by Brian Leubitz [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

We weren't able to arrange everything for our Monday 3:30 time slot, but today, in addition to a wrap-up of the June 3 election, we'll have an interview with Hannah-Beth Jackson, Democratic Nominee for the 19th State Senate District. We recorded the interview this morning, and let's just say she'll make a great Senator. The show will air today (6/10) at 3:30. You can listen live at the homepage, check it out later, or download it at iTunes.

In other news from this race, the Ventura County Star did a report on Sunday about who is funding the Ventura County GOP. You'll find some unsurprising answers:

The nation's largest tobacco company has donated $50,000 to the Ventura County Republican Central Committee as the local party gears up to help GOP candidate Tony Strickland in what is expected to be a multimillion-dollar campaign this fall in the 19th Senate District.

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[courtesy of California Progress Report]

By Marie Lakin

WHEN STATE LEGISLATORS did their grand gerrymandering of legislative districts back in 2001, one of the most egregious errors was the odd mishmash that is Senate District 19. It encompasses Ventura County, Santa Barbara County and part of Santa Clarita.

The Santa Barbara coastline and Ventura, which were once represented by Jack O'Connell, fell under the vastly reconfigured district of Sen. Tom McClintock (R-Thousand Oaks), one of the most conservative members of the Legislature.

The more moderate voices of Ventura, Oxnard, Santa Barbara and Ojai have felt distinctly left out ever since. No wonder then that as McClintock leaves his seat after being termed out, a strong Democratic contender, Hannah-Beth Jackson, has emerged to take on the far-right Tony Strickland for SD-19.

I have been an admirer of Jackson's for a long time. She owned a business in Ventura for 22 years and was an extremely effective legislator while in the Assembly and a champion for every cause I value -- education, the environment, consumer protection, public safety and women's issues.

by David Dayen [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

SD-09: Finally, some returns are coming in.  I'm seeing Loni Hancock up 56-44 with 31% in.

SD-15: Haven't heard any updates on Dennis Morris.  It's going to take a while to figure this one out.

[UPDATE by Robert] not including Monterey and Santa Clara counties, which have not yet reported their write-in votes, 2,645 write-in votes have been recored in SD-15. Not clear yet how many are for Morris and how many are for Maldonado, and we likely won't know for a few days. But it's quite doable.

SD-19: With 63%, Hannah-Beth Jackson now has 1,300 more votes in her race than Tony Strickland does in his.  I can't wait to win this one in November.

SD-23: 19% in now.  Fran Pavley leads 63-37.  Since this kind of result was likely anyway, why did she have to go negative?

SD-25: This is unnerving.  Rod Wright has now taken a 336-vote lead over Mervyn Dymally with 40% of the vote in.  Wright is too moderate for this seat.  Not over yet, obviously.

by David Dayen [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

SD-03: With 9% in, Nation 38, Leno 35, Migden 27.

SD-05: Lois Wolk has been declared the winner by the AP.

SD-09: Very early but Loni Hancock is up 71-29.

SD-19: Hannah-Beth Jackson and Tony Strickland are both running unopposed, but right now Strickland only has 2,500 more votes.  That should bear watching.

SD-23: Pavley up 61-39 on Lloyd Levine.

SD-25: Dymally up 46-33 on Rod Wright.

SD-33: Mimi Walters has been declared the winner.  She'll face Ellinoiranne's husband Gary Pritchard.

AD-08: Mariko Yamada and Chris Cabaldon in a 51-49 dogfight.

AD-10: Alyson Huber up 65-35 with 43% in.  She'll take this.

AD-14: Nancy Skinner is up but it's early.

AD-15: Joan Buchanan is up 66-34, and on the GOP side it's a crapshoot.

AD-19: Gina Papan by about 200 votes right now.

AD-27: Bill Monning is leading but very early.

AD-37: Ferial Masry up 64-36 with just 1% in.

AD-40: Bob Blumenfield up 45-25-23 over Healey and Waldman.

More in a bit.

by David Dayen [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

by David Dayen [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

by David Dayen [courtesy of Calitics - Front Page]

In what I can only describe as a shocking development, Jim Dantona, the moderate Democrat looking to notch a pickup in the Thousand Oaks/Simi Valley/Santa Barbara Senate seat held currently by Tom McClintock, has dropped out of the race, clearing the field for Hannah Beth-Jackson.  This will allow Jackson to go up against Tony Strickland, in all likelihood, in this Senate seat which is rapidly becoming a bluer district.  Here's his statement:

"Our polling shows I could defeat Strickland by as much as 10% and I would certainly do well against Jackson here in east Ventura County where polling indicates she is a relative unknown.  But my intention was never to run against a fellow Democrat for this seat.  I was running to bring leadership to this district that represented the will of the people, instead of the continual fringes of partisanship."

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