California Legislature · Statewide General Election
State Senator, District 26
Draft candidate list — early preview until the state’s official list publishes on August 27, 2026.
On the ballot
- Sara Hernandez — Democratic
- Sarah Rascón — Democratic
This person holds your district's seat in the California State Senate (4-year term).
An open Eastside seat — María Elena Durazo left it to run for County Supervisor — covering Los Feliz, Highland Park, Boyle Heights, and Koreatown. Two Democrats advance to November 3: Sara Hernandez (31%) and Sarah Rascón (19%). Termed-out Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo finished third and is out.
State Senate terms run four years, representing nearly a million people — the 40 Senate districts are the most populous in American state politics. The winner joins a Democratic supermajority, where the real contests are within the party: committee posts, housing bills, budget priorities.
Same party, different theories of the Eastside's biggest problem. Hernandez leads with housing production — build more, near transit, faster. Rascón leads with environmental justice and neighborhood investment. Both would be freshman legislators; weigh whose first-hand experience maps to what you want fixed first.
Sara Hernandez
Democrat; community-college trustee, former LAUSD teacher, and housing attorney. Her platform is detailed housing production: multifamily near transit, streamlined approvals, tenant protections. She's the race's housing-first candidate.
Strengths
The most specific housing agenda in the field, plus debt-free community college proposals; endorsed by Abundant Housing LA.
Trade-offs
Her City Hall experience came as an aide to then-Councilmember José Huizar, whose office was later at the center of a federal corruption case — no allegation has ever been made against Hernandez, but opponents invoke the association.
Keep in mind
A rival publicly called on her to return AIPAC-tied donations — check her current filings if funding sources matter to your vote.
Sarah Rascón
Democrat; director of county and regional affairs for Mayor Karen Bass, previously an environmental-equity official for the region's parks agency. She spearheaded the Upper LA River revitalization plan. She's the race's environmental-justice candidate, with deep El Sereno roots.
Strengths
A hands-on delivery record — river revitalization, federal funding for park rangers at Elephant Hill — rather than a platform of positions.
Trade-offs
Coverage surfaced fewer specifics on her legislative agenda, and no major endorsements were reported by primary day.
Keep in mind
Her current job in the Bass administration ties her to the mayor's record — fair game in both directions.
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
- Small donors
- Individuals
- PACs & committees
- Businesses & other orgs
- Self-funding
Sara Hernandez
$859,500 raised
- Small donors$4,105<1%
- Individuals$444,85052%
- PACs & committees$311,27536%
- Businesses & other orgs$95,00011%
Sarah Rascón
$187,858 raised
- Small donors$15,8789%
- Individuals$129,87770%
- PACs & committees$17,1509%
- Businesses & other orgs$7,5994%
- Self-funding$14,0558%
1Figures 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 2026-08-03.
June 2 primary — how they advanced
Source review: Very strong (95/100) · 4 cited sources
Official records anchor this contest, with several source types checked for context.
- sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)CA Secretary of State — Statement of Vote, June 2, 2026 primary (certified 2026-07-10)
- theeastsiderla.com (opens in a new tab)The Eastsider — 2026 Eastside legislative race coverage
- ballotpedia.org (opens in a new tab)Ballotpedia — June 2026 California primary
- sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)Cal-Access raw data export — California Secretary of State
Last updated August 3, 2026.