Welcome to the Tuesday, May 26, 2026, Brew.
By: Lara Bonatesta
Here’s what’s in store for you as you start your day:
- Voters across 34 California counties will decide on 113 local ballot measures on June 2
- There are 38 primary runoffs for congressional and state-level offices happening in Texas today, more than 2024 but fewer than 2022
- Georgia enacts law requiring agency economic analysis, restricting judicial deference
Voters across 34 California counties will decide on 113 local ballot measures on June 2
Voters across 34 California counties will decide on 113 local ballot measures on June 2, ranging from school bonds and parcel taxes to data center bans and election administration changes.
The measures coincide with the statewide primary, which is historically the second-largest election date for local ballot measures in California, behind only the November general election in even-numbered years. The 113 measures on this year's ballot fall below the average of 171 measures per primary since 2018. The number of measures on primary ballots has ranged from a low of 96 in 2022 to a high of 291 in 2020.
Los Angeles County has the most measures on the ballot with 26, followed by Contra Costa County with 12 and Marin County with 11. The remaining 31 counties have between one and eight measures each. There are no measures on the ballot in 24 counties.
Here is a look at selected local ballot measures in the state’s largest cities, along with other notable measures.
Los Angeles
Four measures are on the ballot in Los Angeles, including two that would change the city's transient occupancy tax (TOT), also known as a hotel tax, ahead of the 2028 Olympics. The Olympics are scheduled for July 14 to July 30, 2028. A TOT is a tax on hotel rooms and short-term rentals of 30 days or fewer, applied to hotels, motels, hostels, and similar accommodations. A third measure would increase the county sales tax.
- Measure TC would expand the list of fees and charges subject to the city's existing 14% TOT to include service, booking, processing, and transaction fees, as well as charges for hotel amenities such as spas and fitness centers, and rental and reservation deposits.
- Measure TT would increase the TOT rate from 14% to 16% through Dec. 31, 2028, then reduce it to 15% beginning Jan. 1, 2029. Los Angeles City Councilmember Tim McOsker said the measure would increase city revenue in preparation for the 2028 Summer Olympic Games, stating, "The Olympics are an opportunity to add some jet fuel to our visitor-serving community." Los Angeles Councilmember John Lee opposes the measure and said, "Los Angeles already has one of the highest hotel tax rates in California at 14%. Proposition TT raises the Transient Occupancy Tax (Hotel Tax), which will push visitors outside the City of Los Angeles limits, reduce tax revenue for core City services, and threaten jobs across the broader tourism economy."
- Measure ER would increase the county sales tax from 9.75% to 10.25% for five years to fund county health departments and services.
San Diego
Voters in San Diego will decide on Measure A, which would levy a flat annual tax on residential properties that are vacant for more than 182 days in a calendar year and are not the owner's primary residence. The tax would be set at $8,000 per property in 2027 and $10,000 beginning in 2028, with annual adjustments tied to the Consumer Price Index in subsequent years. Properties under corporate ownership would be subject to an additional $4,000 charge in 2027 and $5,000 beginning in 2028.
San Francisco
San Francisco voters will decide on four measures, including two competing initiatives, Measures C and D, that would each change the city's top executive pay tax. If both measures pass, the one that receives the most votes would take effect. The top executive pay tax is a tax on San Francisco businesses whose highest-paid manager earned more than 100 times the median pay of their local employees. The tax is collected from businesses, not the executives themselves. Voters approved the top executive pay tax in 2020, when 65% voted for Proposition L. In 2024, voters approved Proposition M, which decreased the tax rate.
- Proposition C would move up an already scheduled executive pay tax rate increase from 2028 to 2027, then freeze rates at that level, resulting in rates ranging from 0.021% to 0.129% of the person or group's taxable gross receipts. It would also raise the gross receipts tax exemption threshold for small businesses from $5 million to $7.5 million, meaning more businesses would be exempt from both the gross receipts tax and the top executive pay tax entirely. Supporters include the San Francisco Chamber of Commerce, California Retailers Association, Golden Gate Restaurant Association, and Google co-founder Sergey Brin.
