District map effective from January 1, 2023

The 2026 California State Board of Equalization elections will be taking place on November 3, 2026, to elect all four seats of the State Board of Equalization, with the non-partisan blanket primary election taking place on June 2, 2026.

Overview

District Incumbent Party Elected Party
1st Ted Gaines (term-limited) Republican
2nd Sally Lieber Democratic Democratic
3rd Tony Vazquez (term-limited) Democratic Democratic
4th Mike Schaefer (term-limited) Democratic

District 1

The incumbent is Republican Ted Gaines, who was re-elected in 2022 with 55.5% of the vote. He is term-limited and ineligible to run for re-election, instead running for the El Dorado County Board of Supervisors.[1] District 1 encompasses much of inland California, stretching from Modoc County and Sisiyou County on the Oregon border to Southern California to include a portion of San Bernardino County.

Candidates

Advanced to general

Eliminated in primary

  • Dusty Beach (Republican), retired correctional officer[5]
  • Nader F. Shahatit (Republican), tax consultant[3]
  • Donald E. Williamson (Democratic), former San Bernardino County Assessor (1994–2006)[5]

Endorsements

Shannon Grove (R)
US Representatives
State officials
Newspapers
Organizations
Political party organizations
  • Republican Party of Sacramento County[8]
Nelson Esparza (D)
US Representatives
State legislators
Labor unions
Political parties
Organizations

Results

2026 California's 1st Board of Equalization district election
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Shannon Grove 670,515 34.5
Democratic Nelson Esparza 661,864 34.0
Democratic Donald Williamson 289,107 14.9
Republican Dusty Beach 238,120 12.2
Republican Nader Shahatit 85,401 4.4
Total votes 1,945,007 100.0
General election
Republican Shannon Grove
Democratic Nelson Esparza
Total votes 100.0

District 2

The incumbent is Democrat Sally Lieber, who was elected in 2022 with 69.8% of the vote and is eligible to run for a second term. District 2 encompasses a majority of coastal California, stretching from Del Norte County on the Oregon border to Ventura County, near Los Angeles County.

Candidates

Advanced to general

Eliminated in primary

  • J. Brett Marymee (Republican), small business owner[5]
  • Mark McComas (Republican)[5]
  • Bill Shireman (Republican), founder of Future500[15][3]
  • John Zaruka (Republican)[5]

Endorsements

J. Brett Marymee (R)
Organizations
John Pimentel (D)
Statewide officials
Local officials
Organizations
Newspapers

Results

2026 California's 2nd Board of Equalization district election
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Sally Lieber (incumbent) 1,331,457 56.8
Democratic John Pimentel 370,309 15.7
Republican Bill Shireman 258,249 11.0
Republican J. Brett Marymee 207,405 8.9
Republican Mark McComas 107,658 4.6
Republican John Zaruka 70,058 3.0
Total votes 2,345,136 100.0
General election
Democratic Sally Lieber (incumbent)
Democratic John Pimentel
Total votes 100.0
Democratic hold

District 3

The incumbent is Democrat Tony Vazquez, who was re-elected in 2022 with 70.4% of the vote. He is term-limited and ineligible to run for re-election, instead running for state treasurer.[30] District 3 encompasses the entirety of Los Angeles County.

Candidates

Advanced to general

Eliminated in primary

Declined

Endorsements

Carlo Basail (R)
Organizations
  • Reform California[27]
Mike Gipson (D)
Statewide officials
State legislators
Labor unions
Political parties
Samuel P. Sukaton (D)
Organizations

Results

2026 California's 3rd Board of Equalization district election
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Mike Gipson 515,616 27.9
Democratic Samuel Sukaton 336,768 18.2
Democratic Yvonne Yiu 236,324 12.8
Republican Carlo Basail 194,128 10.5
Republican Rey Portela 186,231 10.1
Democratic Rudy Bermudez 111,448 6.0
Republican Stephan Hohil 106,029 5.7
Democratic Baru Sanchez 104,934 5.7
No party preference Marie Manvel 30,464 1.6
Democratic Zhijing Liu 27,716 1.5
Total votes 1,849,658 100.0
General election
Democratic Mike Gipson
Democratic Samuel Sukaton
Total votes 100.0
Democratic hold

