• (League of Conservation Voters) LCV ACTION FUND AND CALIFORNIA LEAGUE OF CONSERVATION VOTERS ENDORSE SENATOR ALEX PADILLA FOR RE-ELECTION
• (The Bay Area Reporter – local, independent, LGBTQ journalism): Alex Padilla is running for a full six-year term. He has been a strong ally to the LGBTQ community. In his Bay Area Reporter endorsement questionnaire, Padilla wrote that he is a strong supporter of the LGBTQ community. “I will continue fighting for a future in which the full civil and human rights of LGBTQ+ individuals are recognized,” he stated. “The assaults on the LGBTQ+ community that we see happening across the country underscore the urgency of passing legislation at the federal level that protects the rights of all LGBTQ+ Americans. I pledge to champion federal legislation, like the Equality Act, that guarantees equal protection for all.”
  • Padilla is a strong advocate for affordable housing and addressing the homelessness crisis that is gripping the state. He has proposed a Housing for All Act that would invest billions of dollars in programs that have proved able to tackle the affordable housing shortage, including the National Housing Trust Fund, and supportive housing for people with disabilities. “Many of the programs in the [Housing for All] bill were inspired by efforts that were pioneered right here in California,” he wrote, “like creating a safe parking program to create parking sites that offer places for those who live out of their vehicles to park overnight.” Funding would also go toward converting spaces like hotels, motels, and shopping malls into housing for homeless and vulnerable individuals, he noted.
  • Padilla stated that he was able to successfully push the Biden administration to extend the eviction moratorium last year, and said the government needs to reallocate federal rent relief funding to communities most in need.
  • Padilla is not widely known among Californians, which is why this election is important. One of his Democratic challengers is Santa Barbara tech billionaire Dan O’Dowd, who’s running a vanity campaign to criticize the safety of self-driving cars. Additionally, the California Democratic Party messed up when it accidentally left Padilla’s name off its list of endorsed candidates in the state voter guide; the party endorsed him back in March, as the San Francisco Chronicle reported.
  • Padilla became the first Latino in California to serve in the Senate (and he was the first Latino in state history to be elected to his former position of secretary of state). Representation matters, as we regularly point out, and having his voice in the Senate is crucial for all Californians. We recommend a vote for Padilla on the June 7 primary ballot.

House of Representatives – CA-24

District CA-24 – Salud Carbajal – Congressmember – (D)

A majority of Americans don't want Roe overturned.⁰⁰A majority of the House doesn't want Roe overturned.⁰⁰A majority of the Senate doesn't want Roe overturned.⁰⁰But radical Senate Republicans still want to block bills that protect reproductive rights. #AbolishTheFilibuster

— Rep. Salud Carbajal (@RepCarbajal) May 9, 2022

• Age: Bio here.
• City of residence: Santa Barbara
• Occupation: Congressman
• Education: Master’s degree, Fielding Graduate University, Santa Barbara
• Funding: here
• Salud’s Courage California bio here. Awards here.
• Website: here.
• Section on reproductive justice here.
• Sample of his endorsements below.

(Ojai Valley Dems) “Ojai’s “New” congressman Salud Carbajal visits a home on Blanche St to speak of his legislative agenda and the successes of the Biden administration. The 57 year old son of a farm working father , Carbajal lived in Oxnard as a boy and graduated from UCSB and Fielding Graduate University, where he earned a master’s degree in organizational management.

After serving in the Marine Corps and working for a Santa Barbara County Supervisor he was elected to that board three times before winning a seat in Congress. With redistricting, Ventura and Ojai are added to his 24th district while Julia Brownley keeps upper Ojai in her 26th district and most of Ventura County as well as a small portion of Los Angeles County.

Ojai club President Jeffery Starkweather asked a series of questions and Carbajal revealed the “Build Back Better infrastructure proposal stalled by West Virginia Senator Joe Manchin is not dead. Carbajal predicted a revised version will soon pass the senate and bring more help to working families and the nation.

The congressman opened with a report on new weapons and support for Ukraine and the audience held a moment of silence for the country invaded by Russia.“

House of Representatives – CA-26

NO NRA endorsement for this district.