- Proposition D would expand the executive pay tax by calculating the executive-to-worker pay gap based on a company's entire workforce, rather than only its San Francisco employees. It would raise tax rates to a range of 0.183% to 1.121% of the person or group's taxable gross receipts and require voter approval before the Board of Supervisors could reduce rates. Supporters include SEIU Local 1021, gubernatorial candidates Katie Porter (D) and Tom Steyer (D), U.S. Rep. Nancy Pelosi (D-Calif.), and U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.).
San Francisco voters will also decide on Proposition B, which would establish lifetime term limits of two four-year terms for the mayor and each member of the Board of Supervisors. Fifty-nine of the 100 most populous cities in the U.S. have term limits for mayor, and eight cities have a lifetime mayoral term limit of two four-year terms. Currently, San Francisco mayors can serve two consecutive four-year terms and may run again after a four-year break.
Other ballot measures
In Monterey Park, Measure NDC would amend the city's general plan to prohibit data centers citywide. The measure defines a data center as a building or group of structures on one or more acres used to house networked computer systems for off-site or on-site data storage and processing. Data processing facilities on less than one acre that are incidental to another primary use would be exempt. While this isn't the first ballot measure related to data centers, it is the first that would explicitly prohibit them.
In Shasta County, Measure B would amend the county charter to require in-person voting on a single election day, limit absentee voting to voters who are infirm, military, or U.S. citizens living overseas, and require voters to present a government-issued photo ID before casting a ballot. The measure would also require ballots to be hand-counted at the precinct level by teams of four volunteers, with two Democrats and two Republicans when possible.
In September 2024, Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) signed SB 1174 into law, prohibiting any California jurisdiction from adopting a local voter ID requirement. In November 2025, the California Fourth District Court of Appeal ruled that the voter ID provision of Huntington Beach Measure 1, a similar local voter ID requirement approved by voters in March 2024, violated SB 1174. The California Supreme Court declined to hear an appeal in January 2026.
Click here to learn more about California 2026 local ballot measures.
There are 38 primary runoffs for congressional and state-level offices happening in Texas today, more than 2024 but fewer than 2022
Voters in Texas are heading back to the polls today, May 26, to decide the races that advanced to a runoff from the March 3 primaries. In total, there are 38 primary runoffs for congressional and state-level offices today. An average of 36 primaries advanced to runoffs in even years between 2016 and 2026.
Here’s a look at what’s on each party’s ballot, starting with the races receiving the most attention.
GOP U.S. Senate runoff
At the top of the ballot for Republicans is the runoff for the GOP U.S. Senate nomination. Incumbent John Cornyn and Attorney General Ken Paxton are running. In the March 3 primary, Cornyn led Paxton 42.5% to 40.8%. On May 19, President Donald Trump (R) endorsed Paxton.
CNN's David Wright said "[m]any national Republicans and allies of Thune believe Cornyn is their safest bet on retaining the Senate seat in reliably red Texas. But Paxton, the three-term state attorney general, has a record of backing Trump – notably on his debunked claims of election fraud that preceded January 6 – and strong ties to the state Republican grassroots."
State Rep. James Talarico won the March 3 Democratic primary and is the Democratic senatorial nominee. In the primary, Talarico earned 53.2% to second-place finisher Jasmine Crockett’s 45.5%.
State-level runoffs
Several primaries for state executive offices advanced to runoffs.
Attorney General: The following candidates are looking to replace Paxton, who was first elected to the office in 2014:
The Republican candidates, State Sen. Mayes Middleton and U.S. Rep. Chip Roy, have described the type of attorney general that they think Texas needs. Middleton said, "We need someone in that office like me who will use every resource and tool to back up President Trump and his America First agenda." Roy said, "You need somebody who’s demonstrated strength and independence. We’ve got to defend the state of Texas, defend our borders, defend our streets, keep it safe and defend ourselves against the federal government interfering with us.”
