Top Ten Winners & Losers In California Politics This Week
Each week we pick ten people or groups that had particular good or bad weeks, and label them winners or losers! This is for the week ending 8/15/25!
⏱️ 4 minute read
This is a new weekly feature for the So, Does It Matter substack — the Top Ten Winners and Losers in California politics for the week! This is where we look over national, state and local politics, and highlight people (or groups) that have had some solid wins, or who have just had a really rough week. If you want to make your own suggestions — just send in an email (you can just hit reply to any of our e-mails) and suggest away! I promise to keep confidential the people making suggestions! This week it seemed easier to find losers, actually. But am overcome that next week we will have a rosier column! Here we go…
Top Ten Winners & Losers This Week in California Politics
⬇️ LOSER: GAVIN NEWSOM
Contrary to what you might think, I am not looking to make Gavin Newsom a loser each week. In fact, don’t be surprised if some weeks he is a winner. But he gets first spot right now because of his use of government resources to hold the kickoff rally yesterday for his statewide ballot measure campaign to pass a “maximum gerrymander” plan for California, relating Republicans to roughly 6% of House seats here even though Trump got about 38% of the statewide vote last year. Anyways, for using taxpayer resources for such a political event, Newsom is a loser of the week. If you don’t believe this was a full-throated political really, you can watch it here. By the way, an FPPC complaint has already been filed by Assemblywoman Kate Sanchez. This felt so much like a Newsom for President rally an FEC complaint might be in order? Oh, did I mention that this “official state business issue” has a campaign ad?
⬇️ LOSER: LOS ANGELES COUNCILMAN CURRAN PRICE
Los Angeles City Councilmember Curren Price is a loser this week because prosecutors filed two new corruption charges against him, adding to his 2023 counts of embezzlement, perjury, and conflict-of-interest violations. The new charges allege Price voted on projects benefiting his wife’s consulting firm, which received over $800,000 from city agencies. Already accused of bilking the city for healthcare costs, Price’s mounting legal troubles tarnish his public service record. One more hit against Clusterfuckistan (LA).
⬆️ WINNER: KCRA’S ASHLEY ZAVALA
KCRA reporter Ashley Zavala is a winner this week for her relentless investigative journalism exposing waste, fraud, and abuse in California’s state Capitol. Her dogged pursuit of truth, from uncovering conflicts of interest to breaking stories on misuse of public funds, holds lawmakers accountable. As president of the Capitol Correspondents Association, Zavala’s fearless reporting, like her exposés on non-disclosure agreements, sets a gold standard for political journalism. This week alone she has had great coverage on the redistricting scheme, Newsom’s use of state funds for his rally (see Newsom above), and more.
⬇️ LOSER: CALIFORNIA COMMON CAUSE
There are plenty of reasons why I, as a constitutional conservative, have a lot of disdain for a group that would like to toss our foundational document into the wood chipper. But you can actually admire people or groups you disagree with, when they are sticking by their principles. California Common Cause touts on their website’s Our Impact age, in bold, “We’ve worked to protect voters, limit Big Money’s influence on our elections, improve transparency in government, stop partisan and racial gerrymandering, and more.” and touts that top of their three main priorities being to end gerrymandering in Los Angeles and Long Beach announces that they will not oppose the Newsom partisan gerrymander scheme for California. If that doesn’t earn loser status, what does? If you want to see a feat in bizarre word-smithing to abandon their core principles, you can find their statement here.
⬇️ LOSER: CA REDISTRICTING COMMISSIONER SARA SADHWANI
California Redistricting Commissioner Sara Sadhwani is a loser this week because, despite being selected by lottery for a non-partisan role to draw fair congressional lines, she spoke first at Governor Newsom’s state-sponsored campaign rally yesterday in Los Angeles, pushing to undo her own commission’s work. Her partisan stance betrays the independent process, undermining public trust in the commission’s integrity and her commitment to impartiality. To be honest I felt the commission was biased for Democrats (I mean under their “fair” lines Republican only have around ten House seats that are within reach for them, never mind state legislative maps) - this move by Sadhwani reinforces that belief.
⬆️ WINNER: EMILY SCHULTHEIS, POLITICO
Politico reporter Emily Schultheis is a winner this week for her courageous piece exposing Los Angeles’ mounting crises, from wildfires and homelessness to political paralysis and budget woes. Her unflinching dive into the city’s struggles—despite mainstream media’s tendency to gloss over them—shines a light on critical issues like declining tourism and infrastructure decay, demanding accountability and sparking conversation about L.A.’s future. Her piece was fair and balanced. What we should expect from all reporters.
⬇️ LOSER: EX-ORANGE COUNTY SUPERVISOR ANDREW DO
Disgraced former Orange County Supervisor Andrew Do is a big loser this week. Not only did he report to federal prison, to start serving a five year sentence after pleaded guilty to corruption. But this week a judge ordered him to pay nearly $900,000 of restitution to the County of Orange. If he wasn’t enough of a loser, he managed to drag his young daughter into his criminal enterprise as well. Hope he’s getting hard labor there in federal prison, where efforts by Assemblyman Isaac Bryan (I struggle as a Bruin fan here, love/hate thing) to get convicts paid in state prison can’t help him.
⬆️ WINNER: STANFORD UNIVERSITY
Stanford University is a winner this week for boldly rejecting California’s Cal Grant program to preserve its autonomy in admissions. By opting out of state aid with strings attached, Stanford maintains its legacy admissions policy, covering the $4 million shortfall with its own funds. This strategic decision defies restrictive regulations, ensuring the university upholds its values, supports low-income students, and prioritizes academic excellence free from bureaucratic overreach. Every private university should follow suit, frankly. And yes, other than Sammy over at U.C. Santa Cruz, Stanford has the dumbest mascot of all California universities.
⬇️ LOSER: CALIFORNIA STATE AUDITOR GRANT PARKS
California State Auditor Grant Parks is a loser this week because his report on telework savings is a mirage. Promising $225 million in savings from remote work, it relies on biased employee surveys, not hard data, ignoring productivity drops of 10-20% in remote settings. His flawed analysis fuels union-driven policies, overlooks in-person work’s value, and fails to scrutinize real waste, like pensions, undermining accountability and fiscal discipline. I will say that Parks does do some good work, so don’t be surprised to see him as a winner in the future, but this week… NOPE.
⬆️ WINNER: ROGER BELAIR - PRISON PICKLEBALL!
Roger BelAir is a winner this week for transforming lives through pickleball in California prisons. His Pickleball for Incarcerated Communities League fosters camaraderie, reduces disciplinary issues, and builds hope in facilities like San Quentin. By teaching inmates and staff, BelAir bridges divides, creating moments of equality and joy. His work, spotlighted in a documentary, proves sport can rehabilitate. You can see more about the Pickleball In Prison League here. Hopefully you never have to join! And hopefully you don’t get hurt like this guy.
Chin up losers, maybe you will be winners next week!
Now that you see what this column is all about, keep your eyes peeled. If you have someone to suggest to be considered for featuring in this column next week, drop me a note. I will keep confidential the names of those who make the suggestions!
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