State Senator, District 18
State Senate District 18; California
My vote power
High
Election date
November 3, 2026 · General election
How do we calculate my vote power?
What goes into the rating: Representation: how much weight one vote carries here compared with a statewide vote — the smaller the district, the more each vote counts. Decisiveness: how likely this race is to be close, based on past results or current analyst ratings, plus the number of candidates.
Representation: High · 67 out of 100
This district is a small slice of its state, so each vote here carries much more weight than a vote in a statewide race. About 963,833 people live here.
Show the representation math
score = 50 + 50 × ln(state population ÷ this district's) ÷ ln(50,000) = 50 + 50 × ln(39,287,377 ÷ 963,833) ÷ ln(50,000) = 67.13, measured against a statewide vote in CA (grades: 66+ high, 55+ above average, 33+ average, otherwise low; a statewide race is the 50 baseline)
Decisiveness: Unknown
No analyst ratings or past results for this contest yet.
High representation → My vote power: High.
Some data is missing, so this rating is based on partial information and capped at "High".
About this office
- Voting on how much you pay in state taxes
- Voting on how much money your local public schools get
- Voting on which roads and highways get built or repaired
Affects: AI Regulation, Healthcare Affordability, Environment and Public Health,
Candidates
Republican · declared
Art Hodges is the Republican nominee for California's 18th State Senate District in the 2026 general election, challenging Democratic incumbent Steve Padilla. A retired pastor and bishop who has also worked as a school principal and college administrator, he has not previously held elected office.
Democratic · Incumbent · declared
Steve Padilla has served in the California Senate since 2022 and was Chula Vista's first Latino mayor and its first openly LGBT elected city official. He authored a 2024 law creating financial protections for minor content creators.
Records: Corporate Accountability 34 for, Civil Rights 29 for, Environment and Public Health 26 for,
Source: ballotpedia.org