California state legislative special elections, 2018

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In 2018, four special elections were called to fill vacant seats in the California State Legislature. Click here to read more about the special elections.

One noteworthy election was the California State Senate seat in District 32, which became vacant following Tony Mendoza's (D) resignation on February 22, 2018, due to sexual misconduct allegations against him. To read more about those allegations and his response, click here.

Mendoza ran unsuccesfully for his old seat, saying that he had support from constituents who believed he had been mistreated.[1]

A recall election for California State Sen. Josh Newman (D-29) was also held on June 5, 2018. Click here for more information on the recall.

Senate special elections called:

Assembly special elections called:

How vacancies are filled in California

See also: How vacancies are filled in state legislatures


If there is a vacancy in the California State Legislature, the governor must call for a special election. The governor must call the election within 14 calendar days of the vacancy. No special election shall be held if the vacancy occurs after the nominating deadline has passed in the final year of the term of office.[2]

DocumentIcon.jpg See sources: California Code, 1773 and California Cons. Art. IV, § 2


About the legislature

The California State Legislature is the state legislature of California. It is a bicameral body consisting of the lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members, and the upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members.

Partisan breakdown

The boxes below show the partisan composition of both chambers directly before and after the most recent general elections prior to 2017. For the most up-to-date numbers on partisan composition in this legislature, see here (Senate) and here (House).

California State Senate
Party As of November 7, 2016 After November 8, 2016
     Democratic Party 26 27
     Republican Party 13 13
     Vacancy 1 0
Total 40 40
California State Assembly
Party As of November 7, 2016 After November 8, 2016
     Democratic Party 52 55
     Republican Party 28 25
Total 80 80

Special elections


Click [show] to the right of the district name for more information:

June 5, 2018

August 7, 2018

Special elections throughout the country

See also: State legislative special elections, 2018

In 2018, 99 state legislative special elections were held in 26 states. Between 2011 and 2017, an average of 74 special elections took place each year.

Breakdown of 2018 special elections

In 2018, special elections for state legislative positions were held for the following reasons:

  • 58 due to appointment, election, or the seeking of election to another position
  • 16 due to a retirement
  • 10 due to a resignation related to criminal charges
  • 7 due to a resignation related to allegations of sexual misconduct
  • 5 due to the death of the incumbent
  • 2 due to a resignation to take a private sector job
  • 1 due to an election being rerun

Impact of special elections on partisan composition

The partisan breakdown for the special elections was as follows:

The table below details how many seats changed parties as the result of a special election in 2018. The number on the left reflects how many vacant seats were originally held by each party, while the number on the right shows how many vacant seats each party won in the special elections. In elections between 2011 and 2016, either the Democratic Party or Republican Party saw an average net gain of three seats across the country. In 2017, Democrats had a net gain of 11 seats.

Note: This table reflects information for elections that were held and not the total number of vacant seats.

Partisan Change from Special Elections (2018)
Party As of Special Election After Special Election
     Democratic Party 42 50
     Republican Party 57 49
     Independent 0 0
Total 99 99


Democrats gained 11 seats in 2017 special elections and eight seats in 2018 special elections. The table below details the results of special elections held in 2017 and 2018 cumulatively.

Partisan Change from Special Elections (2017-2018)
Party As of Special Election After Special Election
     Democratic Party 87 106
     Republican Party 110 91
     Independent 0 0
Total 197 197

Flipped seats

In 2018, 16 seats flipped as a result of state legislative special elections. Twelve seats flipped from Republican control to Democratic control. Four seats flipped from Democratic control to Republican control.

In New York, a Democratic candidate running on the Republican ticket won election to Assembly District 142 on April 24. The previous incumbent in that district was a Democrat. Due to the winning candidate's party affiliation, Assembly District 142 was not added to the list of flipped seats in 2018.

Seats flipped from R to D

Seats flipped from D to R


State overview

Partisan control

This section details the partisan control of federal and state positions in California heading into the 2018 elections.

Congressional delegation

State executives

  • As of May 2018, Democrats held seven of 10 state executive positions and the remaining three positions were officially nonpartisan.
  • The governor of California was Democrat Jerry Brown.