District 4

The incumbent is Democrat Mike Schaefer, who was re-elected in 2022 with 58.8% of the vote. He is term-limited and ineligible to run for re-election, instead running for congress. District 4 is in Southern California and encompasses a portion of Greater Los Angeles, including a portion of San Bernardino County and the entirety of Orange County, Riverside County, San Diego County, and Imperial County.

Candidates

Advanced to general

Eliminated in primary

Withdrawn

Endorsements

Tom Umberg (D)
Labor unions
Political party organizations
Denis Bilodeau (R)
Organizations
Political party organizations
Martin Arias (D)
Political party organizations
  • San Diego County Democratic Party (co-endorsement)[37]
Organizations
Cody Petterson (D)
Elected Officials
Organizations
Political party organizations
  • San Diego County Democratic Party (co-endorsement)[37]
Gardner C. Osborne (L)
Political party organizations

Results

2026 California's 4th Board of Equalization district election
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Denis Bilodeau 970,748 45.1
Democratic Tom Umberg 445,928 20.7
Democratic Cody Petterson 396,173 18.4
Democratic Martin Arias 307,410 14.3
Libertarian Gardner C. Osborne 33,747 1.6
Total votes 2,154,006 100.0
General election
Republican Denis Bilodeau
Democratic Tom Umberg
Total votes 100.0

