Endorsements
Candidate Endorsements
George Whitesides
Incumbent Congressmember for California’s 27th Congressional District (CA-27)
CDC Endorsement Interview Summary
Priorities: Confront corruption in the current administration and roll back tariffs.
Housing: Support federally backed, factory-built modular homes and large-scale federal purchases to help lower costs. Encourage modern timber construction and negotiate reductions in local fees.
Healthcare: Rescind the healthcare cuts enacted in H.R. 1, the “Big Beautiful Bill.”
Higher Education: Reverse funding cuts and protect the community college system.
Artificial Intelligence: Advocate for guardrails, address potential job losses, and ensure consumers do not bear the costs of data centers.
Environment: Support decarbonization and expanded clean energy production. Whitesides described an extensive background in environmental issues and noted that he was one of two junior representatives invited to join the Sustainability and Environment Caucus.
Science: Address the effects of budget and staffing reductions at NASA, including the cited $150 million cut to its education budget. Support community science education and environmental data programs.
Biography
George has spent his career solving problems. Over the past 20 years, he has helped lead NASA to new heights, created hundreds of quality jobs in the Antelope Valley, and supported front-line responders and public health through his work on the wildfire crisis.
Former Chief of Staff, NASA
George worked on President Obama’s transition team in 2008, and then served as Chief of Staff for NASA for the Obama administration. George was awarded the Distinguished Service Medal, the agency’s highest honor. George led reform of NASA to enable current U.S. space leadership.
Former CEO, Virgin Galactic
George was the first CEO of Virgin Galactic, the human spaceflight company founded by Richard Branson. He grew the company over a decade from a small team to the global aerospace firm it is today, creating 700 jobs in the Antelope Valley and flying the first woman to space on a commercial space vehicle.
Combating Our Wildfire Crisis
George co-founded Megafire Action, the first organization dedicated to solving our nation’s megafire crisis. He also initiated Caltech’s Keck Institute workshop on “Detecting and Tracking Fires that Matter” in 2021 and is an advisor to several philanthropic efforts working to make wildfire a manageable challenge through innovation and science policy.
Leader in Our Community
George co-chaired the Antelope Valley COVID-19 Task Force, an ad hoc group that brought together NASA, industry, local government and Antelope Valley College to support front-line nurses and doctors, for which George received NASA’s Exceptional Public Achievement Medal.
George serves as a board member of the Antelope Valley Economic Development and Growth Enterprise (AV EDGE), working to grow jobs and businesses in the AV.
George was awarded the Partners in Educational Excellence Award by the Antelope Valley Union High School District for his work supporting underprivileged students.
Proposition Positions
November 3, 2026 • Prototype for discussion. CDC positions will be added after approval. Short summaries are based on the California Official Voter Information Guide.
Proposition 1 — Affordable Housing Bonds
CDC position: Pending
Authorizes $11.25 billion in state bonds for affordable housing, veterans’ home loans, and homebuyer assistance. Official guide
Proposition 2 — Rainy Day Fund
CDC position: Pending
Changes rules for state reserves and extra debt payments, increasing budget reserves for economic downturns. Official guide
Proposition 3 — High-Income Tax Extension
CDC position: Pending
Makes the existing higher income-tax rates on high earners permanent instead of letting them expire in 2031. Official guide
Proposition 4 — Public Campaign Financing
CDC position: Pending
Allows state and local public campaign-financing programs, with restrictions on which funds may be used. Official guide
Proposition 5 — Recall Elections
CDC position: Pending
Ends simultaneous replacement-candidate voting in statewide recalls; vacancies would instead be filled through special elections or appointments. Official guide
Proposition 37 — Homebuyer Assistance
CDC position: Pending
Creates a bond-funded loan program for eligible buyers of newly built homes; homeowners’ loan payments would repay the bonds. Official guide
Proposition 38 — Medical Research Bonds
CDC position: Pending
Authorizes $8.4 billion in state bonds for immunology and immunotherapy research at California institutes and universities. Official guide
Proposition 39 — Voter Identification
CDC position: Pending
Requires government-issued identification for in-person voting and identification-number information on mail-ballot envelopes. Official guide
Proposition 40 — One-Time Billionaire Tax
CDC position: Pending
Imposes a one-time 5% wealth tax on certain taxpayers with assets over $1 billion, primarily funding health care. Official guide
Proposition 41 — State Tax Limits and Audits
CDC position: Pending
Blocks new state taxes that exempt revenue from the state spending limit and requires audits of programs funded by new special taxes. Official guide
Proposition 42 — Personal Property and Retroactive Taxes
CDC position: Pending
Prohibits new state taxes on personal-property ownership and certain retroactive taxes, nullifying conflicting taxes enacted after January 1, 2026. Official guide
Proposition 43 — Local Special-Tax Voting Threshold
CDC position: Pending
Raises approval of voter-proposed local special taxes from a simple majority to two-thirds, beginning January 1, 2027. Official guide
Proposition 44 — Community Clinic Spending
CDC position: Pending
Requires certain nonprofit community health clinics to spend at least 90% of revenue on program services, with penalties for noncompliance. Official guide
Proposition 45 — Environmental Review
CDC position: Pending
Creates faster environmental-review and court-challenge procedures for eligible projects, with tighter deadlines and limits on judicial review. Official guide