On June 5, Californians for the first time will vote in an open primary.
The top two vote getters in a race will move on to the November general election, whether they are from the same party or not.
In addition, this will be the first election with the new congressional, state Senate and state Assembly districts approved last fall by the California Citizens Redistricting Commission. They officially take effect in January. You can look at the new districts at this website.
The Alameda County elections department website is here.
Below are the races people in Alameda County will see on their June ballot.
Patch will have more coverage of these races between now and the primary.
CONGRESS
15th District
This new district includes San Ramon, Livermore, Dublin, Pleasanton, Castro Valley, San Lorenzo, Union City, Hayward and part of Fremont.
There are three candidates in this election.
Democrat Congressman Pete Stark was first elected to Congress in 1972. On his website, he says he has led "the fight to protect Social Security and Medicare, enact health reform, promote peace rather than war, and standing up for working families."
Democrat Eric Swalwell is an Alameda County prosecutor who also serves on the Dublin City Council. Swalwell grew up in Dublin and graduated from Dublin High. He's offering himself as a moderate alternative to Stark.
Christopher Pereja lists no party preference and no job description on the ballot. On his website, he criticizes career politicians and says he wants to build strong economy. The Hayward resident is the owner of B2B Power Exchange and LeadGenaires, companies that help businesses find new opportunities.
13th District
The new district includes Alameda, Oakland and San Leandro as well as Berkeley, Albany, Piedmont and Emeryville.
There are three candidates in this race.
Democrat Barbara Lee was first elected to Congress in 1998. On her website, Lee describes herself as "a forceful and progressive voice in Congress, dedicated to social and economic justice, international peace, and civil and human rights."
Democrat Justin Jelincic is a finance manager and U.C. Berkeley graduate. On his website, Jelincic describes himself as a conservative Democrat and “Bible believing Christian."
Marilyn Singleton, who lists herself as non-partisan, is a San Diego native who attended Stanford and UCSF, worked at Alta Bates, then got a law degree in 1995 from UC Berkeley. She now teaches constitutional law.
17th District
The new district includes Newark, part of Fremont, Sunnyvale, Cupertino, Milpitas and Santa Clara.
There are three candidates.
Democrat Mike Honda was first elected to the House in 2000. He was born in California, spent World War Two in an internment camp in Colorado. After the war family was strawberry sharecroppers in San Jose area. He served in Peace Corps in the 1960s and was a science teacher before his political career. He was elected as a Santa Clara County supervisor in 1990.
Republican Evelyn Li is a medical doctor as well as graduate of U.C. Berkeley and U.C. Davis. She emigrated to the United States from Hong Kong as a teenager. Li has been a cardiologist for the past 25 years and founded the Asian Medical Clinic of Fremont. On her website, Li says, "I have had the amazing opportunity to participate in the American Dream. I want to make sure that our American Dream stays alive for our children and grandchildren."
Charles Richardson has lived in Fremont since 1979. He is a married father of four children. Richardson is a Missouri native who dropped out of high school to support his family and then went back to school and earned two college degrees. He now owns Bully's GrillPub in Fremont. On the ballot, the Army veteran lists no party preference. On his website, Richardson states he is "not a politician." He says he's running because "I believe major changes are needed to revitalize our country and protect the rights of other citizens like me."
STATE SENATE
7th District
The new district includes Concord, Clayton, Dublin, Pleasanton, Livermore, San Ramon, Danville, Alamo, Walnut Creek, Lamorinda and East County.
There are two candidates.
Democrat Mark DeSaulnier was first elected to the state Senate in 2008. He's also businessman who has served on the Concord City Council and Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors.
Mark Meuser is DeSaulnier's only opponent. The Republican lists himself on the ballot as a counselor at law. No website could be found for Meuser.
9th District
The new district includes San Leandro, Oakland, Berkeley, Alameda, Albany, El Cerrito, Richmond, Pinole and Hercules.
There's only one candidate in this election.
Democrat Loni Hancock was elected to the state Senate in 2008. Prior to that she served as assemblywoman and mayor of Berkeley.
ASSEMBLY
20th District
This new district includes Union City, Hayward, San Lorenzo, Castro Valley, Ashland and Cherryland.
There are five candidates on the ballot.
Sarabjit Kaur Cheema is a New Haven school board member. She is also on the Union City human relations commission. She works as a transportation engineer for the state.
Mark Green, listed as an Independent, has been the mayor of Union City for the past 19 years. He is a member of the Association of Bay Area Government and the Metropolitan Transporation Commission.
Jennifer Ong is a doctor of optometry in Alameda. She is also a commissioner on Alameda County Commission on the Status of Women.
Bill Quirk has been on the Hayward City Council for two terms. He is a former NASA scientist and a retired Livermore Lab scientist.
Luis Reynoso is a Mexico native and a naturalized U.S. citizen. He attended Chabot College and Cal State Hayward. He is now a Hayward school board member.
25th District
This new district includes Newark, Fremont, Milpitas, Santa Clara and unincorporated east Santa Clara County.
There are two candidates in this race.
Democrat Bob Wieckowski was elected to the Assembly in 2010. He was previously on the Fremont City Council.
Milpitas City Councilman Pete McHugh will challenge Wieckowski. McHugh, also a Democrat, is a former Santa Clara County supervisor.
16th District
The new district includes Livermore, Pleasanton, Dublin, the San Ramon Valley, Lamorinda and Walnut Creek.
There are two candidates in this race.
Democrat Joan Buchanan was a San Ramon Valley Unified School District board member for 20 years. She was first elected to the Assembly in 2008.
Republican Al Phillips says on his website that he favors reducing regulations and streamlining government. No biographical information is listed on the site.
15th District
The new district includes Berkeley, Richmond, El Cerrito, Hercules and Pinole.
There is only one candidate in this race.
Democrat Nancy Skinner was elected to the Berkeley City Council as a student in 1984. She served four terms before being elected in 2006 to the East Bay Parks District board and to the assembly in 2008.
18th District
This new district includes Oakland, San Leandro and Alameda.
There are four candidates for this race.
Rob Bonta is vice mayor of Alamed and an advocate for schools. Prior to that, he was on Alameda Health Care board. He works as an assistant city attorney in San Francisco. He also played professional minor league soccer.
Abel Guillen is a Peralta Community College District trustee as well as a vice president of a school finance firm.
Republican Rhonda Weber is on the ballot. A website for Weber's campaign could not be found.
Democrat Joel Young is an A.C. Transit board director. He's also an attorney with a law degree from U. C. Berkeley.
COUNTY SUPERVISOR
1st District
There is one candidate in this race.
Scott Haggerty has been on the board since 1996. He was raised in Fremont and now lives in Dublin with his family.
4th District
There are two candidates in this election.
Nate Miley was first elected in 2000. He is an attorney and an Oakland resident.
Tojo Thomas is a deputy probation officer for Alameda County. You can read more about him in this
5th District
There is one candidate in this race.
Keith Carson has been on the board since 1992.
