May Mono County Democrats Updates
- monocountydemocrat
- 4 days ago
- 9 min read
Updated: 3 days ago
In this newsletter:
Dear Fellow Dems:
The question on everyone’s mind is what to do about the race for governor, which was totally upended after Swalwell withdrew (and then resigned from Congress). Rusty Hicks, chair of the California State Democratic Party (CADEM), called a meeting of party leaders for Saturday, April 25, to review where things stand and to answer questions, since right now, everyone is very confused. As chair of the Mono Dems, I was invited and did attend. As Rusty noted at that meeting, the most important thing will be to vote! Also, for all voters to educate themselves about the candidates. I will provide some additional information below that might help you make your own decision as to how to vote.
It is clear that people are angry and want to do something to stop the egregious anti-democratic actions being taken by the Trump administration. That has been clear in the number of people across the country who have turned out for rallies, including here in Mammoth and also in Bishop.
The State Party has indicated its support for and commitment to rural areas like ours by assigning one of the members of the Party’s Organizing Team, Sue Hildebrand, to head up a newly-formed Rural Coalition. That group has been meeting regularly, most recently to hear from the Executive Director of RUBI (the Rural Urban Bridge Initiative, https://ruralurbanbridge.org/) to talk about what happened in 2024, and what we can do in the future to overcome the divide that has emerged. This is an exciting initiative and has given those of us in the rural areas momentum going forward. There will be further meetings and conversations, which I will keep you apprised of in future newsletters.
As we get past the primary and closer to November, there will be races going on at all levels, from state to local contests. We have seen the damage that a school board can do when it tries to ban books or take over a curriculum. So, we still have work to do.
Stay tuned, and I will let you know what actions you can take to help and also to participate in the political process. We will continue to need your help with contested Congressional races as well as local races.
We, as Democrats, have to look out for and protect that which is in the common good. We can do that if we work together!
-Joyce Kaufman
Mono County Democratic Central Committee Chair
Chair: Joyce P. Kaufman (June Lake) jpkaufman70@gmail.com
Vice chair: Urs Willimann (Bridgeport) willimann.urs@gmail.com
Comptroller: OJ Zeleny (Mammoth Lakes) ojz@mac.com
Recording Secretary, Rosemarie Willimann (Bridgeport) rawillimann@yahoo.com
California Gubernatorial Race
Latest Gubernatorial Polling
Officially, since the California State Party did not endorse any candidate, we, as a Central Committee of the Party, cannot endorse a candidate, nor can we officially make recommendations. However, the Party has been running polls in March and April; the most recent one was released on April 21, with the next one probably coming out early in May. This data, released on April 21, a 1,200-sample tracking survey, was conducted by EVITARUS Research from April 15-17 and can provide some important information about where things stand in the race now. And various newspapers are also reporting poll results regularly.
The most recent CA gubernatorial race poll had the following results, including the results of the previous poll (April 5) and the baseline poll (March 17).
Tracker II | Tracker I | Baseline | |
April 17th | April 5th | March 17th | |
Hilton (R) | 16 | 14 | 16 |
Bianco (R) | 14 | 14 | 14 |
Becerra (D) | 13 | 4 | 3 |
Steyer (D) | 13 | 11 | 10 |
Porter (D) | 10 | 7 | 10 |
Mahan (D) | 5 | 4 | 3 |
Villaraigosa (D) | 2 | 4 | 3 |
Thurmond (D) | 1 | 1 | 1 |
Note that Republican Steve Hilton was endorsed by Trump, and I did not include Betty Yee on this table, although she was in the poll, because she has since withdrawn from the race.
CA Gubernatorial Ballot Information
Ballots will be mailed next week, and if you have paid attention to the sample ballot and other election information from the State, you will note that there are far more names on the ballot for governor than just the ones mentioned above. That’s because the ballot was printed before both Swalwell and Yee pulled out of the race, plus anyone who gets enough signatures and files with the State, as well as pays the required amount, can have their name listed.
So if you can, disregard all the names and focus on just the top candidates.
If you are planning to return your ballot by mail, please do so before May 22 in order to ensure that it is postmarked before Election Day. (And remember that Memorial Day Holiday is in there). OR you can take your ballot to an official ballot drop box or vote in person. But make sure that you vote! We need Democrats to turn out and vote if we are going to have a Dem emerge as one of the top two. If a Democrat is on the ballot in November, that candidate will win, given the voter distribution in the State. But a Dem MUST be one of the top two.
What does this all mean for the Gubernatorial race?
Here is where it is important to become educated about this race.
The polls are showing that the two Republicans are the top two preferred candidates, and their support has remained pretty steady.
Remember: In our top-two jungle primary, the top two vote getters, regardless of party, are the two on the ballot in November. That raises the fear that if things hold, our next Governor will be a Republican.
For the Democrats, the real concern will be that Dems split their votes, allowing at least one, if not both Republicans, to get on the ballot. Thus, my suggestion is to focus on the top one or two Democrats and learn as much as you can about each, and then decide which one to vote for.
That said, things remain fluid. Since Eric Swalwell got out of the race, Xavier Becerra has rapidly gained support, going from single-digits to double-digit support in the most recent polls. The debate held on April 29 gave voters another chance to be introduced to the candidates, and there has been ample coverage of the debates in the major newspapers. (See, for example, “5 Takeaways From the Latest Debate in the California Governor’s Race,” The New York Times, April 29, 2026.) This article is an unbiased description of the exchange among the candidates.
