The choices are simple and yet so complicated for this June 2026 primary. The choice in the new CA 48 District is more challenging. Currently, Darrel Issa is sitting in the seat with six Democrats running for the newly created district by Proposition 50. This election is very important for Native Americans as seven tribes are included in this district. They are Santa Rosa, Cahuilla, Pechanga, Torres Martinez, and two Rancherias. Santa Ysabel may be included because the line between Pala and Pechanga is unclear as of this date. This is out of the eighteen tribes of the Southern California Tribal Association.
One of the better candidates is Brandon Riker, whose family ranch is a fixture in the Palm Springs area. He was involved in both Obama campaigns (Black Feather) and the campaigns for Tester. He was also in the Bureau of Indian Affairs representing Fort Smith (Jim Thorpe) and the Blackfeet nation. He is an economist who believes in people’s decisions, not lawyers’ decisions without people’s input. He will be like Raul Ruiz, meaning he will come to the district when Congress is not in session and talk to the people. Raul Ruiz is a practicing physician at Desert Regional Hospital in Palm Springs.
I hope you read about him and his history on his website, and I hope you compare his record to that of Darrel Issa and the other candidates.
On a personal note: It is frustrating, after being a poll worker for fifteen years, when a voter asks me, “How do I vote?” I am required to respond with nihil obstat (without opinion). That is why the Voter Selection Guide is mailed out. Each candidate pays the County Board of Elections $5,000 to put that paragraph in the guide. I hope you read it and bring it to the polls when you vote. Under voting is failure to mark a choice. This occurs in primaries because people do not know who their local party leaders are. This was true in the last primary here as 5,000 undervotes were recorded at one polling station.
There’s still time to decide, and in some states, 16-year-old students are eligible to serve as poll workers during elections. In California, the website is voteinfo.net, where you can find a PDF form—one version for a parent or guardian to sign, and another for the homeroom teacher. The class lasts two hours, scheduled on Friday, Saturday, Sunday, and Monday from 8 AM to 4 PM, and on Tuesday from 6 AM until close (for putting away machines). I earned a check for $1,000 in the last election which came six weeks after the election. Student Poll Workers get thirty hours off their volunteer time also. It would be nice to see young people working the polls at this next election.
