12th Edition of our local Davis ballot, summarized to save you time!

By Alan Hirsch

Dear Neighbor,

This 6-page flier’s goal is to save you time as you make your voting decisions. This is my 12th neighborhood flier. I am not a candidate or a party, and I don’t work for any candidate. It is just me, with help from a neighbor, Victor Libet. This flier flows from my long-time hobby of observing council and city commission meetings

This time the ballot is for 12 offices plus Judge retention. There are 14 Propositions, 12 state propositions, and two local propositions:  a Los Rios Bond & Davis Housing Prop “W”.

I’ve done research, including interviewing many of candidates, talking to campaign staff and talking to other council/DJUSD observers.  I also have suggestions on where to get more information.  I suggest reading the local opinions and news articles at DavisVanguard.org and Davisite at www.Davisite.org.  Sadly, The Enterprise doesn’t add much value though Calmatters authored articles are helpful on state races and propositions. LWV gives good summary and pros/cons of proposition but not who’s behind them and the spin in the arguments. The BlueVoterGuides.org does an excellent job here.

NOTE: This election, I think your focus should be items marked “?”  which are 3 Props& 3 candidate races.  My “progressive biased” endorsements are in bold and indicated by  “*” 

Part 1: List of Candidates on Tuesday Nov 3^rd Ballot

Use the  “BLUE VOTER GUIDE” to check my work.

Don’t just trust me, check this universal ballot guide useful everywhere. The Guide will tell you who is pro/con different propositions & candidates.  Plug it in your address & see only what you are voting on.  https://bluevoterguide.org/state/california

Part 1A: Federal and State Races–

 My Bias: If you believe Fox cable news or Newsmax are credible sources of news, my voter recommendations won’t be of much value to you.  I read California GOP candidate descriptions of what is happening in our state, and it does not map with the reality I experience personally or read about. These right-wing news organizations have little or no California staff to do fact checking or independent reporting but seem to cherry pick reports from other media or even social media and then reframe/re-headline to fit their preexisting narrative and create click-bait.

US CONGRESS,

? HOUSE DISTRICT 4 (Most of Davis-N of 80)

Eric Jones D vs Mike Thompson D incumbent

This is tough one. The reductionist take is “Thompson is an establishment Democrat who has not pushed progressive issues” VS “Eric Jones is a carpet bagger with Silicon Valley money and despite his protests and statement we can’t know who he is until he is in office and votes.“   I think both are true. I view voting is a chess game, not a valentine, so I will vote for Jones as he polled half of what Thompson did in the primary so he is unlikely to win…but a large vote for him will send a message to the democratic establishment. The slimy mailers from the pro-Jones PAC out of Silicon Valley are troubling- I doubt the veracity of these mailers. See Davis Vanguard if you want to go into pro/con discussion issues. You can use an AI query to help summarize candidate positions by asking for side by side but always click through to check sources and ask the AI questions two ways as you’ll often get two different answers.

GOVERNOR

Xavier Becerra D vs Steve Hilton R

LIEUTENANT GOVERNOR

**Fiona Mav D   now State Treasurer/CPA vs Gloria Romero R

SECRETARY OF STATE

**Shirley N. Weber (I) D incumbent vs  Donald P. (Don) Wagner R Orange County Supervisor

CONTROLLER

**Malia M. Cohen (I) D incumbent  vs Herb W Morgan R

TREASURER

**Eleni Kounalakis D (now Lieutenant Gov) vs Jennifer Hawks R

ATTORNEY GENERAL

**Rob Bonta (I)  D incumbent vs Michael E. Gates R  Deputy United States Attorney

? INSURANCE COMMISSIONER

Jane Kim D**  vs Ben Allen D

Both candidates seem to be progressive Democrats and have progressive endorsements but have “stark differences” in their vision of maintaining affordability- and availability — of home insurance due to increased risk of wildfires.  Allen believes in incremental private sector solutions through increased regulation, but prevention is based on each homeowner, pressured by insurer acting only on their own specific properties.  Kim believes the state should take an active role in providing 1) catastrophic wildfire/flood insurance like it does earthquake insurance, but then 2) innovate by using some of premium money to reduce risk and scale of the wildfires—instead of current hit and miss tapping into the state general fund for prevention.  She notes this was done successfully in New Zealand.  There are questions of feasibility of each approach, and of course business interest line up with Allen. There is an article in the Sac Bee 9/21 or google or AI “California Insurance Commissioners Race”.  I recommend Kim believing we are stronger together reducing wildfire risk/cost vs each homeowner dealing with their property. This is just like dealing with a pandemic: your home can catch fire from our least careful/least protected neighbor like we will catch communicable diseases from unvaccinated strangers.

