A week after polls closed, the results of a lot of elections are becoming and apparent, and there have been some wild developments! There have been blowouts, nail-biters and big surprises, and Alissa Walker and Godfrey Plata join Mike Bonin to review and discuss it all. The resounding victory of Measure HLA. An edge-of-your-seats finale to the Nithya Raman re-election campaign. A huge surge for progressives in multiple races. A closely watched anti-gay campaign in Glendale. And a helluva lot more.

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One of the most high-profile races on the ballot is the one for Los Angeles County District Attorney, where incumbent George Gascon – a progressive reformer – is being challenged by a large field of candidates.

What does a District Attorney really do? How does the position impact criminal justice? How much does it impact crime, and in what ways? And what is a progressive prosecutor? Why is reform needed and what does it look like? In this episode, we talk about that and more, including why it important – crucial even – to re-elect George Gascon.

Mike talks with Marissa Roy, the podcast’s resident legal analyst, as well as Tracee Porter, who has been through the criminal justice system, and talks about what harms it caused her, and the rest of society.

In Los Angeles, there is a deadly crisis on our streets. People from all walks of life – grandparents, elementary school children, service workers, pastors, artists – are falling victim to a rampant killer. Incredibly, elected officials are doing almost nothing about it, but voters can change that – right now.

The killer is traffic violence, and it is on the rise. In 2023, 337 people were killed in automobile crashes in Los Angeles. It’s the worst year on record, with more people dying from car crashes than from murder. In fact, car crashes are the number killer of children in Los Angeles County. An additional 1,559 people were severely injured last year. Voting yes on the Healthy Streets initiative – Measure HLA – would be a huge step to address this crisis and keep our streets safe.

In this episode, Mike talks with Michael Schneider of Streets for All, the lead proponent of the measure. They discuss what it would do, why it is necessary, and how the opposition if full of lies and exaggerations.