Mindy Romero of the Califorrnia Civic Engagement Project. (Photo: Scott Duncan, Capitol Weekly)Elections expert Mindy Romero of the California Civic Engagement Project joins Capitol Weekly’s John Howard and Tim Foster to chat about California’s primary election turnout and what we might expect to see in November.
Robert F. Kennedy in 1968 at a platform committee meeting of the Democratic National Committee.On the 50th anniversary of the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy, Capitol Weekly’s John Howard and Tim Foster are joined by Steve Swatt, a veteran political analyst and former news reporter who at the age of 24 covered RFK’s murder and the trial of the assassin, Sirhan Sirhan, for United Press International.
Image: California Secretary of StateThere’s a lot going on here: A fifth of the electorate has already voted by mail, and more mailed ballots are coming in all the time. A lot of millennials got signed up through the registration program at the DMV, but what impact will that have on the contests? It looks like the SF Bay Area will outperform — again — L.A., and it’s still not clear whether a gaggle of GOP congressional incumbents are really vulnerable.
Anthony Wright, executive director of Health Access California. (Photo: Tim Foster, Capitol Weekly)The high-stakes political battle over health care has gripped the Capitol and, ultimately, it is all but certain to play out in the state budget and in this year’s elections. A major figure in the debate is Anthony Wright, the executive director of Health Access California, which advocates for the expansion of reasonably priced, quality health care.
Louis Mirante of California YIMBY. (Photo: Tim Foster)Nothing ever really dies in the Capitol, as the saying goes, but sometimes you come across a knockout blow. And that’s what happened with SB 827, a sweeping bill aimed at addressing California’s housing crisis. To the surprise of just about everybody and after months of media attention, the measure was rejected decisively in its first committee hearing. Joining us today to take a look at all this is Louis Mirante of California YIMBY, who sat down with Capitol Weekly’s John Howard and Tim Foster to chat about the issue.
Mark DiCamillo at the offices of the Institute for Governmental Studies at UC Berkeley. (Photo: IGS)To anyone who follows California politics, Mark DiCamillo is a familiar name indeed. He directed the Field Poll for decades, and he now heads the Berkeley IGS Poll at the Institute for Governmental Studies at UC Berkeley. He sat down with Capitol Weekly’s John Howard and Tim Foster to talk about the latest trends in opinion surveying and how these may play out this election year.
The Watergate complex in Washington D.CPolitical consultant-turned-author Joe Rodota joins the Capitol Weekly Podcast to talk about his new book: The Watergate – Inside America’s Most Infamous Address. The story of the Watergate break-in has been well-told, but in this “biography of a building,” Rodota weaves a fascinating history that includes more than just the events of June 17, 1972.
Conor Lamb, a Democrat, campaigns in Pennsylvania's 18th Congressional District. (Photo: Conor Lamb's Facebook page)Political Data’s Paul Mitchell joins the podcast to chat with John Howard and Tim Foster about Democrat Conor Lamb’s surprise victory in the special election in Pennsylvania’s 18th Congressional District — a district that the GOP has carried for years and Trump won in 2016 by 20 points. The big question: What does this win mean — if anything — for California?
Dan Morain (Photo: Tim Foster)Veteran political journalist Dan Morain joins us to chat about Steve Poizner, California’s former insurance commissioner who announced this week he wants to get his old job back — only this time by running as an independent, not a Republican.
Alexei Koseff, photo by Tim Foster, Capitol WeeklySacramento Bee reporter Alexei Koseff covers California politics and higher education for the Bee’s capitol bureau — and handles the state Assembly, too. Alexei joined Capitol Weekly’s John Howard and Tim Foster to chat about the challenges facing UC — Alexei is a Stanford alumnus, by the way — and the unique, constitutionally protected position the institution occupies in California’s educational structure.