MEMBER, STATE BOARD OF EQUALIZATION, DISTRICT 1

Shannon Grove R vs **Nelson Esparza D

STATE ASSEMBLY, DISTRICT 4

Cecilia M. Aguiar-Curry (I) D incumbent

STATE SUPERINTENDENT OF PUBLIC INSTRUCTION

Sonja Shaw vs Richard Barrera***

Sonja Shaw positions are in alignment with right wing “Mom for Liberty” the school board candidate (Dist. 4) Ms. Beth Bourne heads locally. Shaw is endorsed by the GOP.

Part 1B: Local Candidate Races

West Davis DJUSD School Board Area 1

Colleen Zern**  or Dorte Jensen

Dorte Jensen is softer-spoken but persistence ally of one issue candidate Beth Bourne (see DJUSD District 4). See does not seem to have a website or campaign team. Colleen is an attorney and Adjunct at UCD. She has multiple endorsements of civic leaders.

? Central Davis DJUSD
School Board Trustee Area 3

**Joe DiNunzio* incumbent  or Kurt Wendlenner

I spent six hours doing my due diligence researching this race, as both Joe and Kurt have substantial campaigns and resumes. This included two interviews with Joe and three with Kurt, a review of their webpages, conversations with teachers and other observers of board meetings, and a review of the written policy materials they provided me with. This reflects fact corrections I got from both candidates. I incorrectly stated Patwin parents endorse Joe when only Judy Ennis did: Patwin parents have not endorsed anyone. But visit their websites and decide for yourself based on experience, endorsement and specifics- our schools are too important to rely on your neighbor’s lawn sign, a half sheet of campaign literature or a rhythming slogan. I unpack my own side by side comparison below. If you read on, I think you will see why the choice is clear based on an objective comparison of Kurt v Joe. If Kurt was running against another board member, the calculus might be different.

Joe, the incumbent, is a Professor of Innovation at the UC Davis Graduate School of Management and previously served as Senior Vice President for New Ventures at the Disney Company. Kurt was an attorney for the City of Sacramento Youth programs and now works for the League of California Cities; this experience would be a valuable addition to the board even if not education related.

Joe is a teacher at the business school; Kurt lists no classroom or pedagogic experience on his website.

Kurt has served on the site council for Monarca Elementary School and on the Measure M Bond Oversight Committee. Joe has served two terms on the school board and, prior to that, spent ten years volunteering on five district‑wide parent advisory councils and two site‑specific advisory groups. He served 5 years at Davis Schools Foundation- first on the board and then was selected for President. Joe’s connections to DJUSD’s 16+ schools and their parent/teacher communities throughout the city is reflected in endorsements from across the city. Kurt, as a newcomer, has more limited district‑wide experience that seems from just one or maybe two of the six elementary schools in the district: his endorsements appear to come primarily from parents at Monarca school. I have asked Kurt to update his website to identify the sites the endorsers are from when he uses their site titles.  

I strongly encourage everyone to compare Joe’s and Kurt’s listed endorsements and experience, which are easily found on their respective websites, but I share this: Kurt lists the Bond Oversight Committee as his only district‑level volunteer involvement. Between 2019 and 2025, ten individuals served on that committee alongside him. Five of those individuals have endorsed Joe, and only one has endorsed Kurt. Kurt lists no teacher endorsements on his website (as of today). Joe has teacher endorsements, as well as an endorsement from the Davis Teachers Association (the teachers’ union), especially notable as the union is currently at a salary impasse with the board.

Six people have told me that Kurt has been most publicly passionate about improving security on school campuses — proposals involving locking classroom doors at all times site and how to fence school sites, However, he provided me with nothing in writing about his proposals nor is there anything on his website. This is strange as I am told he wrote to district multiple times on this, One hopes his can campaign will clarify this in writing for the community.  I am making a Public Records Request on what he proposed in the past.

Joe has a long record of service so I am sure he or the district must have made many decisions others disagree with, but none of this surfaced in my work. Even Kurt’s website does not contain any specific concrete policy changes he proposes for the district. When I asked him for written examples — his past or future policy recommendations — he offered none.

