We just got this update in from FR reader Eric Linder:

A representative from the Riverside County Registrar of Voters office informed me that there are still over 100,000 ballots from last Tuesday’s election that have yet to be counted throughout Riverside County, and that as of this morning they have begun counting them.

In the election for Western Municipal Water District, Div 1 alone, there are still 4,000 outstanding ballots, which means that this race, as well as many others, are still being decided.

The Registrar’s office confirms that there are 14,400 absentee provisional ballots, 5,000 absentee ballots that were brought to the polls, and 1,000 provisional ballots, that have not been tallied.

Other races within 350 votes include:

Coachella Valley USD TA 1 – 7 votes separate winning and losing candidate Hemet USD – 140 votes separate Jurupa USD TA 3 – 165 vote difference Jurupa USD TA 5 – 10 vote difference Val Verde USD – 198 votes separate Menifee Union SD – 4 votes separate Eastern Municipal Water District – 74 vote… Read More

Provisional ballots have put Lou Correa ahead of Lynn Daucher by 282 votes in the 34th SD — a 429 vote swing since yesterday.

You can read more here.… Read More

Today, our nation and the world lost a great mind and an individual dedicated to the advancement of personal freedom. Milton Friedman’s contributions to the study of economics and his ability to articulate its complexities to the public helped awaken the modern conservative movement and advance protections of personal freedoms in this country and around the world. In my life, his writings and works had a tremendous impact on me and helped shape my understanding of public policy as an economics major in college.

Milton Friedman said that, "The society that puts equality before freedom will end up with neither. The society that puts freedom before equality will end up with a great measure of both."

As a nation we can honor the contributions of this brilliant mind by dedicating ourselves to this principle and continually reexamining the effect our government has on the freedoms that have allowed our nation to thrive. For the whole world to know and understand what it means to be free, we need more leaders, teachers, and economists like Milton Freedman.… Read More

I had the opportunity to attend private schools as a kid and later I graduated from one of the top public high schools in the country. Having had that experience, it pains me see the conditions, academic and otherwise in public schools in Southern CA when I go out and speak on various campuses. No matter how much bond money you throw at public education you will never fix the problems.

That is one reason I am such a big fan of Charter Schools.

Yesterday the CA Charter Schools Assoc. launched a public awareness campaign that they hope will double the number of parents who have access to charter schools for their kids. They call it My School (see www.myschool.org) and it offers resources to help parents take ownership of local schools and start new charter schools.

The web page has a cool tool that allows parents to find out where the closest charter school is (there are over 600 statewide).

The Association claims that a recent poll (which my firm curiously didn’t get the chance to do despite my personal support of charter schools) shows 78% of the public believe giving parents choices within the… Read More

While others can surely wax far more eloquently than I about his legacy and impact on the world, it is surely worth noting that famed economist and conservative icon Milton Friedman passed away this morning in San Francisco at 94. RIP.… Read More

Yesterday, I posted my endorsement of Mike Pence for Republican Leader. Here is the endorsement letter I sent to fellow House members putting my support behind John Shadegg for Republican Whip.

Dear Colleague: I come from the business world. In that environment, if your company’s earnings disappear and your stock price drops through the floor, the market requires that you replace your leadership and your methods. This usually involves changing all of the management team regardless of how much or how little each individual member had to do with the company’s problems. If you don’t do that, the market has no reason to reinvest in you. Our market, the voters, sent us a clear message last week. Just like a company, we need to prove that we understand our faults and are willing to correct our ways. John Shadegg represents the new direction that is needed in the position of minority whip. You heard John in conference before the election, and I’m sure you received his e-mails as I have. He is fresh. He is motivated. He is inspiring.

This afternoon President George W. Bush announced that he has nominated Orange County Superior Court Judge James E. Rogan to a seat on the United States District Court for the Central Valley!

Rogan, of course, is a superstar on the Republican side of the aisle. While originally a Democrat, Rogan found his heart and soul in the Grand ol’ Party of Abraham Lincoln. He has had a storied career — as a successful gang murder prosecutor, a judge up in Los Angeles County, GOP Majority Leader (yes, we had one of those once!) of the California State Assembly, a Member of Congress (where he served as one of the handful of managers of impeachment trial of former President Bill Clinton), and went on to serve President George W. Bush as an Undersecretary of Commerce and as Director of the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office and was recently appointed by Governor Schwarzenegger to fill a vacancy on the Orange County Superior Court.

The… Read More

Richard Costigan, who has served admirably as Governor Arnold Schwarzeneggers top point person with the State Legislature is leaving his Deputy Chief of Staff post and going into the private sector, where we hear he is going to work for the prominent, well heeled PR/Law firm of McKenna, Long and Aldridge (then again the last time we ‘heard’ where he was going, not only was he not going there, he wasn’t going anywhere). Nevertheless, the source is credible. We here at the FlashReport wish Richard the best of luck — we have no idea how anyone could stand up to the rigors of that post under quasi-normal circumstances, let alone the absolute craziness that he has had to endure. I caught up to Senate Republican Leader Dick Ackerman and asked him to comment on Costigan’s departure. He had this to say: "Richard did an excellent job in trying to push the Republican agenda and sometimes difficult situations. We wish him the best luck in his new endeavors." Of course, Richard’s departure sparks the question of who will be hired to fill this critical role in the… Read More