District CA-26  – Julia Brownley – Congressmember – (D)

VC Star report on three candidates for CA-26 here

• Age: 69
• City of residence: Westlake Village
• Occupation: Member of congress, 26th District
• Education: George Washington University, American University 
• Funding: here
• Sample of her endorsements below. https://juliabrownley.com
• Website: https://juliabrownley.com

Additional comments:

(Indivisible Conejo): Congresswoman Brownley is a shoo-in to advance to November’s general election, but in a newly revamped district, in a year when the “fundamentals” favor Republicans (or, at least, did before it became clear Roe v. Wade will be overturned), she is likely to receive considerably less than the 60% of the vote she has received in her last two elections. In part, that’s because her chief Republican opponent, Matt Jacobs, is a Thousand Oaks local who has a credible political pulse (unlike her previous two opponents, pretty-boy actor Antonio Sabato Jr. and carpetbagging wackjob Ronda Kennedy) and is likely to get a heavy investment from the National Republican Congressional Committee. (The other Republican challenger, sports agent Fadde Mikhail, is a ridiculous and unserious man.) We’ll have to work hard for Brownley in the fall.   

House of Representatives – CA-27

Note from us: Please review the candidates who are NOT Mike Garcia carefully! Note – we NEVER RECOMMEND VOTING FOR SOMEONE WITHOUT ENDORSEMENTS! Leadership implies trust earned. Minimum ask for candidates: Find people who would trust you with the power of this office and ask them to endorse you.

(Knock-la.com) Incumbent Mike Garcia raised the most money. He is supported by weapons manufacturers, fossil fuel interests, and a Koch brother PAC. There are two other Republicans and one write-in independent who show no money raised in recent data and are not considered viable.

The most prominent Democrat, Christy Smith, has the support of some large unions and has many endorsements from establishment California Democrats. She was one of the most conservative Democrats in the State Assembly, not supporting Medicare for All or police decertification, for example. Her current platform continues along the same lines. Even though Biden narrowly won the precincts of this district in 2020, Smith narrowly lost to Garcia, so the runoff will likely be a rematch between Smith and Garcia. 

John Quaye Quartey is a naval intelligence officer, touting his military experience on his website. It’s not clear who endorses him. There is no evidence of him supporting progressive legislation.

Ruth Luevanos supports Medicare for All and creating union jobs. She has a great-looking website and is supported by local progressive groups and activists.

UPDATE: In light of the recent massacres, we’re going to share the NRA’s endorsement for this seat. What we’re looking for in a viable candidate is an “F” from these guys.

District CA-27 – Christy Smith (D)

• Christy Smith
• City of residence: Santa Clarita
• Occupation: California assemblywoman
• Funding: here
• She is endorsed by our tribe – Indivisible and by the LA Times, who wrote this article comparing her to Mike Garcia.
• Vote Smart Political Courage Test here
• Endorsements: here
• Website: here

(LA Times) Endorsement: Christy Smith for Congress

District CA-27 – Ruth Luevanos (D)

• Age: 48
• City of residence: Simi Valley 
• Occupation: Educator, Simi Valley Council 
• Education: George Washington University, Juris Doctor at Loyola Law
• Funding: https://www.opensecrets.org/races/candidates?cycle=2022&id=CA27&spec=N
• Endorsements: https://www.ruth4congress.com/endorsements/
• Website: https://www.ruth4congress.com
• youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/shorts/SL8-fBIO2_Y

District CA-27 – John “Quaye” Quartey (D)

(oc-breeze) Quartey announces outraising Democratic opponent by over $370,000 since launching CA-27 campaign

House of Representatives – CA-32

NO NRA endorsement for this district.

District CA-32 – Brad Sherman – Congressmember – (D)

• Age: 67
• City of residence: Sherman Oaks
• Occupation: CPA/Incumbent Congress Member for CA-27
• Education: UCLA, Harvard Law
• Funding: here
• Website here
• Sample endorsements below. Complete list of endorsements https://bradsherman.com/endorsements/

QUICK LINKS TO: Federal candidates, State candidates, County candidates, Local Measures, Voting/registration information, Ballot drop-off locations, In-person voting locations, Other voting guides/endorsements.