[courtesy of The California Majority Report]

In the tight race for Senate District 3, Assemblymember Mark Leno scored a major endorsement today: Marin Congresswoman and progressive's progressive Lynn Woolsey.

"Mark Leno has built a strong record on behalf of the issues the people of my district care deeply about. I am proud to announce my support for him today," said Congresswoman Lynn Woolsey. "We can count on Mark to go to Sacramento and provide progressive leadership on the issues we all care about—a cleaner and more sustainable environment, universal, single-payer health care, better schools and access to affordable higher education."

"Congresswoman Woolsey's unwavering, progressive principles and steadfast leadership in Congress have proven invaluable to the families of Marin and Sonoma Counties," declared Assemblyman Mark Leno. "I am deeply honored by the faith and trust Congresswoman Woolsey has in me to represent the progressive democratic values of the North Bay in the State Senate. I look forward to partnering with her and working together on the challenging issues we face."

Woolsey's endorsement is a big deal, because she helps Leno corral the voters most out of reach for the Assemblymember. Leno is polling well, particularly in San Francisco proper, but Marin is former Assemblymember Joe Nation's turf, and of course, incumbent Senator Carole Migden has represented the region for the past four years.

by FDR [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

By Frank D. Russo

A bitter fight for the endorsement by the California Democratic Party between incumbent State Senator Carole Migden and challenger Assemblymember Mark Leno is shaping up to be the biggest battle at the state party convention being held in San Jose.  The picture above is typical of what delegates and other other observers have seen over the last two days as they exit the convention floor.

The Democratic Senate leadership has pulled out all the stops to get Migden endorsed as dozens of Senate staffers, along with other supporters of hers, have been holding signs in meetings and the hallways urging that the party endorse her.  Unfortunately, this is one of those incumbent protection moves, where challenges to an incumbent must be fought at all costs.  Delegates appointed by Senators who would have supported Leno, the challenger, have been replaced by those loyal to Senator Migden.

by Robert in Monterey [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

by Be_Devine [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

As previously reported, Carole Migden was recently hit with the largest fine in the history of California's Fair Political Practices Commission ("FPPC").  She was found guilty of 89 separate violations of California law and fined $350,000.

The record FPPC fine, however, is only the tip of the iceberg for Senator Migden.  She still has several unresolved violations of California law, which the FPPC chairman calls "serious and deceitful."  Rather than letting the FPPC proceeding run its course, Senator Migden chose instead to join forces with radical right wing Republicans by filing a lawsuit in Federal Court to declare California's campaign finance laws unconstitutional.  Senator Migden is happy to undo years of valuable campaign finance reform just for a shot at saving herself from her clear violations of the law.

This is the long and sordid tale of Senator Migden's numerous violations of California law.  It is a tale not only about her recent lawsuit (Migden v. The Fair Political Practices Commission), but also a tale about Carole Migden's serious and deceitful assault on the notion of fair political practices in general (Carole Migden versus fair political practices).  It will take a while to unravel the mess that Carole Migden has created.  So grab a beverage, get a comfy chair, and hold on for the ride . . . 

by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

Last week, Senator Carole Migden sued the FPPC, alleging that Proposition 34 was unconstitutional. Interestingly, in 2000, when in the Assembly, Migden voted in favor of placing the proposition on the ballot.

Why the dramatic shift in positions? Well, as Randy Shaw pointed out last week, Migden has over $1 million that is in question in this case. Unless Prop 34 is somehow struck down, she cannot use that money.  And that's the bulk of her cash on hand. SmartVoter has more information about Prop 34 here. But, here's a quick recap of what it did:

   * Limits individual campaign contributions per election: state legislature, $3,000; statewide elective office, $5,000 (small contributor committees may double these limits); governor, $20,000. Limits contributions to political parties/political committees for purpose of making contributions for support or defeat of candidates.

read more »

by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

In a rather unsurprising move, Joe A. Veronese dropped out of the primary race for Senate District 3.  Joe Alioto Veronese was lagging behind  Asm. Mark Leno, former Asm. Joe Nation, and incumbent Carole Midgen.  With Nation's entry into the race, it gave the SF police commissioner a tough time trying to argue that he was the candidate for Marin. Nevertheless, we'll be seeing Joe Alioto Veronese again, of that I can assure you.

In terms of the SD-03 race, well, I have to imagine that this favors Mark Leno.  In Leno's recent David Binder poll, JAV was pulling about 7%. Given the  demographics, Leno will be in the best position to pick up those votes. Specifically, Leno is stronger in the Marina and North Beach neighborhoods where JAV was strong than Senator Migden has been in the past. This might even help him become the front-runner. I'm not sure the endorsement would make a huge difference, but it might help Nation to grab a few SF votes if he gets the JAV nod.

Press release over the flip.