One of Kurt theme is he believes the district staff needs to include more stakeholders and experts in decision‑making, but this was offered as a generality. My research identified more than 30 DJUSD parent advisory groups and a long list of experts the district consulted with. I was disappointed Kurt did not have a positive proposal in writing- say a list of ideas on missing parent or expert advisories bodies.

Kurt specifically criticized the district’s decision‑making process on the policy limiting cell phone use at school, saying experts were not consulted, this is not consistent staff reports. He also offered no complaint about the final result.

Kurt calls for more “transparency” in his campaign literature and on his website, but he could not identify anything DJUSD has not shared with the public. He suggests the opposite transparency is not opaqueness but “anecdotal decision making” which he claims is happening. This goes back to his process critique.  

He suggests on his website that better financial management or lower administrative salaries might avoid closing a school, yet it is non-specific about the amount of savings. Neither he nor anyone on hi campaign offer any numbers, and it too easy to just say “there is to much overhead”. DJUSD once cut non-classroom overhead by firing all the guidance counselors.

Kurt’s campaign slogan and core argument for his candidacy is “Parents not Politicians.” Considering Joe’s nearly three decades of volunteer service, framing him as a “politician” rather than an “involved parent” seems unfair given his over two decades of volunteering for our city’s kids (including 10 yr youth sports) apart from a career with Disney and UCD: School board members only receive a stipend of $1200/month. Kurt is a nice guy and I enjoyed meeting him, and being a challenger is hard position, but he lacks specific ideas and experience with the many aspects of DJUSD he should acquire if he wants to run again. Joe is an outstanding candidate whose breadth of experience I feel we don’t want to lose.

So. Davis School Board DJUSD Area 4

Elizabeth Moon incumbent** vs Beth Bourne.

Ms. Bourne is local head of right-wing group “Moms for Liberty” She has exercised her free-speech rights hundreds of times in many forum and public gathering to speak on just one issue: trans kids. Though usually legal, most everyone finds her behavior disruptive of civil society. She allegedly has a large following on her social media which she uses to intimidate others by videoing people by holding her phone in their faces and asking them questions about trans people. This has happened to me. This is so upsetting that people have taken the time and expense to obtain court orders restricting her behavior.

Davis City Council- uncontested

West Davis- District 1
Judy Ennis- running unopposed-no Election.

East Davis District 4 
Gloria Partida (incumbent) running unopposed.

Judge Retention: Appellate Dist. 3

Vote to retain all 7: Mesiwala- Renner- Feinberg- Earl Eurie- Robie – Damrell

Part 2: State & Local Ballot Measures – Nov 2026

I flag “?” the three controversial propositions. LWV website does a good job summarizing arguments, but these often hide the spin you can derive from knowing who’s behind props and candidates.  Use the “Blue Voter Guide” for who endorsed Candidates and Proposition.:   https://bluevoterguide.org/state/california

Prop 1 – $11.25 Billion Housing Bond

This bond measure would generate $11.25 billion for affordable housing. California needs a million affordable housing units for very low-income renters, and another million for low-income renters. This measure would subsidize 40,000 multi-family rental units and assist up to 40,000 households to buy homes.

Recommendation Prop 1: YES

Proposition 2 – Raise State Rainy Day Fund Ceiling from 10% to 20%

In good years, the State can squirrel away up to 10% of its general tax fund revenue into a Rainy-Day Fund. This money can be tapped in bad years when tax revenues are low. This measure would raise the cap to 20%. The State should save more when it can.

Recommendation Prop 2: YES

Proposition 3 – Makes 2012 Tax Rates for High-Income Californians Permanent

In 2012, voters passed Proposition 30, which set a 10.3% state income tax rate for (single filer) Californians making over $371,000, and 12.3% for those making over $743,000.  These rates will expire in 2031. This measure would make those tax rates permanent. 89% of these revenues will go to fund K-12 schools.

Recommendation Prop 3: YES

Proposition 4 – Small-Donor Financing for Political Campaigns

This measure would allow local governments in California to establish public campaign funds for candidates. State and local governments would be able to organize grass-roots fundraising by small donors, and to match low-dollar donations with public funds (taxpayer money). Since 2023, across the country, 14 states and 25 local governments have been doing this, and the sky has not fallen. This measure helps more candidates compete without seeking money from a few hundred megadonors, who currently outspend millions of ordinary Americans by 50-60% in every election. It is a small step toward the comprehensive campaign finance reform that we desperately need.

