Caroline Menjivar is listed in the Progressive Voters Guide below. Courage is proud to endorse and/or recommend the following candidates for office in the primary election on June 7. Return your ballot by June 7, and sign up to track your ballot to know when it is received and counted.
Caroline Menjivar
Elect Caroline Menjivar to push SD-20 in the right direction.
State senators represent and advocate for the needs of their district constituents at the California State Capitol. They are responsible for creating, debating, and voting on legislation that addresses issues within their district.
The California State Senate has 40 congressional districts. Each represents a population of about 930,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Senate for a four-year term. Every two years, half of the Senate's 40 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to two four-year terms (eight years) in the Senate. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the state Senate or the Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 31 seats in the California State Senate, while Republicans hold 9 seats.
California's 20th Senate District includes parts of Los Angeles County. Democrats typically hold this district. Of the registered voters in this district, 16% are Republican and 52% are Democrat, and the demographic breakdown is 50% Latino, 11% Asian, and 5% Black. The most recent election results show that SD-20 voted for Biden for president in 2020 by 43.16 points and Newsom for governor in 2018 by 45.8 points.
There are five candidates running for this open seat, including Democrat Caroline Menjivar and Democrat Daniel Hertzberg. Menjivar's campaign has raised more than $63,000 and is not funded by corporate PAC, fossil fuel, police, or real estate money. Daniel Hertzberg's father, Robert Hertzberg, who is actively campaigning on behalf of his son, is majority leader emeritus in the state Senate, representing SD-18, which comprises 56% of the recently redistricted SD-20. These circumstances have led to recent allegations of nepotism. Senator Robert Hertzberg terms out of his seat this year and is seeking the newly drawn county supervisor seat covering the San Fernando Valley. Daniel Hertzberg's campaign has not committed to any pledges, has raised more than $500,000, and has received donations from his father's campaign committee for state controller. While Menjivar has experience in local government, having worked for Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and Councilmember Nury Martinez, and having a long record of community work, Hertzberg does not have such experience.
Menjivar, a Marine veteran, was born and raised in the San Fernando Valley. According to campaign materials, she is running for election to create more access to mental-health support services, housing opportunities, comprehensive health care, and quality public schools. Menjivar has not run for office previously.
Menjivar has experience in public service, having worked as a field deputy with Councilmember Nury Martinez and later moving on to become the East Valley representative for Mayor Eric Garcetti. Menjivar's record of community engagement includes hosting nightly conference calls for updating residents with the latest information from the city after the COVID-19 pandemic began. Menjivar currently serves on the GLSEN Los Angeles Chapter Board and the Help Group's Kaleidoscope Advisory Board, which she does to create more inclusive learning and family environments for LGBTQIA+ youth and young adults. Menjivar has also sat on the Los Angeles County Domestic Violence Review Committee. Menjivar put herself through college and received a master's degree in social welfare, concentrating on public leadership and policy development. Driven by her passion for gender equity that is inclusive of women of color, she began a career in policy development and implementation. Menjivar obtained a license as an emergency medical technician during the last years of her military career, during which time she confronted the need for more mental-health resources, including in the homeless community.
Menjivar has the endorsement of many progressive lawmakers and groups, including Senator Connie Leyva, Los Angeles Supervisor Sheila Kuehl, Stonewall Democratic Club, and NARAL Pro-Choice California. Based on our analysis, Menjivar's track record and policy positions demonstrate that she will be a progressive champion for the constituents of SD-20 and will govern effectively in the best interest of this diverse district.
Senate District 20th
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Senate District 20th Voter Guide
State Senator, 20th District
Member of the State Senate Caroline Menjivar
Member of the House of Representatives Christy Smith
32nd Congressional District
Member of the House of Representatives Shervin Aazami
Member of the State Senate
Christy Smith
Elect Christy Smith to push CD-27 in the right direction.
California's 27th Congressional District includes parts of Los Angeles County. Democrats typically hold this district. Of the registered voters in this district, 30% are Republican and 41% are Democrat, and the district's demographic breakdown is 33% Latino, 10% Asian, and 11% Black. After the 2021 redistricting process, CD-27 is 3% more Democratic than it was during the 2020 general election cycle. The most recent election results show that CD-27 voted for Joe Biden for president in 2020 by 12 points and Gavin Newsom for governor in 2018 by 5 points.
Under newly drawn district maps, incumbent Republican Mike Garcia, representing the 25th district, is positioned as a challenger in the new 27th district.
There are six candidates running for this seat, including Democrat Christy Smith, Democrat Quaye Quartey, and incumbent Republican Mike Garcia. Smith's campaign has raised $825,000 and is not funded by police, real estate, fossil fuel, or corporate PAC donors. Quartey's campaign has raised $985,000 and has not received donations from police, real estate, fossil fuel, or corporate PAC donors. Rep. Garcia's campaign has raised $3.4 million and has received donations from corporate PAC, police, and fossil fuel interests.
