California
Election 2024: Get to know the candidates in California’s 38th congressional race
There’s a bit of a rematch happening in California’s 38th congressional district.
Rep. Linda Sánchez, a Democrat from Whittier who is serving her 11th term, is being challenged by Walnut City Councilmember Eric Ching, pastor John Sarega and entrepreneur Robert Zhang Ochoa. She faced Ching and Sarega in the midterm election in 2022.
Sánchez’s seat is deemed unlikely to become closely contested by the Cook Political Report, which analyzes elections. According to state data, Democrats account for 48.3% of all the registered voters in the district, which covers portions of Los Angeles and Orange counties, while 22.8% are no party preference voters and 22.7% are Republicans.
Ching, Ochoa and Sánchez differ on several issues, including immigration. Sarega did not submit a questionnaire for the Register’s 2024 Primary Election Voter Guide and did not respond to requests for comment about his platform.
Sánchez, the daughter of immigrants from Mexico, is a strong advocate for a pathway to citizenship for “Dreamers,” young immigrants brought to the U.S. unlawfully, as well as agricultural workers and noncitizens who have temporary protected status, which is granted to foreign nationals from countries that have “extraordinary and temporary conditions,” like war, that prevent them from returning safely, according to U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services.
She also supports reforms to the United States’ asylum system, which include increasing asylum processing, upping the number of refugee and asylum officers and expanding temporary shelters for asylum seekers, as outlined in legislation she introduced last year.
“The U.S. Citizenship Act would build upon existing funds to provide smarter and safer border management, specifically by directing new resources to where they are most needed — at ports of entry where we must invest in technology, infrastructure and screening capacity,” Sánchez said.
But Ching and Ochoa, both Republicans, suggest shutting down the border.
“We should stop people from coming in because our cities cannot handle more illegal immigrants,” said Ching, who came to the U.S. from Taiwan in 1982. “We should not have any more people that we can’t handle.”
As for “Dreamers,” Ching said it isn’t fair for them to get “a free pass” simply because they were brought to the U.S. by their parents through no fault of their own.
“For the young kids, it’s not their fault,” Ching said. “But I do believe that we have to have law and order.”
Ochoa, who immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico when he was 6, said the border “needs to be closed.” He’s also advocating for reinstating the “Remain in Mexico” policy, which requires asylum-seekers to wait in Mexico for their hearings, and a guest worker program, formerly known as the “Bracero Program,” which, from 1942-1964, allowed millions of Mexican laborers to work in the U.S with a temporary work permit.
“That worked really well … they were here legally,” he said. “They had the right to be here for a period of time to work, and then they had to go back and reapply. My dad and all his friends would do that constantly, and it worked well for everybody. The United States needed workers and people from Mexico would take their earnings back home, so everybody was happy.”
Ochoa also said he supports a pathway to citizenship for “Dreamers.”
“That’s a very easy answer, yes,” he said. “I came here legally with paperwork, but in my mind, I always think, ‘Suppose my parents had not come here legally. I didn’t have a choice, I was 6 years old. I lived here my entire life.’”
CA-38 has the highest unemployment rate, 4.4%, of all the congressional districts that touch Orange County, according to U.S. Census data, The district includes La Habra in Orange County and Diamond Bar, La Habra Heights, Hacienda Heights, La Mirada, Los Nietos, Norwalk, Montebello, Pico Rivera, Rowland Heights, Santa Fe Springs, Walnut, Whittier and parts of Downey and Industry in Los Angeles County.
Sánchez strongly supports union workers and higher wages, and her political philosophy involves advocating for the working class, she said. Ochoa wants to see the economy improve, and Ching says that “the net effect of any bill should be beneficial to both the labor and employer as a whole.”
“Higher wages drive up the cost of living,” Ching said. “So by raising their minimum wage, is that really a win-win for the employee?”
Just as labor was one of the hottest topics in the California news landscape in this election cycle, foreign conflicts, including the Israel-Hamas war, are a driving topic in 2024 as well.
