District 24 Senate Race

Our three term California State Senator Ben Allen from the 24th District will be “termed out” at the end of 2026 and the race to replace him has begun in earnest.

The 24th District has a total population of approximately 1 million and includes the entirety of the City of Beverly Hills. It extends from West Hollywood to the east, then west through Calabasas then south to Malibu and much further south through most of Palos Verdes. It is a relatively affluent district with relatively engaged residents. Beverly Hills and nearby neighborhoods punch “above their weight” because of our involved residents. The 24th District was once represented by Beverly Hills Human Rights Commissioner Helena Rosenthal’s grandfather, Hershcel Rosenthal.

The primary election will be held on June 2, 2026 (voting for three Beverly Hills City Council positions will also occur on that date). It is a non-partisan blanket election in which the top two vote-getting candidates (regardless of party) will advance to the general election which will occur on that date.

This is very early in the process and I do not have and do not intend to express any preference. My sole purpose is to inform about who the candidates are and, to some extent, their backgrounds and positions.

There are already at least ten announced candidates from all over the district. While this is a large number, it is not uncommon where there is no incumbent candidate.

The candidates that I am aware of are:

- Eric Alegria – Palos Verdes Peninsula USD Board member; former Mayor of Rancho Palos Verdes

- Ellen Evans – President, Doheny-Sunset Plaza Neighborhood Council

- John Erickson – West Hollywood City Councilmember, former Mayor; Vice Chair of the Contract Cities Association

- Brian Goldsmith – Political consultant; journalist; aide to Rick Caruso

- Kristina Irwin – Palisades Charter High School Board Trustee

- Brittany McKinley – Member of the Los Angeles Human Relations Commission

- Mike Newhouse – Member of the Los Angeles Planning Commission

- Dr. Sion Roy – Santa Monica Community College Trustee; former chair of the Los Angeles County Medical Association

- Nico Ruderman – Venice Neighborhood Council Commissioner

Notably, only Kristina Irwin is a Republican, all of the others are Democrats.

Two of the more well-known locally are Brian Goldsmith and John Erickson, Ph.D. Mr. Goldsmith’s family has been prominent in Beverly Hills for its leadership of City National Bank and the Bram Goldsmith Theater which is the principal venue at the Wallis Annenberg Center for the Performing Arts. The late philanthropist Bram Goldsmith was Brian’s grandfather. Mr. Goldsmith has an undergraduate degree from Harvard and a law degree from Stanford. He has never practiced law. He has just reported raising over $1 Million in the second quarter of 2025, far more than any other candidate. Financial resources will matter greatly in this election and could be dispositive. He also reports that he has received endorsements from more than 115 community leaders across the district, including former LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and longtime civic leader Rick Caruso and many prominent Beverly Hills residents.

Dr. Erickson has served for five years on the West Hollywood City Council including a term as Mayor. He has an undergraduate degree from the University of Wisconsin, Oshkosh (he is from Ripon, Wisconsin) and a Ph.D from Claremont in American Religious History. He is supported by four of the five Los Angeles County Supervisors including our Supervisor, Lindsay Horvath, US Senator Adam Schiff and former Beverly Hills Mayors Julian Gold and Lester Friedman. Importantly, he is the Vice President of the California Contract Cities Association through which he works with the elected officers of several of the cities in the District. Dr. Erickson has been a strong advocate for building housing in West Hollywood including promoting ministerial approval for large housing developments. This idea would not be popular in Beverly Hills. He assured me that he was a believer in local control and that what may be right for West Hollywood is not necessarily right for Beverly Hills.

Mike Newhouse is an attorney and community activist living in the Venice area and a member of the Los Angeles City Planning Commission. Newhouse says he has raised the second highest amount during Q2 of 2025, more than $265K from more than 300 individual donors. Notably, Mr. Newhouse ran for the Los Angeles City Council in 2022 and finished fifth in the primary with less than 8% of the votes cast so he did not advance to the general election.

There are two candidates from other population centers in the District who appear to have substantial support. They are Dr. Sion Roy, a physician, from Malibu/Santa Monica and Eric Alegria from Palos Verdes.

Dr. Sion Roy was the first to declare for the 2026 District 24 Senate Race. He is a cardiologist who practices at a UCLA hospital. He is the vice-chair of the Santa Monica College Board of Trustees, and a resident of Malibu. Roy has twice been elected with the support of the Santa Monica Democratic Club, Santa Monicans for Renters Rights and other progressive advocacy groups. Roy, like WeHo City Councilman John Erickson runs with previous backing from the UNITE HERE Local 11.

And the South Bay Cities are also represented by a local candidate, Eric Alegria. Mr. Alegria is a nonprofit executive and former Rancho Palos Verdes Mayor and educator who was elected to the Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District Board of Education when he termed out as a Rancho Palos Verdes City Councilmember.

The involvement of such an interesting group of candidates (and there could be more) promises a lively race.

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As you may know, I have written quite a bit about the proposal to float up to $550 Million in tax exempt City issue bonds to “reimburse” the One Beverly Hills (OBH) developers for certain costs that may be incurred as they perform their obligations to build out the project as contemplated in the Development Agreement and the entitlements that have been granted.

I may write more next week in advance of the Council meeting that will consider final approval on August 19. At this point, I want to report that I have heard from dozens of Beverly Hills residents about this issue. I often hear from Beverly Hills residents about the opinions that I express. Some agree with me and others strongly disagree with me depending on what I have said. On the issue of whether the City should indulge in this bond issuance, no one, not a single person (who is not on the OBH payroll) has said to me that they think that this is a good idea.