Recommendation Prop 4: YES

Prop 5 – Limits the Scope of a Recall

Currently, when a recall initiative is on the ballot, voters decide whether to recall the Governor, and at the same time who the next Governor will be. This measure would separate these two votes. The first vote would be the recall only. If the Governor is recalled, the Lieutenant Governor will take over until the next election. This measure seems highly partisan. Democrats support it because Republican challengers with no chance in a general election can use recall elections to get elected—because the successor candidate with the most votes becomes Governor, even if they get much less than 51% of the vote. Republicans oppose it because they believe it will weaken the recall tool. Logically, however, the measure makes sense. The purpose of a recall is to remove a particular officeholder who has broken the law, abused their office, or manifestly ignored the will of the people on a key issue. In other words, a recall is directed at an individual, not a political party. Therefore, a recall of an individual should not be used to transfer power from one party to another.

Recommendation Prop 5: YES

? Prop 37 – $25 Billion in Loans for Homebuyers to help new home buyers.

This measure would authorize (not require) the California Housing Finance Agency to borrow $25 billion to loan to homebuyers. The state loans would cover up to 17% of the home’s purchase price.

Recommendation Prop 37: YES
(Note: Indivisible CA is neutral)

Proposition 38 – $8.4 Billion Bond for Immunology Research

This bond measure would generate $8.4 billion to be spent on research into immunotherapies. Half the money would go to researchers in the University of California system. This research may or may not lead to effective therapies licensed to private companies. If it does, 10% of licensing revenue will be used to pay the cost of the bond. One-off, targeted borrowing is not the right way to finance scientific research, but since the Trump administration has recently frozen or defunded $3 billion worth of scientific research, and is threatening to cut tens of billions more, this seems the best we can do.

Recommandation Prop 38: YES

Prop 39 – Everyone must document Proof of Citizenship to vote

This measure would require voters to show government-issued ID at the polls that prove citizenship. For the half of US citizens who do not have passports, this will make voting burdensome, especially if you are a woman who changed your name when marrying. Mail-in ballots would have to include the last four digits of the voter’s government ID, such as a driver’s license, which would then need verification. Non-citizens rarely vote in U.S. elections, and the numbers are vanishingly small per studies and Proposition proponents offer no contrary evidence. The Brennan Center for Justice estimates that less than 0.0001 percent of the votes cast around the country in the 2016 election were by non-citizens. I have repeatedly asked Yolo County GOP tablers promoting Prop 39 at the Davis Farmer Market for evidence of widespread voter fraud and they have never provided any. You can ask them yourself! The State of Louisiana has 2,873,116 registered voters, and the Louisiana Secretary of State Reported in 2025 that 390 non-citizens were registered to vote there. This measure would inconvenience hundreds of thousands of Americans and discourage them from voting, delay election results, and cost state and local governments millions of dollars to solve a problem that doesn’t exist.  

Recommendation Prop 39: NO

? Prop 40 – One time billionaire tax

This measure would impose a one-time 5% tax on the 200 or so billionaires who resided in California as of January 1, 2026. It would raise tens of billions of dollars over the next few years. 90% of the money would be spent on health care, particularly on enabling more people to keep their health insurance. A one-off income tax on rich individuals is not the right way to finance government services and fix healthcare, but since there is zero chance of eliminating corporate tax breaks (45% of California corporations pay only $800 per year) or instituting even a 0.1% financial transaction tax (FTT), this seems the best we can do. Don’t let the perfect be the enemy of the good.

Recommendation Prop 40: YES

Proposition 41 – State Auditor Review of Tax Proposals

This measure would require the State Auditor to review any special tax proposal before it goes on the ballot. If Proposition 41 receives more votes than Proposition 40, Proposition 40 will be nullified. Proposition 41 is a device to defeat Proposition 40.

Recommendation Prop 41: NO

Proposition 42 – Ban on New Taxes on Personal Property

This measure would prohibit new state taxes on personal property. If Proposition 42 receives more votes than Proposition 40, Proposition 40 will be nullified. Proposition 42 is a device to defeat Proposition 40.

Recommendation Prop 42: NO

Proposition 43 – Two-Thirds Majority Required to Pass Special Taxes

This measure would require a two-thirds vote (not a majority vote) to pass a special tax at the local level, if that tax is proposed by a local voter (citizen) initiative. The two-thirds rule already applies to special taxes proposed by local governments. Since 2018, California cities and counties have been using voter-initiative special taxes (passed by votes of 51-58%) to raise funds for childcare, community parks, affordable housing, services for the homeless, and transportation.

