California women have shattered some significant glass ceilings: Nancy Pelosi, the first female House speaker; Dianne Feinstein and Barbara Boxer, the first all-female delegation to the U.S. Senate; Kamala Harris, the nation’s first female vice president.

But alongside all those famous firsts are some lingering imbalances in the state’s power structure. Men still hold about two-thirds of the seats in California’s congressional delegation, for example. In the Legislature, women have yet to reach the 50 percent level, even with record progress in the last election.

And so far, all of California’s governors have been male.

This week, political circles have been abuzz with the possibility that that last statistic could change soon. On Monday, the state’s first female lieutenant governor, Eleni Kounalakis, 57, began a campaign to succeed Gov. Gavin Newsom in 2026.

Hours after Kounalakis announced her candidacy, Betty T. Yee, 65, a former state controller, confirmed longstanding rumors that she, too, would be running.

Three years is a hefty lead time, even by California’s standards, but campaigns and major media markets in the state are notoriously costly, and the two women are only the first candidates in what is expected to be a crowded field.

Kounalakis and Yee are veteran Democrats with longstanding roots in the state party and experience running statewide. And the lieutenant governor is wealthy and occupies a seat with a history of vaulting its occupants — including, most recently, Newsom — into the governor’s seat.

“I think most women in public office focus on just getting the job done,” Kounalakis told me this week. “But there’s also excitement about having a viable woman in the race, and in the race early.”

Yee agreed, saying in an interview that with issues like the state’s economy and abortion at the forefront, “it’s time for women to ascend to the highest offices of leadership.”

It isn’t entirely clear why California has lagged, even behind many conservative states, in electing women at the top of the state ticket. In past elections, according to Darry A. Sragow, a longtime state Democratic consultant, other factors affected the outcome far more than gender did.

Feinstein won a bruising Democratic primary for governor in 1990, defeating a well-known male front-runner, John Van de Kamp, but lost the general election to a Republican senator, Pete Wilson, as Iraq was invading Kuwait and the state was sliding into a recession. When Meg Whitman, a Republican technology executive, lost her bid for governor in 2010, when California was increasingly liberal and struggling to emerge from the global financial crisis, Jerry Brown’s triumph was perceived less as a referendum on her gender than as one on her party, her staggering campaign spending and his enduring popularity among Democrats.

Debbie Walsh, director of the Center for American Women and Politics at Rutgers University, said one reason California has yet to elect a female governor might be that in past decades, neither state party prioritized developing and positioning female officeholders.

“The men in power kind of line up and get out there early,” Walsh said. “I think it’s easy to fall into the trap that you never have to think about gender equity in a liberal state like California, but in fact, you do.”

In recent years, more women have run and been elected, buoyed by focused political initiatives and, experts say, cultural drivers such as the #MeToo movement and the effort to preserve abortion rights. Mary Hughes, founder of Close the Gap, a campaign to achieve gender equality in the State Capitol, said her group had helped raise the proportion of female legislators to about 42 percent from about 22 percent in 2016.

More women may end up at the top of the 2026 state ticket. Representatives Katie Porter and Barbara Lee, for example, are among the top contenders, alongside Representative Adam Schiff, to succeed Feinstein in the Senate next year; depending on the outcome of that race, one or more of them may pivot to campaign for governor. Toni Atkins, the president pro tempore of the State Senate, and Fiona Ma, the state treasurer, have signaled plans to run for lieutenant governor.

“These are things that get developed over time,” Hughes said. “And that time may be now.”

For more:

With President Biden’s 2024 bid, Kamala Harris will be under more scrutiny.

Portrait of a speaker: Pelosi’s most enduring moments.

From Harvey Milk’s side to the Senate: Nine key moments in Feinstein’s career.

If you read one story, make it this

The mounting feud between Ron DeSantis, Florida’s Republican governor, and Disney World’s California-based owner has moved to federal court. Disney is accusing DeSantis of carrying out a “targeted campaign of government retaliation” after the company opposed a Florida law prohibiting classroom discussion of sexual orientation and gender identity. Daniel M. Petrocelli, a Los Angeles litigator, filed the lawsuit in Tallahassee on Disney’s behalf.