The Democratic candidates, former Galveston mayor Joe Jaworski and state Sen. Nathan Johnson, both completed Ballotpedia’s Candidate Connection survey. Both wrote about increasing affordability, prosecuting corruption, and their records as officeholders. Click here and here to read their responses.
Lieutenant Governor: Vikki Goodwin (D) and Marcos Velez (D) are running for the Democratic nomination. The lieutenant governor is the president of the state Senate and has powers including appointing committee chairs and members, determining the order in which bills are considered, and casting tie-breaking votes. The winner will face incumbent Dan Patrick (R), who was first elected in 2014, in the general election.
Railroad commissioner: Incumbent James Wright (R) and Bo French (R) are running for the Republican nomination. The Railroad Commissioner is responsible for regulating Texas’ oil and gas industry. The winner will face Jon Rosenthal (D) and Arthur DiBianca (L) in November.
Other state executives and state-level judicial elections: There are two Democratic runoffs for State Board of Education, and a Republican runoff for a justice on Texas’ Court of Criminal Appeals. The Texas Court of Criminal Appeals is one of Texas’s two courts of last resort. Click here to learn more. There is also one runoff for a seat on an intermediate appellate court.
U.S. House
There are 16 U.S. House runoffs — seven Democratic and nine Republican. An average of 12 of Texas’ congressional primaries advanced to runoffs each year from 2016 to 2024.
These runoffs will finalize who will be on the ballot in the state’s first general congressional elections since the Legislature redrew Texas’ congressional map in 2025.
The runoff in the 18th Congressional District pits two Democratic incumbents, Reps. Al Green and Christian Menefee, against each other. Green was elected to represent the 9th District in 2024 and ran for re-election in the 18th District after redistricting shifted the 9th District towards Republicans and moved Green's home address into the 18th District. Menefee was elected to represent the 18th District in a January 31 special election and previously served as Harris County Attorney.
The runoff in the 33rd Congressional District features the current incumbent Julie Johnson (D) and former U.S. House member Colin Allred (D).
State Legislative runoffs
There is one runoff for a seat in the state Senate: the Republican primary runoff for District 19. Marcus Cardenas and Robert Marks, Jr. are running.
There are 11 state House primary runoffs — eight Democratic and three Republican. Two runoffs feature incumbents.
Click here to read more about the elections we’re covering on May 26.
Georgia enacts law requiring agency economic analysis, restricting judicial deference
On May 12, Georgia Gov. Brian Kemp (R) signed HB 1247 into law, making several changes that reduce state agencies’ power. The Georgia Bureaucratic Deference Elimination Act, requires agencies to submit economic impact analyses of their rules to the legislature and restricts the practice of judicial deference in state courts.
An economic impact analysis of some sort is a typical requirement of state-level rulemaking. As of 2025, 47 states (including Georgia) required such analysis. Before HB 1247, Georgia agencies were already required to conduct such an analysis, and to submit the text of a proposed rule to the legislature. The law adds a new requirement for agencies to submit their analysis to the legislature as well.
It also restricts the practice of judicial deference, in which state courts defer to agencies’ interpretations of ambiguous legal text. The bill prohibits courts from deferring to agency interpretations “when interpreting this state's Constitution, statutes, or published rules.”
Seven Republican sponsors introduced the bill in the Georgia House. Most Republicans supported it, and most Democrats opposed it.
Georgia is the third state, after Kansas and Alabama, to comprehensively end state-level judicial deference this year. South Dakota also enacted a bill restricting judicial deference in the narrower instance of determining whether a proposed regulation exceeds an expected cost threshold.
The new law also makes it easier for legislators to block a proposed rule, changing the existing requirements for a legislative resolution to disapprove of a proposed rule from a two-thirds vote to a majority vote. The law also deleted language saying that a gubernatorial veto of a resolution of disapproval would allow the rule to go into effect. Click here to learn more about judicial deference.