By way of additional background, Becerra served as Joe Biden’s Secretary of Health and Human Services, and before that, was a member of Congress from California and California’s Attorney General. He has experience as head of an executive agency, which would apply to his work as Governor.
Tom Steyer is an American businessman, philanthropist, and environmentalist. He is the founder of Farallon Capital, a San Francisco-based hedge fund, as well as NextGen America, a progressive political action committee. He has put millions of his own money into the race, with ads running in all the major media markets.
Katie Porter’s support has fluctuated in part as negative publicity has emerged about her and her relationships with her staff. She was a faculty member in the UC Irvine Law School who was elected to Congress, then gave up her seat in 2024 to run for Senate, a race she lost to Adam Schiff. She has now chosen to run for Governor.
Those are the top three Democratic leaders identified in this poll, with the other candidates trailing them in the single digits. As noted above, the State Party plans to continue this polling, as do other groups, and they will give us additional information. I will update you when the next polls are released. Further, all of the candidates have websites that you can look at to get a better sense of their position on the issues.
Some of you have asked me who to vote for, and I cannot officially advocate for any candidate, per State Party rules. But if you reach out and ask me personally, I will tell you my preference, but I cannot do more than that, nor can we, as a Central Committee. So, follow the news, look at what each candidate says, look at the data, and make a decision. But VOTE!
In Other News
July 4th Parade in Mammoth Lakes
The Mono Dems (with any Inyo Dems who want to join us) plan to be in the July 4th parade in Mammoth again this year. In honor of the country’s 250th birthday, we are reprising the theme from last year, “We the People.”
We still have the banner we led our group with, and thanks to Doug and Lou Stewart, we have the signs representing each of the first 10 amendments to the Constitution, also known as “The Bill of Rights.” As we did last year, we will give out small versions of the Bill of Rights to the people watching, as well as red, white, and blue beads, which are always a great success.
In order to pull this off, we need to have enough people marching with us to help carry the banner and the 10 signs, as well as people walking with us to give out the swag we will have available.
Please contact me (jpkaufman70@mail.com) if you want to march with us or participate in some way, or just show up the morning of July 4th. We will probably assemble around 9:00, but I will get the exact details out as I have them before the day of the parade.
Those who participated last year were energized by the very positive responses we got to our “float,” and it really was a joy to see how many people gave us thumbs-up and clapped for us. That is what July 4 should be about, especially in a small town like ours.
Here are some images from last year's parade!
Michael Masuda in Mammoth and Bishop
Michael Masuda, who is the officially endorsed Democratic candidate running against Republican incumbent Tom McClintock in CD 5 (our new district), plans to be in Bishop and Mammoth May 22-24. I don’t have exact details yet, but the tentative plan is for him to do an event in Mammoth on Friday afternoon/evening, May 22.
Location, time, and other specifics have yet to be determined. But I wanted you all to be aware of his plans so you can plan to help support him in his Congressional race.
How We Take Action
CADEM Chair Rusty Hicks always says that the road to taking the House runs through California, and he is correct. That will be especially true in 2026 with Trump desperately trying to hold on to the slim Republican majority, which is looking less and less likely.
But a Democratic victory is by no means guaranteed, and we still have work to do. Some of that work involves reaching out to voters in the four critical districts in California.
Phone Banking
Right now, there are two phone banks going on per week, on Tuesdays, from 5:30 – 7:30, for Congressman Derek Tran in CD 45 to help him hold his seat, and against Congressman Darryl Issa in CD 48 to flip that seat. Issa has indicated he does not plan to run, but it is still a Republican seat that we would like to flip. Then on Thursdays, from 5:30-7:30 PM, for Congressman Adam Gray in CD 13 to help him hold his seat (which he won by just under 160 votes in 2024) and against Republican Congressman Valadao in CD 22. Phone banking is one of the most effective ways to reach voters because of the direct contact and the conversations you can have. Training is provided at the start of each shift.
Please sign up to work the phones if you can. The mobilize link to sign up is:
Canvassing
In addition, we will probably do some canvassing here in Mammoth in May (weather permitting, of course). The State Party has designated Saturday, May 16, as a statewide day of action, with canvassing, extra phone banks, and other outreach efforts planned across the state for that day.
We are hoping to canvass in Mammoth in support of Jaron Brandon, who is the endorsed Democratic candidate for Senate here in SD 4, running against incumbent Marie Alvarado-Gil (MAG). For those of you who don’t remember, MAG ran as a Democrat and then switched her party affiliation to Republican. So, there could be a real contest here between a young, energetic, engaged, and “real” Democrat versus the turncoat Republican. Jaron has been in our area before when he first declared his intention to run, and hopes to return. I will get you details as soon as I have them. Or for more information on canvassing, contact Chris Bubser (Chris@chrisbubser.com).
Be sure to let me know if you are interested in helping in any way on May 16 or at any other time, and I will let you know how to do so.
Join us
Remember that our meetings are open, and anyone is welcome to attend. Our May meeting will be on May 11, 2026. All our meetings are on Zoom, starting at 5:00, so you can join from anywhere.
Please get in touch with me (jpkaufman70@gmail.com) if you would like to be added to our Zoom invite for any of our meetings.
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