This post originally appeared in the July 23 Sacramento Report. Get the Sacramento Report delivered to your inbox.
Senate President Pro Tem Toni Atkins has a fundraising committee open for a lieutenant governor bid in 2026 and has been raising thousands of dollars from groups locally and from across the state and country.
Within the last month, groups including the Thoroughbred Owners of California, California Pawnbrokers Association PAC, the California Professional Firefighters and Barona Band of Mission Indians have donated thousands of dollars each.
Atkins was first elected in 2012 and will be termed out of the Legislature in 2024. The current lieutenant governor, Eleni Kounalakis, will be term-limited in 2026, assuming she wins re-election next year.
Meanwhile, Sen. Ben Hueso, who’s approaching his own term limits and in 2020 lost a bid for the San Diego County Board of Supervisors, has a campaign account open to run for the state Board of Equalization in 2022.