The Bay

The Trump administration has been ramping up efforts to find voter fraud in California. Claims of voter fraud can have real-world consequences for communities. Today, Stanford Political Science Professor Justin Grimmer tells us about a group of traveling election skeptics who target mostly rural, conservative communities to spread their claims of fraud.

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In this edition of The Bay’s monthly news roundup, we discuss Marin County’s Measure P, a parcel tax to increase access to childcare, and why school board races might actually be more important than you think. We also discuss the fate of the iconic Dunsmuir Hellman Historic Estate just south of Oakland. Some say the once grand mansion has taken a turn for the worse.

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As Costs Crush Families, This Bay Area County Could Be Latest to Subsidize Childcare (KQED)

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Don’t Skip the School Board Races on Your Ballot. Here’s Why They Could Be Pivotal (KQED)

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Dunsmuir: The Oakland Mansion That Inspired Hollywood Nightmares (KQED)

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Why should you care about old houses? (East Bay Yesterday)

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Dunsmuir House: Past, Present, & Future (Oakland Public Library)

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For decades, Nancy Pelosi has represented San Francisco in Congress. Now she’s retiring, making way for a truly competitive race for California’s 11th Congressional District. Today, we talk about the candidates — San Francisco Supervisor Connie Chan and state Sen. Scott Wiener — and discuss how they differ on the big issues.

Links:

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KQED’s Voter Guide

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Prop Fest: A collaboration between The Bay and Bay Curious

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After hollowing out during the pandemic, San Francisco’s office vacancy rate is hovering at around 30%. Pair that volume of empty space with an escalating housing crisis, and it’s enough to make you wonder: Could you turn those empty offices into apartments? Today, we talk with two developers about what it actually takes to make these conversion projects a reality.

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As the Golden State Valkyries prepare for Game 4 of the WNBA finals Saturday, KALW’s BOUNCEintroduces us to the team’s star player, Gabby Williams. From her roots in Oakland to her leadership as an out, queer player, host Erin Lim tells us more about the forces that have shaped her into the player and person she is today.

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BOUNCE: The Rise of Women’s Professional Sports

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Valkyries Fans Take Dream Loss in Stride, Prepare to Rally for Game 4

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The federal corruption trial against former Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao kicked off this month. Thao and her three codefendants — Andre Jones, David Doung, and Andy Doung — are facing conspiracy and bribery charges. Prosecutors allege that the group engaged in a quid pro quo to advance the Doungs’ companies in exchange for money and support for Thao’s 2022 mayoral campaign. KQED’s Alex Hall joins us to break it all down.

Links:

• Ex-Oakland Mayor Sheng Thao Is Going on Trial for Bribery: Here’s What You Need to Know
• Alex Hall’s continuing coverage of the Sheng Thao trial

Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by The Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, San Francisco-Northern California Local.

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The vast majority of commercial kitchens in California — some 85% — rely on gas to power their appliances. But scientists say that will have to change if the state hopes to reach its goal of net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2045. Bay Area food franchise Flour + Water is one of many local shops leading the charge away from gas appliances. In today’s episode, KQED reporter Azul Dahlstrom-Eckman visits an electric pizza kitchen to help us understand the benefits of electrification and what’s preventing more kitchens from making the switch.

Links:

• Here’s What All-Electric Bay Area Restaurants Have Learned From Ditching Gas

Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by The Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, San Francisco-Northern California Local.

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In September, prescribed burns on Angel Island sent smoke and at-times dangerous air quality to residents around the Bay Area. While Air District officials want to improve controlled burns on the island, environmental managers say the recent burn was a win. Today, Bay Nature reporter Daniella Garcia-Loos Almeida takes us on a journey to Angel Island to see the burn area through the eyes of the environmental stewards behind it.

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Smoke Aside, the Angel Island Fire Was a Win for the Island’s Wild Landscapes(Bay Nature)

Some members of the KQED podcast team are represented by The Screen Actors Guild, American Federation of Television and Radio Artists, San Francisco-Northern California Local.

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Just last month, San Mateo County announced that they’d bought an apartment building to house teachers and school staff. It is just one recent example of local school districts working to tackle the affordability crisis with workforce housing.

This episode first published April 20, 2026

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What do martial artists, mime performers, and a farmers market have in common? They all received millions of dollars from the state budget this past summer. The money was earmarked for them, set aside as part of a longstanding and opaque budget process that CalMatters’ reporter Stella Yu has spent a long time trying to understand.

Links:

• How a gym, a farmers market and MMA fighters landed millions in Newsom’s last budget (CalMatters)

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The California Environmental Quality Act, or CEQA, requires state and local agencies to consider the environmental impact of public and private projects. Prop 45 would change CEQA by speeding up environmental reviews for certain projects such as housing, roads, bridges, and broadband centers.

