Staff Reports
California Secretary of State Shirley Weber is feeling majorly bummed about a recent court ruling that allowed Republican Assemblyman Vince Fong to be on the primary ballot for not one, but two separate races. Weber is saying “oh, heck no” to this ruling and has plans to appeal it.
California secretary of state will appeal ruling allowing Vince Fong on congressional primary ballot https://t.co/4dqdko3cxp https://t.co/4dqdko3cxp
— Washington Examiner (@dcexaminer) December 31, 2023
Weber blocked Fong from showing up on the primary ballot for the state’s 20th Congressional District because she claimed he already filed to run for his current seat in the state Assembly. According to the election code, candidates can’t be listed for two different offices, she argued.
Now Weber is out here expressing her deep worries about what this ruling could mean. She’s all like, “I’m seriously concerned about what could happen if Fong wins both races. It’s gonna lead to a big mess, confusion everywhere, and voters feeling left out.” She even said her office is gonna appeal the ruling, but until then, Fong’s name will be on the March 2024 primary ballot. Fong is on Weber’s certified candidates list for the primary, so he’s in the game.
Weber is making it clear that she’s not playing around when it comes to protecting the voters. She’s saying, “As California’s top election person, I gotta do what I can to make sure voters are looked after.” And that’s why she’s planning to appeal this ruling – for the sake of future elections and making sure no one feels like they got left out.
Meanwhile, Fong, with the support of outgoing Rep. Kevin McCarthy, didn’t originally plan to go after McCarthy’s seat. But when another McCarthy ally, GOP state Sen. Shannon Grove, decided not to run, Fong was like, “Count me in!”
