There’s no confusion that incumbent Alex Padilla is the frontrunner to retain his U.S. Senate seat this year. The confusion for voters in Tuesday’s primary may stem from the fact his seat is the subject of two different votes.
Here is an explanation for the unusual situation:
In 2021, U.S. Sen. Kamala Harris became vice president. This gave Gov. Gavin Newsom the opportunity to appoint Padilla, who was then California’s secretary of state. The 17th Amendment of the U.S. Constitution says Senate appointees should serve “until the people fill the vacancies by election as the legislature may direct.”
So in Tuesday’s primary, one of the votes is a special election for someone to fill the 56 or so days (from when election results are certified in November until Jan. 3, 2023) that will be left on Harris’ original term. Eight people are competing for that position.
The two winners of that race advance to November. From there, the victor in November will fill out the rest of the term through Jan. 3.
The second vote will be the more traditional vote for the normal six-year term that starts in January and 23 people are competing for that position. Again, the top two vote-getters for this race advance to November.
CalMatters voters guide: The U.S. Senate seat race
Padilla, who has the backing of the Democratic establishment in the state, is the odds-on favorite to win both votes. It is technically possible for a different person to win the two votes.
Padilla’s closest pursuer is likely to be Republican Mark Meuser, a constitutional attorney. Meuser has been a critic of some of the state’s coronavirus health restrictions and has slammed Padilla for the state of the current economy in California.
According to a recent L.A. Times Poll, though, 44% of likely voters support Padilla and Meuser is at 14%.
These are the candidates vying for the short appointment:
- Daphne Bradford (no party), Education consultant
- James P. Bradley (R), CEO/Business owner
- Jon Elist (R), Small business owner
- Myron L. Hall (R), Podiatric physician
- Mark P. Meuser (R), Constitutional attorney
- Dan O’Dowd (D), Tech executive
- Alex Padilla (D), Appointed U.S. Senator
- Timothy Ursich Jr. (D), Doctor
Those eight candidates are also vying for the six-year U.S. Senate appointment, along with these 15 candidates in a 23-person field:
- Akinyemi Agbede (D), Mathematician
- James “Henk” Conn (Green Party), Teacher
- Pamela Elizondo (Green Party), Marijuana plastic entrepreneur
- Eleanor Garcia (No party), Industrial worker
- Don J. Grundmann (No party), Doctor of chiropractic
- Deon D. Jenkins (No party), No designation
- Sarah Sun Liew (R), Entrepreneur/nonprofit director
- Robert George Lucero Jr. (R), Executive business consultant
- John Thompson Parker (P), Social justice advocate
- Enrique Petris (R), Businessman/investor
- Douglas Howard Pierce (D), Missing children’s advocate
- Obaidul Huq Pirjada (D), Attorney
- Charles Smith (R), Retired law enforcement
- Carlos Guillermo Tapia (R), Business owner/realtor
- Cordie Williams (R), Doctor/business owner