Additional Resources:

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Read the transcript for this episode

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Catch up on all of Prop Fest 2026

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going tohttps://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Laura Klivans. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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There are about 2,000 community clinics providing health care in California, serving low-income and underinsured patients and funded partially by our tax dollars.

But one healthcare workers union, SEIU-UHW West, says these clinics aren't spending enough of their money on patients. Prop 44 would change that by mandating that clinics spend at least 90% of their revenue on healthcare services, or face penalties from the state.

Additional Resources:

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⁠⁠Read the transcript for this episode⁠.⁠

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⁠⁠Catch up on all of Prop Fest 2026⁠⁠

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to⁠⁠ https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts⁠⁠

This story was reported by Lesley McClurg. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Right now in California, if citizens put a tax measure on the ballot for local government services, it requires a simple majority — 50% plus 1 — to pass.

Prop 43 would raise that threshold. If passed, these kinds of tax measures would require a two-thirds majority of support instead.

Additional Resources:

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Read the transcript for this episode

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Catch up on all of Prop Fest 2026

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going tohttps://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Guy Marzorati. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Prop 42 is another ballot measure designed to compete with Prop 40, the billionaire wealth tax. If passed, California would ban new taxes on financial assets like retirement accounts, stock portfolios, or other personal property like art. If Prop 42 and Prop 40 pass, but 42 receives more votes, then Prop 40 would be nullified.

Additional Resources:

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Read the transcript for this episode.

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Catch up on all of Prop Fest 2026

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going tohttps://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Marisa Lagos. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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As happens so often in California, there are initiatives on your ballot that are competing with other initiatives on your ballot. Prop 41, which would require audits of new special taxes, is one of them.

You may have heard of Prop 40, the billionaire wealth tax. If Prop 41 receives more votes, then Prop 40 would be nullified — even if both pass.

Additional Resources:

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Read the transcript for this episode

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Catch up on all of Prop Fest 2026

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going tohttps://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Marisa Lagos. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Proposition 40 is a one-time 5% wealth tax on California's billionaires. If passed, 90% of the revenue would go to healthcare, while the other 10% would help fund public education and food assistance programs.

Additional Resources:

• LISTEN: The Union Man Taking on the Democratic Establishment with a Billionaire Tax
• LISTEN: Stanford Economist Makes the Case Against California's Billionaire Tax
• Read the transcript for this episode
• Catch up on Prop Fest

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going tohttps://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Marisa Lagos. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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In California, you have to show identification when you register to vote, but not when you cast your ballot.

Prop 39, which is supported by California Republicans and opposed by California Democrats, would change that. If passed, citizens would have to present a government-issued ID when voting in person or write the last 4 digits of an ID number on their mail-in ballot envelope.

Additional Resources:

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⁠Read the transcript for this episode⁠.

•

⁠Catch up on all of Prop Fest 2026⁠

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to⁠ https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts⁠

This story was reported by Izzy Bloom. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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Immunotherapy is individualized treatment designed to harness a patients’ immune system to fight disease. Vaccines are considered part of immunology, but it also includes more recent innovations, like new treatments for cancer and heart disease.

Prop 38 would allow the state to borrow $8.4 billion to fund immunology and immunotherapy research, with one specific institution in mind — UCLA.

Additional Resources:

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Read the transcript for this episode

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Catch up on all of Prop Fest 2026

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going tohttps://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by April Dembosky. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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It's pretty standard to pay a 20% down payment in order to buy a house. But in California, where the median price of a single-family home is $980,000, that's a tall order for most people. Supporters of Prop 37 say it would help address this problem by allowing the state to help moderate income buyers.

Additional Resources:

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Read the transcript for this episode

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Catch up on all of Prop Fest 2026

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going tohttps://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Adhiti Bandlamudi. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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In 2021, California voters were asked whether or not to recall Gov. Gavin Newsom from office. But there was also a second question on the ballot: Who should replace the governor if he was recalled?

The recall ultimately failed. But if it had succeeded, Republican talk show host Larry Elder, who won roughly 48% of the vote in that second question, would have become governor. Proposition 5 would change this process by eliminating the second question from recall ballots for statewide office.

Additional Resources:

• Read the transcript for this episode (link to web article)
• Catch up on all of Prop Fest 2026

Your support makes KQED podcasts possible. You can show your love by going to https://kqed.org/donate/podcasts

This story was reported by Guy Marzorati. Prop Fest is a collaboration between Bay Curious and The Bay. It’s made by Olivia Allen-Price, Katrina Schwartz, Christopher Beale, Anna Casalme, Ericka Cruz Guevarra, Alan Montecillo, Gabriela Glueck and Pauline Bartolone. Additional support from Jen Chien, Katie Sprenger, Maha Sanad, Ethan Toven-Lindsey and everyone on Team KQED.

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