California Lawmaker Now Available

Now available on Amazon.com is California Lawmaker by Alex Vassar, editor of the One Voter Project. Alex has spent years studying the California’s Legislature and is quoted regularly by journalists around the state.

California’s Legislature and the people who have served in it have an amazingly rich history. Some have held positions of national importance like Secretary of Defense Caspar Weinberger or US Supreme Court Justices Joseph McKenna and Stephen J. Field (all of whom served in the Assembly).

Henry G. Worthington, an Assemblyman elected in 1862, would later serve as a pallbearer at the funeral of Abraham Lincoln. Not all these stories end well. California legislators have also been fatally wounded in a bar brawl or died in a drunken canoeing accident.

Current through the start of the 92nd Session (2017-18), this is the story of the 4,424 men and women who have served in the California Legislature. In addition to the current session, this book explores the history of the legislature since 1849.

 

About the Author

Arriving at the State Capitol as a Senate Fellow in 2007, Alex Vassar has more than a decade of experience in California public policy. Alex has worked in both houses of the California Legislature, as a Senior Policy Advisor for a member of the San Jose City Council and an appointee at the State Board of Equalization. His love of California political history led him to create the One Voter Project [onevoter.org], an effort to examine trends and explore the remarkable history behind the golden state that we know today. Through his research, Alex has become a trusted reference on legislative history and you can find his quotes in the pages of the Los Angeles Times and Sacramento Bee. Alex can occasionally be found at the Capitol during his lunch breaks, catching up on the latest news or leading tours for school groups.

Rod Wright Resignation Letter

Senator Wright

The Senate Journal from September 17th contained Senator Rod Wright‘s resignation letter (which went into effect on September 22nd).

September 15, 2014
Dear Mr. Schmidt:
Effective September 22, 2014, I hereby resign from the California State Senate.
Sincerely,
RODERICK D. WRIGHT

Some thoughts about Wright’s letter;

  • Wright was the first since Senator John J. Benoit in 2009 to not mention his district number in his letter.
  • Wright’s letter was the shortest in recent history at 12 words, even shorter than Assemblyman Mike Duvall‘s 18-word resignation, and Pat Nolan‘s 13 words in 1994.
  • Wright’s letter was addressed to Secretary of the Senate Greg Schmidt, rather than the President Pro Tem (as nine of the last ten Senate resignations have done) or the Lieutenant Governor (as Mark Ridley-Thomas did).

 

The Hollingsworth Succession Bill

Dennis Hollingsworth

Dennis Hollingsworth

Monday marks the fifth anniversary of the chaptering of SB 1530 (Hollingsworth), which added the offices of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, the Insurance Commissioner, and the Chair of the Board of Equalization to the Governor’s line of succession. Through the hard work of three Senate Fellows and an Executive Fellow, this bill added three constitutional officers into line just ahead of the Disaster Acting Governors, of whom only Earl Smittcamp remains. While it

In recognition of this anniversary, we would like to provide you with the full current line of succession to the Governor:

GovernorJerry Brown
Lt. GovernorGavin Newsom
Senate President pro TemporeDarrell Steinberg
Speaker of the AssemblyJohn A. Perez
Secretary of StateDebra Bowen
Attorney GeneralKamala Harris
TreasurerBill Lockyer
ControllerJohn Chiang
Superintendent of Public InstructionTom Torlakson
Insurance CommissionerDave Jones
Chair, Board of EqualizationJerome Horton
Disaster Acting Governor #1 – VACANT (last officeholder died 1999)
Disaster Acting Governor #2 – VACANT (last officeholder died 1970s)
Disaster Acting Governor #3 – VACANT (last officeholder died 1990s)
Disaster Acting Governor #4 – VACANT (last officeholder died 2011)
Disaster Acting Governor #5 – VACANT (last officeholder died 1990s)
Disaster Acting Governor #6Earl S. Smittcamp
Disaster Acting Governor #7 – VACANT (last officeholder died 1970s)

Additionally, the two other people whose offices could potentially allow them into the line of succession are;

Assembly Speaker Pro TemNora Campos (as the successor to the Speaker) and
Vice Chair of the Board of EqualizationMichelle Steel (as the successor to Chairman Horton)