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Republican Steve Garvey’s impressive ascent to the top of a California poll
The latest UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies poll co-sponsored by The Times shows Republican Steve Garvey with a slight lead with days to go in the primary election for U.S. Senator.
The poll shows a remarkable surge in support for the former Dodger in a race in which three well-known Democrats — Reps. Adam B. Schiff, Katie Porter and Barbara Lee — are battling.
It’s the latest indication that Garvey could win one of two slots in the general election, which still heavily favors the Democratic candidate.
How did Garvey get here? Here is an explainer from the pages of The Times:
Table of Contents
The primary election: Good for Garvey
Garvey is favored by 27% of likely voters, Schiff 25% and Porter 19%. Lee (D-Oakland) garners 8%, while 12% of likely voters pick a different candidate and 9% are undecided.
In effect, Garvey and Schiff are tied because the difference is within the poll margin of error,
The general election: Good for Schiff
Schiff (D-Burbank) would be an overwhelming favorite to beat Garvey in heavily Democratic California. The poll finds Schiff starting with a significant lead in a two-way matchup, 53% to 38%, with 9% undecided. By contrast, a general election between Schiff and Porter (D-Irvine) would start out tied, with 4 in 10 voters undecided, the poll found.
The Garvey surge
In a deep blue state like California, it might seem like a surprise that a Republican can take the lead in a primary election. But this is an unusual one. The Democratic primary is very competitive, with Porter and Schiff major figures in the party and Lee a popular figure with the left. So they are dividing Democratic votes in the deeply blue state.
In early polls, Garvey did not do all that well. But recent polls have shown a surge as he’s become better known — particularly among Republicans.
Why? Garvey’s campaign has spent just $1.4 million through mid-February, a tiny fraction of the money Schiff and Porter raised.
But Garvey has gotten some help… from Schiff.
The ads
Schiff has spent upward of $25 million on television advertising, most of which has framed the contest as a two-candidate race between him and Garvey. An outside group of Schiff allies has spent roughly an additional $10 million on a similar effort.
“Two leading candidates for Senate. Two very different visions for California,” a narrator intones, noting later that Garvey “is too conservative for California” and voted for Donald Trump twice.
Times political reporter Benjamin Oreskes explained the strategy this way: “While the message will turn off Democratic voters in the state, it may increase the former baseball player’s appeal to Republican voters — as it is designed to do, according to two political strategists.”
News
Further Support for Gravitational Wave Background in the Universe
The discovery of the gravitational wave background in 2016 marked a significant milestone in our understanding of the Universe. This groundbreaking discovery was further validated by the release of a second data set from the European Pulsar Timing Array, along with the addition of data from the Indian Pulsar Timing Array. These complementary studies have provided more evidence for the existence of the gravitational wave background, shedding light on the cosmic phenomena that shape our universe.
Gravitational waves are ripples in spacetime that are generated by violent processes such as merging black holes and colliding neutron stars. Predicted by Einstein in 1916 as part of his General Theory of Relativity, these waves have the ability to travel through space, largely unimpeded by any obstacles in their path. The first detection of gravitational waves in 2015 by the Laser Interferometer Gravitational-Wave Observatory (LIGO) confirmed their existence, originating from a gravitational merger between two black holes located 1.3 billion light years away.
The recent confirmation of the gravitational wave background by the European and Indian Pulsar Timing Arrays indicates that we are detecting a combined signal from the mergers of supermassive black holes. This random distribution of gravity waves that permeates the Universe offers a new avenue for studying the cosmos, akin to the Cosmic Background Radiation. The collaborative efforts of various observatories and research institutions have enabled us to delve deeper into the mysteries of the Universe.
Utilizing pulsar timing arrays as galaxy-sized detectors, researchers have been able to monitor and analyze the pulse arrival times of galactic pulsars on Earth. By detecting subtle patterns in these signals, they can uncover the presence of the gravitational wave background. The latest study led by J. Antoniadis from the Institute of Astrophysics in Greece delves into the implications of the low-frequency signals observed in the recent data releases from various pulsar timing array systems.
The accumulation of data from multiple sources has provided undeniable evidence for the existence of the gravitational wave background. With ongoing Pulsar Timing Array projects, the signals of the low-frequency gravity waves will become more distinct, offering a wealth of opportunities to explore the Universe in this novel way. The focus now shifts towards interpreting these signals to unlock the secrets of the cosmos.
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