Recommendation Prop 43: NO

Proposition 44 – Clinics Serving Low-Income Patients Must Spend 90% of Their Revenue on Patient Care

NO! This measure was defeated last year, and it is back. It is the hobby horse of the Service Employees International Union – United Healthcare Workers (SEIU-UHCW), its only backer. It sets very rigid rules on an already heavily regulated non-profit sector.

Recommendation Prop 44: NO

Prop 45 – Accelerate Environmental Review of Construction Projects

This measure would amend the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) to speed up environmental review of construction projects. Environmental Impact Reports (EIRs) would have to be finished in 365 business days. For projects deemed “essential,” such as housing, public comment periods would be limited. Business organizations solidly support this measure, while environmental groups solidly oppose it. Is it a good idea to weaken CEQA? And risk more harm to the environment due to less scrutiny of projects? Anyway, environmental regulation and red tape are NOT the main reasons why developers are not building affordable housing. Rising construction costs and lower profit margins mean that developers have zero incentive to build affordable housing.

Recommendation Prop 45: NO

Los Rios Community College District Facilities Measure H Bond

Yes.  I read the arguments Against and don’t see much meat.  My prejudice is that investing in education is always good. This is about rehabbing buildings as well as new vocational training facilities.  Trump’s cut to education requires us to step up. Requires 55% approval to pass.

County of Yolo- Measure X – A Transient occupancy tax on short term hotel/Airbnb stays in the Unincorporated area of yolo county, i.e. outside of cities.   No opposition arguments were filed. All incorporated cities in Yolo and elsewhere have a similar tax on hotel rentals and Air B&B, etc. so it maintains a level playing field. Yolo County has an agreement with cities not to zone land for tax generating commercial or retail to avoid sprawl and loss of ag land, so this is an appropriate revenue measure.

Recommendation: Yes

? City of Davis Measure W- New greenfield housing development on E Covell

Develop 232-acre parcel of land on East Covell Blvd near Harper School to provide 1250 Residential units, hi and low density with parks. A $600 million+ project on the edge of town.

Why Yes W: Good housing affordability. If not passed, state law may override J/R in future, and city needs affordable housing for families with children to fill schools that may otherwise close.

Why No W: Land use plan & location is auto oriented: not designed with transit use in mind. It is apartment buildings on the outskirts of town – dense sprawl: everyone will drive so it offers few climate change benefits.

Part 3: VOTING INFORMATION- Davis

Tuesday, Nov. 3rd, is Election Day!

But vote early by mail or drop off.

Everyone who is registered to vote should expect a bar-coded personalized official ballot between Oct 5th and the 12th.

 Mail In: I urge you to mail your ballot earlier this year 9 calendar days before election day: i.e. by Oct 26^th to ensure an acceptable post mark. Or you can wait in line at any post office and get a real time date/time stamp to post your ballot thru Nov 3^rd.   Better yet drop it off at either a ballot drop-box (beginning Oct 6^th) or at a Vote Center by 8pm election day.

BALLOT DROP BOXES: 14 or 24hr/day Oct 6^th Until Nov 3rd 8 p.m. WHERE: Davis City Hall, (24 hours), inside either of Davis’s Nugget Markets, or UCD Hunt Hall x Tennis Courts (24hr). Other places throughout Yolo too!

Spoiled or Misplaced Ballot.  Vote in person at one of the Vote Centers. They can even help you check if you forgot if you have or have not voted yet.

Register to Vote: If you need to check your registration or register, you can go to https://RegisterToVote.Ca.Gov.  Or visit the website of the Yolo County elections office. The deadline to register online is Oct 19th. But if you miss that deadline, you can still vote if you do it in person: go to a voter center and register real time and provisionally vote or go to county offices in Woodland until Nov 3^rd 8pm. Vote Centers are open 10-6pm 7 day a week starting Oct 24/30th.

Vote Centers 10:00 a.m. – 6:00 p.m., and on Tuesday Election Day from 7:00 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. Go there to deliver a ballot, get help, or last-minute registering & voting provisionally.
WHERE: Begins Oct 24^h Veterans Memorial or Sat. OCT 31 at Emerson School, UC Davis ARC Ballroom, or Montgomery Elementary.

If you lose your ballot/aren’t registered, you can request another ballot from the Yolo County Elections office …or, as a last resort, come to a Vote Center and vote provisionally.

IF ALL ELSE FAILS, call (530) 666-8133 or go to this website: www.yoloelections.org