When asked how much assistance should the U.S. provide — military and/or financial — to foreign countries at war, like Israel or Ukraine, Sánchez said: “It’s critical that we deliver already-delayed aid to Ukraine in their efforts to stop Russian aggression and deliver aid to Israel as it works to defend itself from Hamas.” Aid to Ukraine and Israel has been delayed due to Congress’ inability to reach a deal yet this year on granting billions of dollars to the war-torn countries.
Sánchez also said humanitarian assistance must be delivered to “the millions in Gaza who are without food, water, fuel and more.”
“When it comes to assistance from the U.S., we have a responsibility to ensure humanitarian needs are met and that any military offenses are done within the bounds of international law,” she said.
While Ching and Ochoa agreed that the U.S. should aid its allies, Ching believes the assistance should serve “our national interests,” and Ochoa says the U.S. should ensure “other countries contribute a proportional amount of assistance.”
“For example, if Taiwan is at war, there are friendly countries like South Korea, Japan (and) so forth that should be contributing financial support,” Ochoa said.
If those countries decline to give money, the U.S. needs to exert pressure on them by saying the U.S. may not give them financial support if they’re ever in trouble, he said.
In terms of the money game, Sánchez is far and away in the lead. She reported raising $217,035 in the last quarter of 2023, ending the year with $628,948 still left to spend.
Ching reported raising $1,390 and having $10,517 cash on hand.
Sarega and Ochoa haven’t reported any fundraising.
Primary ballots are set to go out to all registered voters on Monday, Feb. 5. Ballot drop boxes will open the same day and voting centers will open starting Feb. 24. The Orange County Registrar’s office will provide in-person voting, voter registration, replacement ballots and other general assistance starting Feb. 5.
California
Republican governor candidate Chad Bianco says he’s the ‘antithesis to California state government’
We are counting down to the California governor’s race. Chad Bianco, the sheriff of Riverside County, is one of the two biggest names running on the Republican ticket.
In a one-on-one interview with Eyewitness News political reporter Josh Haskell, Riverside County Sheriff Chad Bianco said, “I am the antithesis to California state government because I am going to take a nuclear bomb into that building and absolutely destroy everything that they do to us behind closed doors.”
Although he’s been elected by the voters twice, Bianco says he’s not a politician — which is why he believes his campaign for California governor is resonating, as reflected in the polls.
“President Trump, in one year, from 2025 when he took over, until now, did absolutely nothing to harm California. What’s harming California is 30 years of Democrat one-party rule that have created an environment here that no one can live in anymore. They’ve only been successful here in California because we vote D no matter what. You vote D or die. I mean, that’s it. Charles Manson would be elected in California if he was the only Democrat on the ballot,” Bianco said.
Bianco isn’t the only conservative Republican running for governor, and according to polling, he’s neck-and-neck with former Fox News host Steve Hilton.
SEE ALSO: CA governor candidate Steve Hilton says ‘everybody supports’ Trump’s immigration policies
Leading in some polls in the wide-open California Governor’s race as the June primary creeps closer is Republican and former Fox News host Steve Hilton.
“Steve has no chance of winning in November. The Democrats know that I’m going to win in November, and so they have to do everything they can to keep me out of that,” Bianco said.
When asked about the affordability crisis in the state, Bianco said, “Almost the entire issue of affordability in California is because of regulation, excessive regulation imposed by government. Every single regulation can be signed away with the governor’s signature.”
“It is a drug and alcohol addiction problem that, and a mental health problem,” he said about the homelessness crisis. “Every single bit of money that is going to these nonprofits that say ‘homeless,’ zero money. You’re getting absolutely nothing. I can’t tell you that we would end what we see in the homeless situation within a year, but I guarantee you we would never see it again after two years.”
When challenged on that prediction, pointing to how the state doesn’t have the facilities to treat the number of people living on our streets, Bianco responded, “We have been conditioned to believe that buildings take five years to build. It takes 90 days or less to build a house, but in California, it takes three to five years because the government won’t allow it. The regulations that are destroying this state are going to be removed with me as the governor.”
