These California Assembly races are already settled. That’s not good for democracy
California’s Legislature is a representative form of government based on the ideal of candidates competing to win the office. But what happens when an incumbent does not have a challenger?
That very thing is happening in nine of the 80 Assembly districts being contested in the March 3 primary. Among the Assembly members running uncontested are three from Central California — Republicans Jim Patterson of Fresno and Frank Bigelow of O’Neals as well as Democrat Adam Gray of Merced.
One could interpret that situation as the ultimate ratification that those politicians are doing such an outstanding job that no challenger could be found.
Another reading would be that single-candidate races are unhealthy for a democracy. After all, not even George Washington was perfect. At a minimum, a challenger makes an incumbent go through the paces of a campaign and explain the values and ideas that person would bring to the job.
Satisfied constituents
In the cases of Patterson and Gray, both work from different sides of the aisle. Being a Republican, Patterson is in the distinct minority — Democrats hold a supermajority in the Legislature. Any chance Patterson has to author legislation and get it through the Assembly is slim to none. However, he has become an effective watchdog. This past session he emerged as a leading critic of the DMV, pushing for an audit that ultimately revealed major problems in the agency and spurred Gov. Gavin Newsom to seek improvements.
Gray, meanwhile, represents Merced County and, among other things, has pushed hard for Bay-Delta water solutions to help farmers there. He has also worked to improve medical training through UC San Francisco’s programs in the Valley.
Bigelow represents a sprawling mountain district stretching along the Sierra from Madera County to South Lake Tahoe. Given the lack of an opponent, he must be doing the job voters sent him to do.
Power of incumbency
More likely, no challengers dared to take on the incumbents because of the built-in power they hold. Each has high name recognition, each can raise the money needed to fend off an opponent, and each has built up good will in their districts over the years.
Of the nine unopposed incumbents, seven are Democrats, further reflecting the party’s hold on the Legislature.
Being an Assembly member is an important job — each member represents over 400,000 people.
Here is hoping the lack of candidates does not develop into a regular trend. The challenges to being a statehouse politician are many and the issues are daunting. But our way of government depends on a robust exchange of ideas from all sides of the political spectrum.
In writing about patriotic duty, founding father John Adams said, “Our obligations to our country never cease but with our lives.” Running for office doesn’t require giving up one’s life (though it may seem that way sometimes), but it does require strong commitment. Those who have the courage to take on the challenge deserve respect and appreciation.
Correction: An earlier version wrongly indicated Assembly member Wendy Carrillo is from Sacramento. She represents a district in the Los Angeles area..
This story was originally published January 8, 2020 at 10:10 AM.