Updating . . .

GOP’s Steve Garvey shakes up Democrat contest for Feinstein’s Senate seat -- Two polls put the former Dodgers star, a Republican, in second place. John Woolfolk in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 1/7/24

Garofoli: Barbara Lee wants to use the Bernie Sanders playbook for winning California -- Californians start voting in a little over a month, and Rep. Barbara Lee previewed her closing strategy Friday as she campaigned in San Francisco’s Mission District: Win the Latino vote. Joe Garofoli in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/7/24

BART director leads pack of political newcomers running to replace Rep. Barbara Lee -- Lateefah Simon is Newsom’s pick for Democratic stronghold seat. Shomik Mukherjee in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 1/7/24

Inside Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff’s L.A. -- Even in a city full of A-listers, the vice president and the second gentleman — and the traffic jams that follow them — are hard to escape. In their first joint interview since Harris took office, the couple dish on their life in L.A. Courtney Subramanian in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/7/24

14 of Kamala Harris and Doug Emhoff’s beloved L.A. spots — including, yes, Zankou Chicken -- The couple talked about their family life, what L.A. means to them and their favorite spots in the city. Here’s a list of a few of them. Courtney Subramanian in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/7/24

How the Golden Globes became too big to fail -- New categories. New voters. New network. Even a new trophy. As the Golden Globes turn the page on an existential crisis, a battered Hollywood is eager to welcome the awards back to the fold. Josh Rottenberg, Stephen Battaglio in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/7/24

Stanford is searching for a new president — a job more political and scrutinized than ever before -- Candidates for top university posts like Stanford’s and at leading public universities like UC Berkeley, where Carol Christ is in her last semester as chancellor, will need to develop a sharper political radar than ever before as scrutiny continues. Nanette Asimov in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/7/24

State officials wouldn’t let these homeowners build a sea wall. Their lawsuit could reshape California’s coast -- Sea levels are rising, and what to do about homes and beaches in harm’s way is becoming a major flashpoint. Paul Rogers in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 1/7/24

Rooftop-solar industry blames PG&E, Newsom as Bay Area businesses struggle -- Bay Area rooftop-solar businesses are reeling from a statewide change that gutted compensation for homeowners returning surplus power to the electrical grid, causing applications for new solar to plunge to a 10-year low and leading to layoffs in an industry that had expected to lead the vanguard toward more sustainable, environmentally friendly energy use. Ethan Baron in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 1/7/24

Walters: How California’s vital twin ports could become uncompetitive in cutthroat global trade -- Southern California’s twin ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach handle as much as 40% of the nation’s maritime trade and support hundreds of thousands of jobs. But they are taken for granted, and could eventually lose their competitive edge. Dan Walters CalMatters -- 1/7/24

‘No accountability’: Special master sought to oversee scandal-plagued federal women’s prison in Dublin -- Numerous inmates testified about a culture of fear and reprisals at the troubled prison. Jakob Rodgers in the San Jose Mercury$ -- 1/7/24

Richmond Chevron refinery flares for second time in one week -- Richmond city officials said the flaring lasted less than an hour and did not pose a threat to public health. Megan Fan Munce in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/7/24

Homelessness is down in South L.A. But nearly 13,000 remain unhoused -- A string of tents and makeshift shelters sat for years west of the 110 Freeway, across the street from an elementary school in the Vermont Vista neighborhood. Ruben Vives in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/7/24

Kids saw 10-year-old KJ shot dead in Sacramento County. How do they grapple with violence? -- The accused killer, another 10-year-old boy whose name has not been publicly released, fired his father’s gun after losing a bike race in the Hillsdale Oaks condo community, according to Britani Fierson, KJ’s mother. Ishani Desai in the Sacramento Bee$ -- 1/7/24

California Policy and Politics Sunday

‘Intense and quick-moving’ snowstorm pounds Sierra, Tahoe -- An “intense and quick-moving” snowstorm struck portions of the Sierra Nevada and southern Cascades on Saturday, with weather officials warning travelers to avoid mountain travel through Sunday morning. Annie Vainshtein in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/7/24

FAA grounds some Boeing 737 Max 9 jets after section of Alaska Airlines plane is blown out during flight -- The Federal Aviation Administration has ordered airlines to temporarily ground some Boeing 737 Max 9 jets after an Alaska Airlines flight bound for Southern California was forced to make an emergency landing when a hole blew open in the side of the aircraft shortly after takeoff Friday night. Ruben Vives, Jeremy Childs in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/7/24

Will widespread grounding of some Boeings impact Bay Area airports? Here’s what officials say -- Two major Bay Area airports say they’ve not yet been impacted by the widespread grounding of some Boeing planes after a disastrous situation on an Alaska Airlines flight Friday in which a plane suffered a blowout that left a gaping hole in the side of the fuselage of a plane. Annie Vainshtein in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/7/24

Retiring tourism chief’s message to S.F.: ‘Don’t let it become just a memory of its past glory’ -- After 17 years as the city’s tourism chief and a true believer of the city, D’Alessandro, 67, retired at the end of last year. He saw 11 record-breaking years for visitors, followed by its worst crisis in recent memory, when the pandemic brought tourism to a standstill. Roland Li in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/7/24

Mayor Breed kicks off campaign for 3 measures addressing S.F.’s toughest problems -- The three measures, which will appear on the March ballot, attempt to address some of the city’s most visible, persistent issues — downtown’s sluggish economic recovery, public safety concerns and the drug crisis — that Breed has been focusing on ahead of her upcoming, potentially tough reelection campaign. Danielle Echeverria in the San Francisco Chronicle$ -- 1/7/24

A California law banning the carrying of firearms in most public places is blocked again -- A new California law that bans people from carrying firearms in most public places was once again blocked from taking effect Saturday as a court case challenging it continues. Associated Press -- 1/7/24

Anaheim driver injures three and kills one in two separate hit-and-run crashes -- Anaheim police are still searching for a hit-and-run driver on the loose responsible for multiple crashes Friday evening. Anthony De Leon in the Los Angeles Times$ -- 1/7/24

Strawberry Case Study: What if Farmers Had to Pay for Water? -- With aquifers nationwide in dangerous decline, one part of California has tried essentially taxing groundwater. New research shows it’s working. Coral Davenport in the New York Times$ -- 1/7/24

Elon Musk Has Used Illegal Drugs, Worrying Leaders at Tesla and SpaceX -- Some executives and board members fear the billionaire’s use of drugs—including LSD, cocaine, ecstasy, mushrooms and ketamine—could harm his companies. Emily Glazer, Kirsten Grind in the Wall Street Journal$