The rest of the news

Economic rebound: Some downtown areas in large California cities are recovering faster than others after the coronavirus pandemic. Areas more reliant on tourism saw quicker rebounds than those reliant on office workers, The Los Angeles Times reports.

Health care: Kaiser Permanente will acquire Geisinger Health, a small East Coast group, to create a new company that operates nonprofit community health systems.

Race to zero emissions: State regulators will vote this week on a proposal to ban sales of new diesel big rigs by 2036, CalMatters reports.

Heat wave: “Unseasonably warm” weather across the state has raised flooding concerns for the Central Valley, with high temperatures in the 90s and 100s expected by Saturday, The Los Angeles Times reports.

Travel bans: California is reconsidering its boycotts of states over their L.G.B.T.Q. laws, with San Francisco repealing its ban on city business with conservative states this week.

SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA

Rape trial: A retrial is underway on charges that Danny Masterson, an actor known for “That ’70s Show,” raped three women in the Hollywood Hills in the early 2000s. The first trial ended in a hung jury last year.

Wildfire season begins: On Wednesday afternoon, the Nob fire — Southern California’s first large wildfire of the season — consumed about 160 acres of the San Bernardino National Forest, The Los Angeles Times reports.

Education: As part of its new affordability initiative to eliminate burdensome student loans, U.C.L.A. announced a $15 million gift to fund individual scholarships to some 700 students beginning in 2024, The Los Angeles Times reports.

“The ghost orca returns”: A rare white orca calf named Frosty, who was last seen in Monterey Bay in May 2020, was spotted off the Southern California coast on Sunday, The Sacramento Bee reports.

CENTRAL CALIFORNIA

Lawsuit: A California judge threw out a libel lawsuit brought by former Representative Devin Nunes against Esquire magazine over a 2018 article that claimed that an Iowa dairy farm owned by his family had hired undocumented workers, The Sacramento Bee reports.

No more “illegal late fees”: Fresno County Superior Court has joined at least 10 other courts across California in discontinuing a late-fee program for traffic tickets that disproportionately affected low-income residents and people of color, The Fresno Bee reports.

NORTHERN CALIFORNIA

N.B.A. playoffs: The Golden State Warriors defeated the Sacramento Kings, 123-116, on the road in Game 5, taking a 3-2 lead, The Athletic reports.

Climate and the economy: Workers laid off from an oil refinery in Martinez during the pandemic still can’t find jobs. Their stories could serve as a cautionary tale about transitioning to green energy without proper job transitions in place, The Atlantic reports.

Disaster recovery: The Federal Emergency Management Agency has approved disaster assistance for the Hoopa Valley Tribe in northwestern California to supplement recovery efforts in the area after a winter of severe storms and mudslides, The Associated Press reports.

Financial turmoil: First Republic Bank, which is based in San Francisco, is sliding into a financial maelstrom, one from which an exit appears increasingly difficult.

Where we’re traveling

Today’s tip comes from Pierre-François Le Faou, who lives in San Francisco. Pierre-François recommends the Tomales Point Trail at Point Reyes National Seashore:

“It’s going to be a five-hour affair, so start early and pack a picnic, to be enjoyed perched on Tomales Point with unparalleled views over the Bodega Bay waters. As you progress on the trail, the geography of the skinny Tomales Point peninsula will ensure that you see water left and right — and the famous, semi-wild, goofy looking Point Reyes elks will accompany you on the way.

Tell us about your favorite places to visit in California. Email your suggestions to [email protected]. We’ll be sharing more in upcoming editions of the newsletter.

Tell us

After a rainy winter, spring has arrived in California. Tell us your favorite part of the season, whether it’s road trips, festivals, sunny afternoons or wildflower sightings.

Email us at [email protected], and please include your name and the city where you live.

And before you go, some good news

After The New York Times Magazine published an essay about Los Angeles being a fantastic walking city, LAist asked its audience for the best underrated walks in Southern California. The news outlet compiled the 15 best here.

Thanks for reading. We’ll be back tomorrow.

P.S. Here’s today’s Mini Crossword.

Soumya Karlamangla, Briana Scalia, Isabella Grullón Paz and Hannah Fidelman contributed to California Today. You can reach the team at [email protected].

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