Political Endorsements for the November 3, 2026 California General Election

BY THE HONORABLE STEVE COOLEY

LOS ANGELES COUNTY DISTRICT ATTORNEY (2000-2012)

There are an abundance of electoral contests and propositions on the upcoming November ballot.  Among the very most important for the criminal justice system are:

1.      Judicial contests

2.      Los Angeles City Attorney/City Prosecutor

3.      County Proposition E

1.      Superior Court Judges.  There are at least two, maybe three, very bad candidates for the four open superior court seats.  Trust me, candidates I recommend are by far the best.  In some cases, their opponents, if elected, would be horrible additions to the Los Angeles County Superior Court bench.

JUDICIAL (LA County):
              64: MARIA LISA GHOBADI
             65: JUSTIN CLAYTON
              87: ANTHONY (A.J.) BAYNE
             131: DAVID ROSS OR DONNA TRYFMAN 

2.      Los Angeles City Attorney/City Prosecutor.  If you live in the City of Los Angeles, vote for John McKinney.  If you know of anyone who lives in the City of Los Angeles, tell them to vote for John McKinney.  John’s opponent is the Democratic Socialist of America (DSA) candidate.  She has adopted and will advance their basic ideological views and make them policies of Los Angeles in both civil and criminal arenas.  Take me at my word, she is WHOLLY unqualified!  She is also a FRAUD!  She has claimed as significant accomplishments things that she had NOTHING to do with!  She has claimed to have been a deputy city attorney.  She never was!  She has the admirable ballot title of Deputy Attorney General.  During her very short time in that office, she has done nothing of significance whatsoever.  Throughout her undistinguished, very short career, she has NEVER tried a case.  She has NEVER held any sort of supervisorial position.  She is a thoroughly unqualified fraud and would be a disaster as Los Angeles City Attorney.

Vote for John McKinney for Los Angeles City Attorney.  It is important that you vote for John McKinney for Los Angeles City Attorney. John is capable and would be a good leader of that troubled and important office which is responsible in various ways for the city’s success or failure. His opponent is a radical, left-wing Soros-type being pushed by the Democrat Socialists. I urge you to vote for John McKinney and tell anyone you know who lives in Los Angeles City to vote for him.

3.      County Proposition E.  Proposition E boils down to certain members of the Board of Supervisors wanting to reinstate Proposition J.  Proposition J was put on the ballot several years ago as a “defund the police” initiative to placate certain activist groups.  Proposition J was a horrible idea back then.  Reinstating it now through Proposition E is also a horrible idea.  Do not be misled by the arguments in favor of Proposition E which are incredibly misleading and deceptive.