Toni Atkins

Toni Atkins is set to make history as the first person in more than 100 years to lead both houses of the California Legislature. While no one expects her to erase the Capitol’s deep rivalries, she is well positioned to tamp them down.

The effort to create a single-payer healthcare system in California appears to be a lost cause in the short term. But advocates are playing a long game, and they have effectively made single payer a front-and-center issue in California's 2018 elections.