Who and What Is on Your Primary Ballot?

Contra Costa County District 2 Supervisor

There are three candidates running for this seat. Click their names to read a column they wrote for Danville Patch telling you why you should vote for them. Below their names are statements the candidates wrote and sent to the Contra Costa County Elections Division. .

• • Statement to Elections Division
• • Statement to Elections Division
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  • Statement to Elections Division

U.S. Senator

Democrat Dianne Feinstein it the longtime incumbent and is running for a fourth term. Today will decide which of the 23 challengers she will face. Among those challengers is Republican and Danville resident Elizabeth Emken. Some consider Emken a front-runner among the 23. .

• Elizabeth Emken stories on Danville Patch

District 11 Congressional Primary

Four running, three democrats and one republican. George Miller has been congressman for District 7 since 1975. As part of redistricting, District 7 is now District 11. .

• John Fitzgerald, Dem.
  • Occupation: Contractor
  • Statement
• George Miller, Dem.
  • Occupation: Congressman
  • Statement
• Cheryl Sudduth, Dem.
  • Occupation: Contracts Compliance Director
• Virginia Fuller, Rep.
  • Occupation: Registered Nurse

Proposition 28 -- Limits on Legislators’ Terms in Office

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• Reduces the total amount of time a person may serve in the state legislature from 14 years to 12 years.
• Allows a person to serve a total of 12 years either in the Assembly, the Senate, or a combination of both.
• Applies only to legislators first elected after the measure is passed.
• Provides that legislators elected before the measure is passed continue to be subject to existing term limits.

Fiscal Impact:

• This measure would have no direct fiscal effect on state or local governments.

Arguments and rebuttals can be found here.

Info from California Secretary of State

Proposition 29 -- Imposes Additional Tax on Cigarettes for Cancer Research

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• Imposes additional five cent tax on each cigarette distributed ($1.00 per pack), and an equivalent tax increase on other tobacco products, to fund cancer research and other specified purposes.
• Requires tax revenues be deposited into a special fund to finance research and research facilities focused on detecting, preventing, treating, and curing cancer, heart disease, emphysema, and other tobacco-related diseases, and to finance prevention programs.
• Creates nine-member committee charged with administering the fund.
• Summary of Legislative Analyst’s Estimate of Net State and Local Government 

Fiscal Impact:

• Net increase in cigarette excise tax revenues of about $735 million annually by 2013–14 for research into cancer and tobacco-related disease, and for tobacco prevention and cessation programs. These revenues would decline slightly each year thereafter.
• Increase in excise tax revenues on other tobacco products of about $50 million annually, going mainly to existing health and tobacco prevention and cessation programs.
• Net increase in state and local sales tax revenues of about $10 million to $20 million annually.
• Unknown net impact on other long-term state and local government health care costs.

Arguments and rebuttals can be found here.

Info from California Secretary of State

District 7 State Senate Primary

Both of these candidates, regardless of vote totals, will move on to face each other in the Nov. 6 election since there is no third challenger. .

• Mark DeSaulnier, Dem. (incumbent)
  
  • Occupation: State Senator/Businessman
  • Statement
• Mark P. Meuser, Rep.
  
  • Occupation: Counselor at Law

District 16 State Assembly Primary

Both of these candidates, regardless of vote totals, will move on to face each other in the Nov. 6 election since there is no third challenger. .

• Joan Buchanan, Dem (incumbent)
  • Occupation: Assembly member
• Estes A. "Al" Phillips, III, Rep
  • Occupation: Union Construction Superintendent

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