It’s still early, but with state Sen. Ben Allen termed out next year, the race for the 24th State Senate District has already drawn quite a bit of interest, with 11 people having filed statements of intent to run for the open seat in 2026 – the most so far of any state legislative race.

Simply stating one’s intent to run doesn’t necessarily mean a person will actually run. But these filings — more than a year out from the June 2026 primary — give an early indication of how a race is shaping up and what the candidate field may ultimately look like.

As of Friday afternoon, May 2, those who have filed statements of intent to run with the California secretary of state’s office are:

• Eric Alegria, a Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified school board member, former mayor of Rancho Palos Verdes and owner of a small business that advises nonprofit organizations.

• Amaris Dordar, a business and corporate attorney with her own practice and a former scholar-diplomat with the U.S. Department of State.

• John Erickson, a West Hollywood City Council member and the city’s former mayor who works as chief of staff at the Alliance for a Better Community, which advocates on behalf of Latinos.

• Ellen Evans, co-founder and president of the Doheny Sunset Plaza Neighborhood Association, vice president of legislative affairs for the Bel Air-Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council and an LGBTQ+ rights advocate.

• Brian Goldsmith, media consultant, founder of two technology start-up companies and a former journalist.

• Brittany McKinley, president of the city of L.A.’s Human Relations Commission and a business attorney whose pro bono work includes representing domestic violence survivors and refugees seeking asylum.

• Zoë Muntaner, a former Santa Monica City Council candidate (2014 and 2020), a communications strategist and a self-described citizen journalist.

• Michael Newhouse, vice president of the L.A. Planning Commission; former president of the Venice Neighborhood Council; and an attorney specializing in real estate, land use, planning and environmental issues.

• Dr. Sion Roy, vice chair of the Santa Monica College Board of Trustees, former president of the Santa Monica Democratic Club, and a cardiologist.

• Nico Ruderman, a Venice Neighborhood Council member and a production sound mixer with his own company. He co-led an unsuccessful effort to recall then-L.A. City Councilmember Mike Bonin in 2021.

• Maryam Zar, chair emeritus of the Pacific Palisades Community Council, chair of the Westside Regional Alliance of Councils’ land use committee, and founder of the Pali Recovery Coalition to help with post-Palisades fire recovery.

All 11 candidates are Democrats — as is the person they all hope to replace.

Allen, a Santa Monica Democrat who can’t seek reelection due to term limits, has not endorsed any candidate in this race. (Allen previously opened campaign committees, giving him the option to run for state treasurer or the Board of Equalization next year, though he hasn’t announced any official plans.)

Whoever becomes the next senator for District 24 should expect to deal with lingering issues stemming from the January Palisades fire that have largely impacted the communities of Pacific Palisades and Malibu.

Senate District 24 — where 50% of registered voters are Democrats and 21% are Republicans — represents communities in the Santa Monica Mountains, L.A.’s Westside and Hollywood area, as well as coastal communities in the South Bay such as Redondo Beach, Torrance and Rancho Palos Verdes.

That the 24th District is shaping up to be a heavily contested race isn’t surprising to Zev Yaroslavsky, director of the Los Angeles Initiative at the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs. And it’s not just because it’s common to see more candidates in races where there’s no incumbent.

“Historically, the Westside of L.A. has been more active politically,” he said, adding that it’s an affluent part of the state where more people may have the option to take time off from work to run a campaign.

“It’s a place where people live and breathe politics, probably more than the average constituency around the state. I don’t know what the reason is other than when you grow up or live on the Westside, you don’t want to be a spectator. There are more people who want to be participants,” added Yaroslavsky, who served for nearly four decades on the L.A. City Council and L.A. County Board of Supervisors.

Yaroslavsky said the South Bay can also be politically active and described the 24th District as a geographically diverse area that stretches from the Santa Monica Mountains in the north to Palos Verdes in the South.

To win, Yaroslavsky said, a candidate will need enough money to get their message out to voters effectively.

California’s primary election is June 2, 2026. The top two vote-getters in the primary will face off in that November’s general election.