California Democratic Party

The Justice Department's Civil Rights Division is sending roughly 1,000 federal monitors nationwide for Election Day, including to Pennsylvania counties where state law bars them from entering polling places. DOJ has said ICE and FBI personnel won't serve as monitors, though staff from agencies like the DEA, ATF and Federal Bureau of Prisons may participate without firearms or enforcement authority. Chicago has coordinated security with police, the FBI and emergency officials amid concerns over immigration enforcement near polling sites, while a coalition of civil rights groups is deploying lawyers and poll monitors. California is separately sending attorneys and observers to battleground districts, and DOJ continues legal challenges over noncitizen voter rolls.

California voters will choose a new lieutenant governor on Nov. 3, as term limits bar both Gov. Gavin Newsom and incumbent Lt. Gov. Eleni Kounalakis from seeking the office again. The race pits Democrat Fiona Ma, the current state treasurer and a former assemblymember and San Francisco supervisor, against Republican Gloria Romero, a former Democratic state Senate majority leader who switched parties in 2024 over disagreements including public safety and COVID mandates.

Ma, backed by the California Democratic Party and major labor and equality groups, says she would focus on affordability through housing production, streamlined business permitting, and more affordable higher education. Romero, endorsed by the California Republican Party, has pledged to cut government "bureaucracy and waste," halve the number of state commissions, and fight antisemitism on college campuses. The position carries duties including chairing the State Lands Commission, serving on university system boards, presiding over the state Senate, and acting as governor when the chief executive is out of state.

Voters in California's 14th congressional district head to the polls Tuesday to fill the seat vacated by former Rep. Eric Swalwell, who resigned amid sexual assault allegations he denies. State Sen. Aisha Wahab, a progressive who has called for ending U.S. military aid to Israel, faces Melissa Hernandez, a moderate Democrat and Bay Area Rapid Transit Board president. With two Democrats on the ballot, the seat will stay in Democratic hands. Wahab led the June 16 primary by more than 20 points and remains the favorite, though Hernandez has more than doubled her in fundraising.

The race has drawn heavy outside spending tied to AIPAC's influence in Democratic primaries. AIPAC's United Democracy Project and allied group Bold America have together spent roughly $3.7 million opposing Wahab and backing Hernandez, part of about $4.1 million in total outside spending on the race. Wahab has drawn counter-support from pro-Palestinian PAC American Priorities and J Street Action Fund, which accused AIPAC of trying to "buy a Democratic primary." Wahab has emphasized affordability and civil rights, while Hernandez has focused on public safety and cost of living.