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In Northern California, the pastor of a megachurch hands out religious exemption forms to the faithful. A New Mexico state senator will “help you articulate a religious exemption” by pointing to the decades-old use of aborted fetal cells in the development of some vaccines. And a Texas-based evangelist offers exemption letters to anyone — for a suggested “donation”
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With the special election to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom less than two weeks away, the share of California likely voters who say they would remove Newsom still falls short of a majority, while about half of likely voters do not currently have a choice for a replacement. Among California likely voters, 39 percent would vote yes to remove Newsom, while 58 percent would vote no.
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If you live in one of the rural communities tucked into the forested hillsides along the Oregon-California border and need serious medical care, you’ll probably wind up at Asante Rogue Regional Medical Center. It serves about nine counties on either side of the border. It is one of three hospitals Asante owns in the region. All three ICUs are 100% full of covid patients, according to staff members.
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As if the interminable pandemic, wildfires and drought savaging the state weren’t enough, we have added in a recall campaign against Gov. Newsom that is projected to cost the state $215 million …. and, perhaps, our patience. What started as the subtext to a bad joke has since gained a degree of traction. While we believe its chances of succeeding are slim, there is no denying that the recall has shaped behavior in Sacramento. This year’s Top 100 list reflects the turmoil.
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18. Jennifer Barrera
California Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Jennifer Barrera had a very good year. She was instrumental in the successful effort to reform the Private Attorney General’s Act (PAGA) – and to keep it off the ballot in November – as well as rebuilding the Chamber’s JobsPac into a serious weapon for
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15. Jason Sisney
Even in the best of times, California budget negotiations are a heated affair, and the temperature is turned up significantly when the state faces a monster deficit as it did this year. But for Jason Sisney, the Assembly’s top budget advisor since 2018, it’s all just another day at the office. A
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17. Yolanda Richardson
Yolanda Richardson heads a cabinet-level agency called “GovOps,” or Government Operations Agency, which Jerry Brown created in 2013 and is intended to bring organization and rigor to nearly a dozen state operations, including Human Resources, the Census Office, the Franchise Tax Board, CalPERS, CalSTRS and something called the Department of Tax and
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6. Dee Dee Myers
As head of the governor’s Office of Business and Economic Development – “Go-Biz” in government patois – Dee Dee Meyers sits at a crucial intersection of business and politics. When she arrived in Sacramento, conspiracy-minded reporters immediately saw her as a point person for Gov. Newsom’s foray into national politics, a
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27. Thom Porter
Thom Porter is Gov. Gov. Newsom’s top fire fighter, a daunting task in a state which seems to face huge fires every summer and into the fall, sparked in part by the impacts of climate change. Porter is director of the Department of Forestry and Fire Protection, or Cal Fire, and his
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32. Eloy Oakley
Eloy Oakley is the chancellor of California’s community college system, the largest postsecondary system in the United States with 2.1 million students, 73 districts and about 115 colleges. The community college system is hugely important in California, and Oakley, who has been chancellor since 2016, makes no bones about keeping that message in
The Mission Carmel Church in Monterey County. (Photo: jejim, via Shutterstock)