State legislature

  • Democrats controlled both chambers of the California State Legislature. They had a 55-25 majority in the state Assembly and a 27-13 majority in the state Senate.

Trifecta status

  • California was a state government trifecta, meaning that Democrats held the governorship and majorities in the state house and state senate.

2018 elections

See also: California elections, 2018

California held elections for the following positions in 2018:

Demographics

Demographic data for California
 CaliforniaU.S.
Total population:38,993,940316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):155,7793,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:61.8%73.6%
Black/African American:5.9%12.6%
Asian:13.7%5.1%
Native American:0.7%0.8%
Pacific Islander:0.4%0.2%
Two or more:4.5%3%
Hispanic/Latino:38.4%17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:81.8%86.7%
College graduation rate:31.4%29.8%
Income
Median household income:$61,818$53,889
Persons below poverty level:18.2%11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in California.
**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

As of July 2016, California had a population of approximately 39,000,000 people, with its three largest cities being Los Angeles (pop. est. 4.0 million), San Diego (pop. est. 1.4 million), and San Jose (pop. est. 1 million).[27][28]

State election history

This section provides an overview of federal and state elections in California from 2000 to 2016. All data comes from the California Secretary of State.

Historical elections

Presidential elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of the presidential election in California every year from 2000 to 2016.

Election results (President of the United States), California 2000-2016
Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
2016 Democratic Party Hillary Clinton 61.7% Republican Party Donald Trump 31.6% 30.1%
2012 Democratic Party Barack Obama 60.2% Republican Party Mitt Romney 37.1% 23.1%
2008 Democratic Party Barack Obama 61.1% Republican Party John McCain 37% 24.1%
2004 Democratic Party John Kerry 54.4% Republican Party George W. Bush 44.4% 10%
2000 Democratic Party Al Gore 53.5% Republican Party George W. Bush 41.7% 11.8%

U.S. Senate elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of U.S. Senate races in California from 2000 to 2016. Every state has two Senate seats, and each seat goes up for election every six years. The terms of the seats are staggered so that roughly one-third of the seats are up every two years.

Election results (U.S. Senator), California 2000-2016
Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
2016 Democratic Party Kamala Harris 61.6% Democratic Party Loretta Sanchez 38.4% 23.2%
2012 Democratic Party Dianne Feinstein 62.5% Republican Party Elizabeth Emken 37.5% 25%
2010 Democratic Party Barbara Boxer 52.2% Republican Party Carly Fiorina 42.2% 10%
2006 Democratic Party Dianne Feinstein 59.5% Republican Party Richard Mountjoy 35.1% 24.4%
2004 Democratic Party Barbara Boxer 57.8% Republican Party Bill Jones 37.8% 20%
2000 Democratic Party Dianne Feinstein 55.9% Republican Party Tom Campbell 36.6% 19.3%

Gubernatorial elections, 2000-2016

This chart shows the results of the four gubernatorial elections held between 2000 and 2016. Gubernatorial elections are held every four years in California.

Election results (Governor), California 2000-2016
Year First-place candidate First-place candidate votes (%) Second-place candidate Second-place candidate votes (%) Margin of victory (%)
2014 Democratic Party Jerry Brown 60% Republican Party Neel Kashkari 40% 20%
2010 Democratic Party Jerry Brown 53.8% Republican Party Meg Whitman 40.9% 12.9%
2006 Republican Party Arnold Schwarzenegger 55.9% Democratic Party Phil Angelides 39.0% 16.9%
2002 Democratic Party Gray Davis 47.3% Republican Party Bill Simon 42.4% 4.9%

Congressional delegation, 2000-2016

This chart shows the number of Democrats and Republicans who were elected to represent California in the U.S. House from 2000 to 2016. Elections for U.S. House seats are held every two years.

