Hello neighbor! We live in Santa Clara county too.. I’m a center Democrat and my husband is more progressive.

Here are my observations of CA so far.

The Republican Party is far, far more radical here than other areas. The old style California liberal republicans are independents now and not active in the party. There are some regular fiscal conservatives in SoCal but again not super active. The super MAGA on steroids really run the CA Republican Party and as such put up really far right candidates in primaries.

In the last governors election they put up Larry Elders who was a crazy alt right nut. Newsom won in a landslide and he’s not even that popular. In our local school board, the R type was all about book banning so no.

When we lived in Montgomery County Maryland we had the same problem. I did not like the ineffective Silver Spring progressive types on the local D ticket but the R counterpart was always crazy no never voted R.

I look for Democrats who are most aligned with local business support, have economic ideas etc. on the national stage I usually choose traditional liberal/bi partisan types rather than progressives.

I lived in Palo Alto and Mountain View for most of the last decade. Most non-housing related progressive measures generally pass. Registering D probably makes sense (esp since you self-identify as a moderate Dem). You can review polling data before primaries to inform your votes but should note that even #2 is often a long way off when running against an incumbent.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I apologize this is not in politics but I would like to talk specifically about the Bay Area.
I just got my citizenship. I am a very moderate Democrat I guess. Here are my questions:
- does it make sense to register as a Democrat? Republican candidates won’t win anyway but if I am registered at least I can vote against the most extreme progressive candidates?
- how do I know if a candidate I like stands a chance? How do I not throw my vote away, but vote for the sure number 2 if I don’t like the incumbent?
- any other tips or tricks I need to know?
Fwiw I am against most of the progressive initiatives and my goal would just be to do a bit of damage control so that the most extreme progressive candidates can’t win.
I am in Santa Clara county fwiw.

Thank you!

No what do you not understand?
There is no Republican party period. It is the party of Putin.

Vote how you like however, if you want to keep that right to vote and decide for yourself then it is Democratic all the way.

It is very simple either you want a Dictatorship vote for Republicans if you want the US to not be run by a bunch of Putin loving shits vote Dem the whole ticket. It is not complicated.

As opposed to the dictatorship we are currently living under with Biden and his cronies? Lol you have no clue and should not be allowed anywhere near a voting booth. How's your therapist doing?

Here's all you need to know:

if you like the sh hole that SF has become vote Democrat. If not, vote Republican. The Republican won't win, but it's worth a shot. And no the Republican Party is not the part of Putin. As you can read above, there is a lot of mental illness among Democrat voters. Govern yourself accordingly. Good luck and congratulations on your citizenship!

Signed, a Republican

Anonymous wrote:I apologize this is not in politics but I would like to talk specifically about the Bay Area.
I just got my citizenship. I am a very moderate Democrat I guess. Here are my questions:
- does it make sense to register as a Democrat? Republican candidates won’t win anyway but if I am registered at least I can vote against the most extreme progressive candidates?
- how do I know if a candidate I like stands a chance? How do I not throw my vote away, but vote for the sure number 2 if I don’t like the incumbent?
- any other tips or tricks I need to know?
Fwiw I am against most of the progressive initiatives and my goal would just be to do a bit of damage control so that the most extreme progressive candidates can’t win.
I am in Santa Clara county fwiw.

Thank you!

No what do you not understand?
There is no Republican party period. It is the party of Putin.

Vote how you like however, if you want to keep that right to vote and decide for yourself then it is Democratic all the way.

It is very simple either you want a Dictatorship vote for Republicans if you want the US to not be run by a bunch of Putin loving shits vote Dem the whole ticket. It is not complicated.

I know this is a big late, but Broke-Ass Stuart usually does a voter's guide.

I apologize this is not in politics but I would like to talk specifically about the Bay Area.
I just got my citizenship. I am a very moderate Democrat I guess. Here are my questions:
- does it make sense to register as a Democrat? Republican candidates won’t win anyway but if I am registered at least I can vote against the most extreme progressive candidates?
- how do I know if a candidate I like stands a chance? How do I not throw my vote away, but vote for the sure number 2 if I don’t like the incumbent?
- any other tips or tricks I need to know?
Fwiw I am against most of the progressive initiatives and my goal would just be to do a bit of damage control so that the most extreme progressive candidates can’t win.
I am in Santa Clara county fwiw.

Thank you!