According to PollTrack's first read of the 2010 US Senate Race in California, incumbent Democrat Barbara Boxer appears to have the edge in this Democrat-leaning state. PollTrack First Call: Leans Democrat.

According to the latest Field Poll in California, Meg Whitman leads challenger Steve Poizner in the Republican gubernatorial primary, 45% to 17%. But Democrat Jerry Brown handily beats Whitman in a general election match up, 46% to 36%. Brown leads Poizner by an even greater margin, 48% to 31%.

According to a new Public Policy Institute of California survey, Democrat Jerry Brown leads all three potential Republican rivals in California's race for governor. Brown bests Republican Meg Whitman, 43% to 37%, Republican Tom Campbell, 46% to 34%, and Republican Steve Poizner, 47% to 31%. Whitman leads the Republican primary pack with 32%, followed by Campbell at 12% and Poizner at 8%.

The Sacramento Bee reports that former eBay chief executive Meg Whitman officially submitted her bid to explore a run for governor on Monday: "The move by the billionaire businesswoman sets up what's expected to be an expensive, 17-month auction between herself and Insurance Commissioner Steve Poizner in the 2010 Republican primary."

According to the Associated Press, former eBay Inc. chief executive Meg Whitman has edged closer to a run for California governor. The Republican is strongly considering a run for the seat when Arnold Schwarzenegger's term is up in 2010. Whitman confirmed on Monday that she has resigned from three corporate boards. A person who is knowledgeable about Whitman's political aspirations told the AP "that the 52-year-old Silicon Valley leader is planning to run for governor in 2010, not the seat of Democratic Sen. Barbara Boxer, who will be up for re-election in two years."

California's Proposition 8: Why Pollsters Got It So Wrong. Virtually all statewide polls in California predicted that Proposition 8--approving a constitutional amendment that effectively bans "gay marriage"--would go down to a decisive defeat. The initiative won. Why did pollsters get it wrong. the answer is complicated, especially given the subject of the proposition: gay and lesbian rights. An analysis by the esteemed Field Poll suggests that many voters were ambivalent about the proposition, agreeing in part, disagreeing in part with its basic premises. Citing a Field Poll of California voters conducted in the days before the election, the organization notes: "A key finding in [our] final survey was that significant proportions of voters were conflicted about many of the competing arguments for and against the initiative, with many "yes" voters agreeing with a number of anti-Prop. 8 arguments and sizable proportions of "no" voters admitting to the merits of some pro-Prop. 8 claims." The analysis concludes that powerful, last minute appeals by supporters of Proposition 8 pushed some voters over the edge: "regular church-goers, and especially Catholics, were more prone than other voters to be influenced by last-minute appeals to conform to orthodox church positions when voting on a progressive social issue like same-sex marriage." For more of the analysis click here.