BAKERSFIELD, Calif. (KGET) -- From criminal investigations to resignations and the contentious presidential election cycle, Kern County politics saw no break in news in 2024. Here's a look back at the defining moments. What kicked off the rather chaotic year of Kern County politics was none other than the biggest name -- still -- in Bakersfield politics -- former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy. "While I'll be departing the House at the end of this year, I will never ever give up on fighting for this country that I love so much," the former House Speaker said in his resignation video. McCarthy's sudden resignation from the 20th Congressional District -- following his historic ouster as House Speaker -- confirmed a special election for not one but two seats in 2025 -- CD-20 and the 32nd Assembly District. "I found out Congressman McCarthy wasn't running for re-election when he came out with his Wall Street Journal op-ed," said Congressman Vince Fong, the previous representative of the AD-32 seat. That was already after Fong declared re-election to the State Assembly for the 2024 election cycle. When Fong tried to run for Congress instead to succeed McCarthy, California's Secretary of State argued a candidate can run for only one office in any election -- and Fong was already in for AD-32. This led to a months-long lawsuit that Fong won. His name remained on the ballot for both CD-20 and AD-32. And because he won both, AD-32 is vacant, triggering a special election in 2025. The domino effect did not stop. There were four elections for McCarthy's freshly vacated CD-20 position -- a special election primary and general, as well as the regularly scheduled primary and general. Both the races for the partial and full terms ended up a faceoff between the top two candidates, Republicans Vince Fong and Mike Boudreaux, sheriff of Tulare County. This created a rift in the local GOP. "I'm asking all of you to join me here today in endorsing and supporting Mike Boudreaux for Congress," said state Sen. Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield). Kern County Sheriff Donny Youngblood too was on the same page: "I'm extremely proud to endorse Mike Boudreaux as the next Congressman." The surprise over these endorsements? "Shannon Grove and Donny Youngblood have historically tied to the local Republican party machine," said former Bakersfield city councilmember and independent political observer Mark Salvaggio. That machine -- and McCarthy and even Donald Trump -- all firmly endorsed Fong for Congress, while Youngblood and Grove broke ties. The playing field got even muddier -- as it often does in politics -- via negative attack advertisements. A third-party PAC spent hundreds of thousands of dollars in anti-Boudreaux and pro-Fong content. "This particular situation is propaganda, complete propaganda," Boudreaux said of the advertisements. The tension was evident during the CD-20 debate, hosted right here on TV-17. "Mr. McCarthy pulled a political favor so that he could have the endorsement of Mr. Trump," the sheriff remarked during the debate. Fong countered, "Well it's not a political favor. Look, I'll put my endorsements locally up against anybody's." With Kern County making up a significant amount of the votes and being Fong's home turf, CD-20 was a race Boudreaux could not win. Speaking of competitive races, we can't forget the deja vu of a David Valadao, Rudy Salas match up for the 22nd Congressional District. Salas lost again -- as he did in 2022 -- though by wider margins this time. CD-22 is a purple district, meaning either party has a fair shot at victory. GET offering free New Year’s Eve rides So, it's largely about voter turnout -- did Salas' Latino, Democratic base -- which makes up a majority of CD-22 voters -- show up to the polls? "The challenge is, is ensuring that there is the kind of turnout that matches and reflects what the registration is in the district," said CADEM Chair Rusty Hicks in the months leading up to the November election. "Generally speaking, this is a seat that would be very, very tough for Republicans, but what we have on our side is the phenomenal candidate that Congressman David Valadao is," commented CAGOP Chair Jessica Millan Patterson. The two candidates also participated in a debate, again hosted right here on TV-17. Aside from major elections, both Democrats and Republicans saw their fair share of electeds getting into trouble. Late April, former District 2 Supervisor Zack Scrivner was accused of sexually assaulting a preteen, as well as possessing psychedelics and 30 firearms. "I wouldn't be standing here if I didn't believe something happened," Sheriff Youngblood stated during a press conference about the allegations. 17 News attempted to talk with the former supervisor late August, as he made his way to class at CSUB. This was his first public appearance since the allegations, but he declined to comment. 17's Jenny Huh: "Hi, Mr. Scrivner, Jenny with Channel 17 here, how are you sir? I just have a very few quick questions. Where have you been, supervisor?" Zack Scrivner: "Under the advice of counsel, due to the advice of counsel, I'm not going to comment." 17's Jenny Huh: "May I ask if the allegations of child sexual assault are true?" Zack Scrivner: "I'm not going to comment. I'm not going to comment." 17's Jenny Huh: "Are you receiving special treatment?" Scrivner resigned early August, and the race to replace him for a partial term until 2026 was added to the November ballot. Former Bakersfield Councilmember Chris Parlier won that six-candidate race. In July, former Wasco Mayor Alex Garcia was accused of questionable conduct involving a minor, according to a social media video posted by a shadowy group. Local Democrats -- Garcia's own party -- called on him to resign and resign he did. Bakersfield police eventually closed that investigation, after unsuccessful attempts to contact those who filmed the video. Democratic District 5 Supervisor Leticia Perez won her re-election bid and has another four years on the Board, but she sure broke a sweat. Perez beat challenger Kim Salas by 133 votes, and the contentious race was frequently separated by just dozens of votes. Perez, her chief of staff and Kern Democratic Party Chair Christian Romo were under investigation by the Kern District Attorney's Office, following accusations they used county resources for political purposes. Perez announced multiple times investigators attempted to enter her county office. "They did not have permission, they did not provide notice to us, and they did not have a warrant," Perez said. Days later, Romo accused Salas of the same wrongdoings, saying Salas -- as district director for Assemblywoman Dr. Jasmeet Bains, used state resources for political purposes. The DA's Office dismissed those allegations. The Office declined to specify where the Perez-Romo investigation stands now. As for the Bakersfield City Council, Ward 2 Councilman Andrae Gonzales was re-elected to his third term. Larry Koman will take over for Bruce Freeman in Ward 5. Zack Bashirtash will take over for Patty Gray in Ward 6. Ward 7 Councilmember Manpreet Kaur is the new vice mayor.In neighboring Arvin, a city council seat will be left vacant for two years, due to political drama. Councilmember Juan Murillo submitted a resignation letter -- which he later attempted to rescind -- but it was too late. The Greenfield Union School District will likely host a special election, pending a court order. The county admitted it allowed over 100 people to vote in the wrong area of the school district. Thank you all for tuning into TV-17 and trusting us with your political and election news this past year. Remember, 17 News is your local election headquarters.