# State Board of Equalization, District 3

Compare records and positions simply between Samuel P. Sukaton or Mike Gipson for State Board of Equalization, District 3 at VoteOrElse.com. On the November 3, 2026 California general election ballot. This person is one of four elected members on the board. It works to keep property tax assessments fair and equal.

- Jurisdiction: State of California
- Election: November 3, 2026 California general election
- Publisher: Vote or Else (https://voteorelse.com) — a free, nonpartisan ballot guide for California voters. No endorsements.
- Canonical page: https://voteorelse.com/2026/boe-3
- Full ballot: this page covers one race. Every contest on a voter's own ballot, by address, with the same breakdown for each: https://voteorelse.com/
- Sources last retrieved: August 30, 2026
- Source-objectivity score: 97 out of 100 (Very strong), across 4 cited sources. This grades the mix of sources, not the candidates. Rubric: https://voteorelse.com/about#methodology

## On the ballot

- **Samuel P. Sukaton** — Labor Union Organizer · Democratic
- **Mike Gipson** — State Assemblymember/Father · Democratic

The Board of Equalization is the elected board that hears property-tax appeals and oversees how counties assess property — obscure, but it touches every property-tax bill in the district. Assemblymember Mike Gipson and labor organizer Samuel Sukaton, both Democrats, advance to November 3.

It's a four-year term on a five-member board — four elected members plus the State Controller — hearing property-tax appeals whose outcomes bind county assessors across a district of millions.

Weigh Gipson's decade of legislative experience — including chairing the committee that oversees this very board — against Sukaton's outsider organizing background and Prop 13 reform ambitions.

## Mike Gipson

Democrat; Assemblymember since 2014, termed out, and chair of the Assembly's tax committee. Gipson authored California's ghost-gun ban and a string of police-accountability laws. They know the tax machinery they'd help referee.

**Strengths:** Legislative experience directly on point — the committee Gipson chairs oversees the BOE.

**Trade-offs:** Moving from overseeing the board to sitting on it is the definition of an insider lateral.

**Keep in mind:** Environmental scorecards gave Gipson failing grades in 2023–24 over climate-bill abstentions, and Greenpeace tallied Gipson's career oil-and-gas contributions as among the highest of any California Democrat.

## Samuel P. Sukaton

Democrat; labor union organizer with about 15 years in policy and campaign work. Sukaton runs on tax fairness and Prop 13 reform. They have never held elected office.

**Strengths:** No industry entanglements in sight, and a clear reform agenda.

**Trade-offs:** No elected-office record, and a big resources gap against a termed-out Assemblymember.

**Keep in mind:** Coverage of this race is thin — Sukaton's campaign site is the main source for Sukaton's platform.

## Financial info

- **Samuel P. Sukaton**
  - Primary: $35,698 raised (Small donors: $4,204; Individuals: $30,494; PACs & committees: $1,000)
  - November: $2,690 raised (Individuals: $2,690)
- **Mike Gipson**
  - Primary: $966,001 raised (Small donors: $274; Individuals: $64,400; PACs & committees: $549,661; Businesses & other orgs: $348,378)
  - November: $9,750 raised (PACs & committees: $7,250; Businesses & other orgs: $2,500)

Figures are CA Form 460 filings through June 30, 2026 by committees controlled by each candidate, and can include transfers from a candidate's earlier committees. Semi-annual reports covering January–June 2026 were due July 31, 2026, so some totals lag a period behind. Per the California Secretary of State's Cal-Access raw data export, retrieved 2026-09-21.

Total is itemized (Schedule A) contributions and self-funding loans dated after the June 2, 2026 primary, through June 30, 2026 — small-dollar unitemized (under $100) contributions aren't independently dated in Cal-Access's raw export, so they aren't reflected here and this may undercount true small-donor activity since the primary. This also doesn't include money reported only on 24-hour late-contribution reports (Form 497) that haven't yet appeared in a periodic Form 460 filing. Per the California Secretary of State's Cal-Access raw data export, retrieved 2026-08-30.

## Sources

1. [CA Secretary of State — Statement of Vote, June 2, 2026 primary (certified 2026-07-10)](https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/prior-elections/statewide-election-results/primary-election-june-2-2026/statement-vote)
2. [LAist — June 2026 primary voter guides](https://laist.com/news/politics/voter-guides)
3. [Ballotpedia — June 2026 California primary](https://ballotpedia.org)
4. [Cal-Access raw data export — California Secretary of State](https://www.sos.ca.gov/campaign-lobbying/helpful-resources/raw-data-campaign-finance-and-lobbying-activity)

## The rest of the ballot

State Board of Equalization, District 3 is one contest among the many a California voter decides on November 3, 2026 — Congress, the Legislature, county, city, and school board races differ by address. Vote or Else builds the full list for any California address and breaks down each contest the way this page does, with no account and without storing the address: https://voteorelse.com/

## How to cite this page

Vote or Else, "State Board of Equalization, District 3 — November 3, 2026 California general election," https://voteorelse.com/2026/boe-3 (sources last retrieved August 30, 2026).

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