Greetings from the Northern Command of your intrepid blogger!

Thank you to those of you that have reached out over the last few months asking about me! I am doing quite well and am enjoying the much slower pace of life here on the Southern Oregon Coast. There is something to be said for the impact of stress reduction and a slower speed of life versus having all the conveniences of a large city. I am 87 Miles from I5 and about 170 miles from the nearest City of consequence where I am and I love it. I am reminded of how much I love it when I have to drive 1 1/2 hours for a Costco / Home Depot visit (both are by I5), the price is sooooooo worth it.

I have gotten my weight down to the lowest it has been in 20 years and I am rehabbing my bum hip which has not slowed me down from being able to hike around the coast here. Three minor surgeries in the last 3 years are in the rearview mirror and my prognosis going forward is as clear as it gets!

If you feel safe, remember, my artillery can reach anywhere in California or Nevada.

What I am watching in 2026:

The recriminations and lawsuits over the passage of Prop 50 can and will be written by a ton of other people. Maybe I will add my take at some point in the future. I had written some about the California GOP, and a lot of that information was inaccurate, or lacked context… frankly, the political landscape has changed so much that what was true even 30 days ago about the CAGOP has changed. As such, I may write about the CAGOP at some point soon as well.

So let’s get to it.

Placer County:

Supervisor District 2 – this features Incumbent Supervisor Shanti Landon vs Lincoln Councilmember Holly Andreatta. Readers of this blog will recall that my settled lawsuit with Scott Alvord was mostly as a result of the goings on of the campaign where Landon defeated Alvord to gain election. In a twist of political irony, Alvord is supporting Landon now. Andreatta’s campaign is the standard far-right anti growth approach. The flashpoint issue centers around a homeless program known as the Gathering Inn. I know a lot about this and I know a lot about the players. I will refrain from further comment except to say everyone involved is at fault, and no one is blameless. Holly’s decision to go anti-growth makes it impossible to support her. It is unknown if there will be a third spoiler candidate enter this race.

Placer County Water Agencty District 1: Graham “Gray” Allen vs Pauline Roccucci. The Roccucci legacy name that has been around Roseville politics for 50 years will attempt to live on. (insert comments about serial office shopping here)

Roseville City Council, Lincoln City Council – these are in the fall of 2026. They are going to be explosive. Rocklin, as a landlocked city has its’ share of drama but absent major development issues is small potatoes compared to Lincoln/Roseville.

Shasta County Local Elections – with Measure A getting destroyed and the fiscal mismangement of the Redding City Council at center stage, what’s next there? There are also a couple of supervisors in Shasta County that have issues. There could be some fireworks out of this far northern California County.

California Assembly District 1 / State Senate District 1: Even though SD01 does not open up until 2028, there have been a lot of machinations until Prop 50 hit the ballot. Heather Hadwick was widely expected to do two terms in the Assembly and then roll over to the State Senate for her final 8 years. (Remember you get 12 years in the legislature but could have them all in one house if you like) With the passage of Prop 50 being today’s reality and the one people have been working under for a couple of weeks, Mr. Doug LaMalfa has made it clear to several that he will likely seek his only remaining term in the State Senate in 2028 because he has been drawn out of CA01. LaMalfa is under the old rules of 2 Senate and 3 Assembly terms. LaMalfa had only served one Senate Term when he replaced Wally Herger in Congress.

There had been a laundry list of names put out there including the Sheriff of Siskiyou, a councilmember in Susanville, Tenessa Audette, Kevin Crye (who may still run for either office anyway) and I am sure others. LaMalfa effectively lances most of them.

If LaMalfa runs I will not be endorsing against him.

CA05 (or whatever the new number is) – does Kiley run against McClintock? Does Kiley stay put and run against Richard Pan in a newly minted D+13 District? Does Kiley move north and attempt a run in the Modoc – Marin District? The Modoc to Marin district idea is intriguing because a lot of the bay area liberals that funded his original rise to Assembly live in Marin County. McClintock and LaMalfa hate Kiley so that primary would be pretty nasty should Kiley take on McClintock – but it would also be the end of McClintock’s political career.

CA40 – So, it looks like Young Kim, for whom the district was created (why, because she voted for impeachment) is going to end up running against 300 term incumbent Ken Calvert. Calvert does not have to go far to get to that district as all the Republican Parts of SW Riverside County were put in that seat. I’d have to think that MAGA INC will line up behind Calvert. Since I have been interested in OCGOP and Riverside County Politics for years (see my stuff on Corona 2025 edition), I will be watching this race for the bloodsport. If I had to place a bet, I’d bet on Calvert because he is likely to get the Orange Man’s endorsement.

CA SD-04 Marie Alvarado Gil vs Republican Challengers from her left. I am still scratching my head as to why a classic Trump Republican convert is getting assailed by some within the GOP when it was this kind of Republican that fueled the Trump revolution of 2024. Fortunately for Alvarado-Gil, her conversion is looking rather legitimate as her erstwhile opponents are to the left of her.

Corona, CA. This city is a complete disaster. Even if you are wondering why I am writing about it, keep following the story – I believe it should be national news as the totality of what is going on down there would make an excellent feature length movie.

Buckle Up Readers. Your intrepid blogger is on the downhill side of 54 and my blesssings are many: I celebrated 19 years of marriage to a wife that is still a smokeshow, I passed 23 years of sobriety, I live in one of the most beautiful areas of the Pacific Northwest (if not the world), I am feeling better physically than I have in several years and it is party time.

You’ve been warned.