Topline
San Francisco residents on Tuesday voted to recall the city’s district attorney by a 20-point margin while billionaire and former Republican Rick Caruso was projected to advance in the Los Angeles mayoral race, as the Democratic party faced a referendum on its handling of crime.
Los Angeles Democratic Mayoral candidate Rick Caruso talks to the press while he hosts a primary … [+]
Key Facts
As of early Wednesday morning, nearly 60% of the counted votes were in favor of recalling San Francisco District Attorney Chesa Boudin, who has conceded.
The replacement for Boudin—whose policies have been criticized for being too lenient on criminals—will be named by San Francisco’s Democratic Mayor London Breed, who has publicly called for tougher measures to deal with crime in the city.
Former Republican Rick Caruso and Democratic Congresswoman Karen Bass were projected to advance to a runoff in the Los Angeles Mayoral race by the Associated Press, with Caruso holding a small lead with only 15% of votes counted.
Caruso, who has presented himself as a centrist in opposition to the progressive Bass, has made tackling crime and homelessness a central theme of his campaign.
In the primary for California’s 22nd District, incumbent Rep. David Valadao—one of the few Republicans in Congress who voted to impeach former President Donald Trump following the January 6 riots—is trailing Democrat Rudy Salas by nearly 23 points with 21% of the votes counted.
Crucial Quote
Mary Jung, chairperson of the recall campaign against San Francisco’s district attorney, pushed back against claims that the removal of Boudin signaled a right-ward drift in the city’s approach to tackling crime. In a statement Jung said: “In fact, San Francisco has been a national beacon for progressive criminal justice reform for decades and will continue to do so with new leadership.”
Key Background
Tuesday’s primaries were a key referendum for the Democratic party on several issues like rising costs, public safety and crime, and they come ahead of what is expected to be very difficult midterms for the party. In San Francisco, Boudin’s attempts to reform the criminal justice system by cutting back on incarceration and holding the city’s police more accountable faced criticism for being too weak to deal with crime in the city. In the Los Angeles mayor’s race, real estate mogul and billionaire Caruso has blamed Bass and other incumbent Democrats in the city for its problems with homelessness and crime. The billionaire has tapped into his own fortune to fund his campaign and has also received an endorsement from the city’s police union.
Big Number
$4.3 Billion. That’s the total net worth of Caruso according to Forbes’ real time tracker, and made his fortune as a real estate developer building some of the country’s biggest shopping centers. Caruso’s campaign has received endorsements from fellow billionaires Elon Musk and Kim Kardashian.
Further Reading
S.F. DA recalled, L.A.’s Caruso advances as Democrats tested on crime (Washington Post)
Chesa Boudin ousted as San Francisco district attorney in historic recall (San Francisco Chronicle)
Congresswoman, billionaire to face off in LA mayor’s race (Associated Press)
Source: https://www.forbes.com/sites/siladityaray/2022/06/08/san-francisco-recalls-progressive-da-chesa-boudin-billionaire-caruso-advances-in-los-angeles-mayoral-race/