U.S. Congress

Democrats might not gain all five seats that Proposition 50 was designed to shift. Republicans have a fair shot at preserving one, and outside chances in two other races.

Randy Villegas, who earned endorsements from Bernie Sanders and Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, defied political odds by beating a more moderate Democrat in a traditionally conservative district as a progressive Democrat. But the big test will be against Republican Rep. David Valadao in November.

The fight for control of Congress runs through California. Proposition 50 eliminated all but two competitive districts, and Democrats are jockeying for position in several races pitting them against each other.

California has new rules meant to speed up ballot counting, but elections experts and county officials say close races could still take weeks to resolve.

In the Central Valley, Democratic officials are betting that a candidate running to the middle will woo enough swing voters to topple incumbent Republican Rep. David Valadao.

Pelosi’s endorsement could push Chan into second place behind Sen. Scott Wiener, who is leading by double digits, ahead of self-funding tech entrepreneur Saikat Chakrabarti.

The fight for control of the U.S. House runs through California’s 52 congressional districts, many of which were dramatically restructured by Proposition 50 last year. Democrats especially are jockeying for position in several races pitting them against each other.

The U.S. Supreme Court has narrowed the Voting Rights Act over the past decade. The law in California was primarily used to help Latinos gain political representation.

California’s notoriously long ballot-counting process has sown distrust in the state’s election systems. But experts can’t agree on how to speed up the process; some say a delayed result is better than potentially disenfranchising voters.

A day after Rep. Eric Swallwell said he would resign from Congress, a Beverly Hills woman detailed what she described as a violent sexual encounter with the Democratic lawmaker.