Congressional delegation, California 2000-2016
Year Democrats Democrats (%) Republicans Republicans (%) Balance of power
2016 Democratic Party 39 73.5% Republican Party 14 26.4% D+25
2014 Democratic Party 39 73.5% Republican Party 14 26.4% D+25
2012 Democratic Party 38 71.7% Republican Party 15 28.3% D+23
2010 Democratic Party 34 64.1% Republican Party 19 35.8% D+15
2008 Democratic Party 34 64.1% Republican Party 19 35.8% D+15
2006 Democratic Party 34 64.1% Republican Party 19 35.8% D+15
2004 Democratic Party 33 62.3% Republican Party 20 37.7% D+13
2002 Democratic Party 33 62.3% Republican Party 20 37.7% D+13
2000 Democratic Party 32 61.5% Republican Party 20 38.5% D+12

Trifectas, 1992-2017

A state government trifecta occurs when one party controls both chambers of the state legislature and the governor's office.

California Party Control: 1992-2025
Twenty years with Democratic trifectas  •  No Republican trifectas
Scroll left and right on the table below to view more years.

Year 92 93 94 95 96 97 98 99 00 01 02 03 04 05 06 07 08 09 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25
Governor R R R R R R R D D D D D R R R R R R R D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
Senate D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D
Assembly D D D S R D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D D


See also

Footnotes

  1. ↑ Los Angeles Daily News, "Why Tony Mendoza thinks he can win back the seat he just left under a sexual-harassment cloud​," February 23, 2018
  2. ↑ California Legislative Information, "California Code," accessed February 9, 2021 (Statute, 1773-California Government Code)
  3. ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Calendar of Events: Assembly District 39 Special Primary Election," accessed February 9, 2018
  4. ↑ California Secretary of State, "State Assembly District 39 - Districtwide Results," accessed April 4, 2018
  5. ↑ California Secretary of State, "State Assembly District 39 - Districtwide Results," accessed June 6, 2018
  6. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Qualifications and Requirements - 39th District Special Election," accessed December 19, 2017
  7. ↑ Los Angeles Times, "California Assemblyman Raul Bocanegra speeds up his resignation to 'immediately' following harassment allegations," November 27, 2017
  8. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official Certified List of Candidates: State Assembly Member District 39," accessed March 29, 2018
  9. ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Calendar of Events: Assembly Districts 45 and 54 Special Primary Elections," accessed February 9, 2018
  10. ↑ California Secretary of State, "State Assembly District 45 - Districtwide Results," accessed April 4, 2018
  11. ↑ California Secretary of State, "State Assembly District 45 - Districtwide Results," accessed June 6, 2018
  12. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Special Election Calendar: Special Primary Election April 3, 2018 California State Assembly, 45th District (Matthew Dababneh)," accessed January 11, 2018
  13. ↑ SFGate, "California Assemblyman Matt Dababneh resigns, accused of sexual misconduct," December 8, 2017
  14. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official Certified List of Candidates: State Assembly Member District 45," accessed March 29, 2018
  15. ↑ Daily Breeze, "Former LA councilman Dennis Zine’s campaign for Assembly is over after 2 weeks," February 12, 2018
  16. ↑ Los Angeles County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk, "Calendar of Events: Assembly Districts 45 and 54 Special Primary Elections," accessed February 9, 2018
  17. ↑ California Secretary of State, "State Assembly District 54 - Districtwide Results," accessed April 4, 2018
  18. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Special Election Calendar: Special Primary Election April 3, 2018 California State Assembly, 54th District (Sebastian Ridley-Thomas)," accessed January 11, 2018
  19. ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Assemblyman Sebastian Ridley-Thomas is resigning," December 27, 2017
  20. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official Certified List of Candidates: State Assembly Member District 54," accessed March 29, 2018
  21. ↑ CBS Sacramento, "Special Election Set To Replace California State Sen. Tony Mendoza," March 8, 2018
  22. ↑ California Secretary of State, "State Senate District 32 - Districtwide Results," accessed June 6, 2018
  23. ↑ California Secretary of State, "State Senate District 32 - Districtwide Results," accessed August 8, 2018
  24. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Special Election Calendar: Special Primary Election June 5, 2018, California State Senate, 32nd District (Tony Mendoza)," accessed March 9, 2018
  25. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Special Primary Election - June 5, 2018: Official Certified List of Candidates," April 18, 2018
  26. ↑ The general election was cancelled after Wayne McMahen (R) was the only candidate to file for election.
  27. ↑ California Demographics, "California Cities by Population," accessed April 2, 2018
  28. ↑ U.S. Census Bureau, "Quickfacts California," accessed April 2, 2018
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