Bianco also said California jails shouldn’t have to play the role of treatment facilities.
Although he says he supports the Trump administration and wants the president’s endorsement, Bianco has been traveling the state — meeting not just with Republicans, but Democrats and independents as well. He says all of our state government officials have failed.
The primary election is June 2.
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A new poll shows there’s still no clear front-runner in the race to replace Gov. Gavin Newsom.
Copyright © 2026 KABC Television, LLC. All rights reserved.
California
PlayOn Sports fined $1.1 million by California watchdog over student data violations
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (FOX26) — California’s privacy watchdog has ordered PlayOn Sports to pay a $1.10 million fine and change how it handles consumer data after finding the company’s practices violated state law in ways that affected students and schools in the state.
The California Privacy Protection Agency Board issued the decision following a settlement reached by CalPrivacy’s Enforcement Division.
The decision is the first by the board to address privacy violations involving students and California schools.
Schools across the country use PlayOn Sports’ GoFan platform to sell digital tickets to high school sporting events, theater performances, and homecoming and prom dances, with attendees presenting tickets at the door on their mobile phones.
Schools also use PlayOn Sports’ platforms for other sports-related activities, including attending games, streaming them online, and looking up statistics about teams and players.
In California, about 1,400 schools contract with PlayOn Sports for these services.
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GoFan is also the official ticketing platform for the California Interscholastic Federation, the governing body for high school sports.
According to the board’s decision, PlayOn Sports used tracking technologies to collect personal information and deliver targeted advertisements to ticketholders and others using its services.
The company allegedly required Californians to click “agree” to tracking technologies before they could use their tickets or view PlayOn Sports websites, without providing a sufficient opt-out option.
“Students trying to go to prom or a high school football game shouldn’t have to leave their privacy rights at the door,” said Michael Macko, CalPrivacy’s head of enforcement. “You couldn’t attend these events without showing your ticket, and you couldn’t show your ticket without being tracked for advertising. California’s privacy law does not work that way. Businesses must ensure they offer lawful ways for Californians to opt-out, particularly with captive audiences.”
The decision also describes students as a uniquely vulnerable population and warns that targeted advertising systems can subject students to profiling that can follow them for years, expose them to manipulative or harmful content, and develop sensitive inferences about their lives.
Instead of providing its own opt-out method, PlayOn Sports directed students and other users to opt out through the Network Advertising Initiative and the Digital Advertising Alliance, which the decision said violated the company’s responsibility to provide its own way for consumers to opt out. The company also allegedly failed to recognize opt-out preference signals and did not provide Californians with sufficient notice of its privacy practices.
“We are committed to making it as easy as possible for all Californians — from high school students to older adults, and everyone in between — to make the choice of whether they want to be tracked or not,” said Tom Kemp, CalPrivacy’s executive director. “Californians can opt-out with covered businesses, and they can sign up for the newly launched DROP system to request that data brokers delete their personal information.”
Beyond the $1.10 million fine, the board’s order requires PlayOn Sports to conduct risk assessments, provide disclosures that are easy to read and understand, and implement proper opt-out methods.
The order also requires the company to comply with California’s privacy law prohibiting the selling or sharing of personal information of consumers between 13 and 16 without their affirmative opt-in consent.
California
California bill to bar police from taking second job with ICE advances in state Assembly
Wednesday, March 4, 2026 4:43AM
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KABC) — A bill that would prevent police officers from moonlighting with federal immigration enforcement agencies, such as U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, is advancing through the California State Assembly.
AB 1537 passed the State Assembly’s committee on public safety on Tuesday.
The bill also requires that officers report any offers for secondary employment related to immigration enforcement to their place of work.
Those failing to comply could face decertification as a peace officer in California.
The bill was introduced by Assemblymember Isaac Bryan, whose district includes Mar Vista, Ladera Heights, Mid-Wilshire and parts of South Los Angeles.
Copyright © 2026 KABC Television, LLC. All rights reserved.
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