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California Legislature · Statewide General Election

State Senator, District 4

Draft candidate list — early preview until the state’s official list publishes on August 27, 2026.

This is one contest. Enter your address to see every race on your November ballot, and keep track of your picks.

On the ballot

This person holds your district's seat in the California State Senate (4-year term).

This is an open seat with the money and the votes pointing opposite ways: Democrat Jaron Brandon led the June 2 primary with 41.3% on $293,282, while Republican Alexandra Duarte took 32.1% having raised more than $1 million. The district covers the northern San Joaquin Valley and the Sierra foothills.

The winner holds one of 40 State Senate seats for a four-year term, inside a 12-year lifetime cap on service in Sacramento. Senate districts are twice the size of Assembly districts, terms run twice as long, and the Senate confirms the Governor's appointments. A four-year term also means the winner will not face voters again until 2030.

Neither candidate has held state office, so there is no legislative record on either side. What distinguishes them is the shape of their support: one built a small-dollar base of $16,326 — among the largest on this ballot relative to campaign size — while the other raised $569,480 from individuals at much higher average amounts. Weigh breadth of support against scale of it.

Jaron Brandon

Democrat, who led the June primary with 41.3% of the vote. His campaign reports $293,282 in contributions, including $16,326 from small donors and $106,178 from individuals, with $100,578 from PACs and committees. He has not served in the California Legislature or U.S. Congress.

Strengths

He led the field on about a quarter of his opponent's money, with one of the strongest small-donor bases on this ballot relative to what he raised overall.

Trade-offs

He goes into the general heavily outspent, and has no record in state office to be judged on.

Keep in mind

He led with 41.3%, short of a majority, so November depends on where the rest of the June field's support settles.

Alexandra Duarte

Republican, who advanced with 32.1% of the June vote. She raised $1,045,931, including $569,480 from individuals and only $41,700 from PACs and committees — an unusually individual-funded campaign at that scale. She has not served in the California Legislature or U.S. Congress.

Strengths

More than half her funding came from named individuals, and she goes into November with roughly three and a half times her opponent's resources.

Trade-offs

All of that left her nine points behind in June, and she has no record in state office to be judged on.

Keep in mind

$1,083 of a million-dollar campaign came from donors giving under $100, so the individual base is deep in dollars rather than broad in people.

Record in office

This is an open seat: no candidate on the November ballot currently serves in the California Legislature or U.S. Congress, so there is no legislative record to compare here. These records cover only those offices.

Financial info

Alexandra Duarte

$1,045,931raised
  • Small donors$1,083<1%
  • Individuals$569,48056%
  • PACs & committees$41,7004%
  • Businesses & other orgs$331,30033%
  • Self-funding$71,5007%

Jaron Brandon

$293,282raised
  • Small donors$16,3265%
  • Individuals$106,17833%
  • PACs & committees$100,57831%
  • Party$5,5002%
  • Businesses & other orgs$14,1004%
  • Self-funding$80,00025%

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 2026-08-22.

June 2 primary — how they advanced

Jaron Brandon (Democratic)41.3% · 109,094 votes
Alexandra Duarte (Republican)32.1% · 84,630 votes
Marie Alvarado-Gil (Republican)26.6% · 70,217 votes
Source review: Very strong (94/100) · 3 cited sources

Official records anchor this contest, with multiple sources checked.

Last updated August 10, 2026.