Notes

References

  1. ↑ Alarcon, Cris (February 27, 2026). "Ted Gaines Enters Race for El Dorado County Supervisor in District 4". Placerville NewsWire. Retrieved April 3, 2026.
  2. ↑ Gardiner, Dustin; Jones, Blake (January 15, 2026). "The tax proposal Bay Area CEOs don't hate". POLITICO. Retrieved January 15, 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 "Board of Equalization" (PDF). Secretary of State of California. Retrieved March 15, 2026.
  4. 1 2 3 Segall, Peter (August 27, 2025). "Grove seeks seat on Board of Equalization". The Bakersfield Californian. Retrieved November 27, 2025.
  5. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 "2026 Primary Election Notice to Candidates" (PDF). California Secretary of State. March 21, 2026.
  6. 1 2 "Read The Bee endorsement for the Board of Equalization's District 1 | Opinion". The Fresno Bee. April 21, 2026. Retrieved April 24, 2026.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 "STATEWIDE PRIMARY ELECTION – JUNE 2, 2026". Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association. Retrieved May 27, 2026.
  8. ↑ DeLuz, Craig (May 19, 2026). "June 2, 2026 – Endorsed Candidates". Republican Party of Sacramento County. Retrieved May 27, 2026.
  9. 1 2 3 "Esparza launches campaign for Board of Equalization". The San Joaquin Valley Sun. January 15, 2026. Retrieved March 24, 2026.
  10. 1 2 3 4 "California Federation of Labor Unions Endorse for Governor and Other Statewide Races for 2026 Primary Election". California Federation of Labor Unions. March 16, 2026. Retrieved March 24, 2026.
  11. 1 2 3 "2026 Primary election Endorsements" (PDF). Retrieved April 3, 2026.
  12. ↑ "Endorsements - June 2, 2026 Primary Election". Democratic Party of Sacramento County. Retrieved March 24, 2026.
  13. 1 2 3 "Endorsements". California Young Democrats. Retrieved March 24, 2026.
  14. 1 2 "California Secretary of State - CalAccess - Campaign Finance". cal-access.sos.ca.gov. Archived from the original on July 2, 2025. Retrieved November 26, 2025.
  15. ↑ "Our Board of Directors". Future500. Retrieved March 15, 2026.
  16. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 "Voter Guide for California Board of Equalization District 2". Blue Voter Guide. Retrieved May 22, 2026.
  17. 1 2 3 "Board of Equalization". CalMatters. Retrieved May 22, 2026.
  18. 1 2 3 "SEIU-UHW 2026 Primary Election Endorsements". SEIU-UHW. Retrieved March 24, 2026.
  19. ↑ "2026 Primary Election Endorsements". East Bay Stonewall Democratic Club. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Endorsements - June 2026 Primary Endorsement Process". Harvey Milk LGBTQ Democratic Club. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  21. ↑ "State Constitutional Officer Endorsements". Planned Parenthood. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  22. 1 2 "Our 2026 Candidates". Working Families Party. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  23. ↑ "June 2, 2026 Primary Election Voter Guide". San Francisco Democratic Party. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  24. ↑ Redmond, Tim (May 6, 2026). "Endorsements for the June 2 election". San Francisco Bay Guardian. Retrieved May 22, 2026.
  25. ↑ "If you care about Diablo Canyon tax revenue, this election endorsement matters Opinion". San Luis Obispo Tribune. April 26, 2026. Retrieved May 22, 2026.
  26. ↑ "2026 Primary Election – CRA Endorsements". California Republican Assembly. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  27. 1 2 3 "CA Statewide Voter Guide". Reform California. Retrieved March 24, 2026.
  28. 1 2 Mihalovich, Cayla; Ashton, Adam (May 25, 2026). "Lawmakers stripped the Board of Equalization of power. Now they're fighting to join it". CalMatters. Retrieved June 10, 2026. a number of Bay Area Democratic leaders are backing Pimentel, including state Treasurer Ma and San Jose Mayor Matt Mahan
  29. ↑ "Endorsement: The Board of Equalization shouldn't exist. This candidate is willing to finally get rid of it". San Francisco Chronicle. April 18, 2026. Retrieved May 22, 2026.
  30. ↑ Gardiner, Dustin; Jones, Blake (March 10, 2025). "Aftershocks from a possible Harris run". Politico. Retrieved March 10, 2025. There have been loud rumblings in recent weeks that Kounalakis is considering running for state treasurer...it could complicate the path for the candidates already in that race: former Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf and Board of Equalization member Tony Vazquez.
  31. 1 2 3 4 Jones, Blake; Gardiner, Dustin (January 8, 2025). "Dems tack right on immigration". Politico. Retrieved January 8, 2025.
  32. 1 2 "CA Board of Equalization Endorsement". Our Revolution. Retrieved May 10, 2026.
  33. 1 2 "Sen. Umberg Announces Bid for Board of Equalization". MyNewsLA.com. November 26, 2025. Retrieved November 26, 2025.
  34. ↑ Jones, Blake; Bluth, Rachel; Gardiner, Dustin (November 25, 2025). "Frontline GOPers caught in health care jam". POLITICO. Retrieved November 26, 2025.
  35. ↑ Stephenson, Jemma (July 16, 2025). "San Diego Unified's board president won't run for re-election. But there's another office he's eyeing". The San Diego Union-Tribune. Retrieved March 21, 2026.
  36. ↑ "Chris Duncan for State Senate". Chris Duncan for State Senate. Retrieved December 16, 2025.
  37. 1 2 3 "Democratic Candidates in the 2026 Primary Election". San Diego County Democratic Party. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  38. ↑ "Imperial County GOP endorses Gonzalez, Hodges and Bilodeau". The Desert Review. March 4, 2026. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  39. ↑ "CRP ENDORSEMENTS". California Republican Party. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  40. ↑ "Endorsements - 2026 Primary Election". Republican Party of Orange County. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
  41. ↑ "Libertarian Party's Post". Facebook. February 15, 2026. Retrieved March 25, 2026.
source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2026_California_State_Board_of_Equalization_elections