Christy Smith, an education advocate and public official, has lived in Santa Clarita for over 40 years. According to campaign materials, she is running for election to bring her legislative background and democratic leadership to the constituents of this district. In 2020, Smith lost her challenge against Rep. Mike Garcia for his CD-25 seat by 333 votes.
Smith is a longtime public official, having served one term in the State Assembly, and two-terms on the Newhall School District governing board. She also currently serves on a state environmental council, and as a legislator, Smith authored bills related to charter school and education regulations, home-ownership protections, and victims' compensation for survivors of human trafficking. She reliably secured resources for her district for education, health care, and emergency services. In her work with the Newball School District, she supported a successful ballot measure that provided funding for significant district upgrades. Smith has also been a strong supporter of reproductive freedom, and would bring her advocacy to Congress at a time when federal legislation may be crucial to continued abortion access. Prior to her public service, she worked as an analyst with the U.S. Department of Education, which was foundational to establishing her interest in education reform. As a member of the Assembly in 2020, she scored a CS 48 out of 100 on Courage Score, our annual analysis of legislators' progressive voting record. Based on our Courage Score analysis, Smith supported some progressive bills that made it to a vote. However, she failed to vote on bills related to strengthening mandatory reporter requirements, establishing sheriff oversight boards, and expanding pandemic eviction protections. On these and other issues, Smith has been a steadily centrist legislator.
Smith has the endorsement of a strong majority of progressive groups, including L.A. County Federation of Labor, California Environmental Voters, and Equality California. She has also received the endorsement of many state and local elected leaders, including Secretary of State Dr. Shirley Weber, Attorney General Rob Bonta, State Senator Maria Elena Durazo, and LA County Supervisor Holly Mitchell. Incumbent Rep. Garcia was endorsed by former Pres. Donald Trump in 2020 and is a co-sponsor of legislation that would ban abortion access. He continues to present a serious threat to progressive values. Based on our analysis, Smith's track record and policy positions demonstrate that she will be a champion for the constituents of CD-27 and will govern effectively in the best interest of this diverse district.
Shervin Aazami
Elect Shervin Aazami to push CD-32 in the right direction.
California's 32nd Congressional District includes parts of Los Angeles and Ventura Counties. Democrats typically hold this district. Of the registered voters in this district, 19% are Republican and 50% are Democrat, and the district's demographic breakdown is 20% Latino, 12% Asian, and 5% Black. After the 2021 redistricting process, CD-32 is 1% less Democratic than it was during the 2020 general election cycle. The most recent election results show that CD-32 voted for Joe Biden for president in 2020 by 39 points and Gavin Newsom for governor in 2018 by 40 points.
There are six candidates running for this seat, including Democrat Shervin Aazami and Democratic Incumbent Representative Brad Sherman and Republican Challenger Melissa Toomin. Rep. Sherman's campaign has not committed to any pledges and is funded by the real estate industry, defense manufacturers, and corporate interests, like Morgan Stanley, Wells Fargo, and Goldman Sachs. He has also accepted thousands of dollars in corporate PAC money from the banking, investment banking, financial services, and payday-lending industries, respectively. Aazami's campaign has raised $134,148 and is not funded by fossil fuel money, real estate money, police unions, or corporate PAC money.
Shervin Aazami, a public-health advocate, was born in Italy to Iranian refugees, and moved to Canoga Park in the San Fernando Valley when he was a toddler. According to campaign materials, he is running for election because he thinks corporate-backed politicians like incumbent Brad Sherman have done little to protect and support the most vulnerable populations, and actively oppose meaningful progressive change. Aazami has not run for office previously.
Aazami works in public health and also worked in national Indigenous health-care advocacy, helping to pass legislation that reduced the financial burden of health care for Native American veterans, devoted funding to opioid-related care and behavioral health, and secured direct funding for tribal governments to respond to COVID-19. Aazami's platform supports progressive policies like Medicare for All, criminal-justice reform, decriminalizing immigration, and the Green New Deal. His policy proposals also center racial and economic justice, from calling for reparations to abolishing cash bail and civil-asset forfeiture to outlawing exclusionary zoning to raising the federal minimum wage to $15.
Aazami has the endorsement of many progressive groups in the district, including Progressive Democrats of America, Ground Game LA, Healthcare for All LA, Sunrise Movement LA, and Youth Climate Strike LA. Based on our analysis, Aazami's track record and policy positions demonstrate that he will be a progressive champion for the constituents of CD-32 and will govern effectively in the best interest of this diverse district.
Senate District 20th Sample Ballot