By admin 
The state treasurer acts as California’s chief banker, in charge of investing its taxpayer money and managing debts, spending and borrowing.
Read more CSU plans to drop current English test mandate for international applicants
The officeholder oversees the state Pooled Money Investment Account, which invests funds on behalf of local governments and state agencies, and sits on the boards of the state’s two largest pension funds: the California Public Employees’ Retirement System and the California State Teachers’ Retirement System.
Though the position largely does not make headlines, whoever wins in November will likely be heavily scrutinized as deadlines loom for California to pay off its $23 billion COVID-era unemployment insurance debt and conservatives claim state agencies are rife with fraud.
Critics from right-wing YouTuber Nick Shirley to the U.S. Department of Justice have accused Democratic lawmakers of colluding with immigration nonprofits and daycare centers to fraudulently claim state funds.
» Election news in your inbox: Sign up for our election newsletter here
There is also a question of whether two industries that provide a bulk of the state’s tax dollars — Hollywood and Silicon Valley — will remain rooted in California in the near future. Movie studios have decamped for cheaper states like Georgia, while tech billionaires like Google founder Sergey Brin have threatened to relocate due to a pending wealth tax on billionaires that will appear on the Nov. 3 ballot.
Current State Treasurer Fiona Ma is running for lieutenant governor. Democrat Eleni Kounalakis and Republican Jennifer Hawks are running to succeed her after advancing out of the June primary.
Who is Jennifer Hawks?
Hawks, 66, is a retired school administrator from the South Bay. She is president of Palo Alto Republican Women Federated.
The longtime conservative activist has made “restoring fiscal sanity” to state coffers central to her platform. She touted herself as a no-nonsense political outsider who would focus on slashing California’s $73 billion debt and reigning in current spending. Hawks said she would also focus on protecting state employees’ retirement assets, citing her own experiences as a CalPERS and CalSTRS member.
Her website features a catchy jingle whose opening lyrics are, “Sacramento says the books look fine, Jennifer Hawks says, ‘show me the line.’”
Read more CA sheriff’s seizure of 650,000 ballots was illegal, state Supreme Court rules
If elected, Hawks said in her first 100 days she would meet with every division chief before enacting large-scale changes; audit the state’s portfolio, cash flow, and bond programs; and require the state to publish public dashboards so taxpayers can track how state funds are spent.
Hawks is married with children, according to her website, and lives in Santa Clara County. She is a member of the state GOP’s Victory ‘26 slate, and is supported by the California Pistol and Rifle Association, Reform California and local Republican parties in Santa Barbara, Madera, San Mateo, Santa Cruz and Napa counties.
Who is Eleni Kounalakis?
Kounalakis, 60, has been lieutenant governor since 2018. She briefly campaigned for governor before switching to the treasurer’s race last year.
Though lieutenant governor is largely a low-key role, Kounalakis was the first woman in California history to sign a bill into law while serving as acting governor in April 2022, while Newsom was out of the country. She also advanced offshore wind development as chair of the State Lands Commission.
Kounalakis served as ambassador to Hungary during President Barack Obama’s first term and was the president of AKT Development, a real estate firm founded by her father, Sacramento developer Angelo Tsakopoulos.
Kounalakis said if elected she would consider public banks to help low-paid workers avoid bank fees and push for expanding on-campus housing, citing her time as a UC regent and CSU trustee.
She is supported by former Vice President Kamala Harris, U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla, former U.S. Sen. Barbara Boxer, Gov. Gavin Newsom, California YIMBY, and Sacramento Mayor Kevin McCarty.
Kounalakis is married to scholar Markos Kounalakis; the couple has two sons and live in Sacramento. She holds an undergraduate and graduate business degree from UC Berkeley.
Read more 78-year-old woman dead, 3 taken to hospital after vehicle crash in Roseville