Mixed Bag for Asian American Legislative Candidates

A number of Asian American candidates ran for the State Legislature in the Nov. 8 election, with varying results. Following is a summary:

Senate District 3 — Former Assemblymember Mariko Yamada (D-Davis) lost to Assemblymember Bill Dodd (D-Napa), 116,901 (40.7 percent) to 170,083 (59.3 percent). The seat is currently held by termed-out Sen. Lois Wolk (D-Davis).

Senate District 5 — Lodi City Councilmember Alan Nakanishi (R), a former member of the Assembly, lost to Sen. Cathleen Galgiani (D), 95,477 (44.5 percent) to 119,002 (55.5 percent).

Senate District 11 — San Francisco Supervisor Jane Kim (D) lost to San Francisco Supervisor Scott Wiener (D), 162,379 (47.9 percent) to 176,602 (52.1 percent). Kim would have been the first Korean American woman in the Senate.

Assemblymember Ling Ling Chang

Senate District 29 — Assemblymember Ling Ling Chang (R-Diamond Bar) was leading Democrat Josh Newman, 134,240 (50.7 percent) to 130,556 (49.3 percent). First elected to the Assembly in 2014, Chang gave up her seat to run for Senate. She previously served on the Diamond Bar City Council.

Senate District 35 — Former Assemblymember Warren Furutani (D-Gardena) lost to former Assemblymember Steven Bradford (D-Gardena), 83,611 (45.7 percent) to 99,226 (54.3 percent). Furutani served in the Assembly from 2008 to 2012.

Assembly District 17 — Assemblymember David Chiu (D-San Francisco) defeated Republican Mathew Del Cario, 143,215 (86.5 percent) to 22,440 (13.5 percent). Chiu was first elected in 2014 and previously served on the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.

Assembly District 18 — Assemblymember Rob Bonta (D-Oakland) defeated Republican Roseann Sionsky-Breault, 147,344 (87.1 percent) to 21,803 (12.9 percent). Bonta, the current chair of the API Legislative Caucus and the first Filipino American member of the Legislature, was first elected in 2012 and previously served on the Alameda City Council.

Assembly District 19 — Assemblymember Phil Ting (D-San Francisco) defeated Republican Carlos “Chuck” Taylor, 124,768 (80.2 percent) to 30,791 (19.8 percent). Ting was first elected in 2012 and previously served as San Francisco assessor-recorder.

On Election Eve, Bay Area elected officials gathered in support of Measure RR, which would upgrade BART (Bay Area Rapid Transit). Front row, from left: Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, former mayor of San Francisco and candidate for governor in 2018; Rep. Barbara Lee (D-Oakland); Assemblymembers Phil Ting and David Chiu (D-San Francisco); San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee; Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf; and State Sen. Mark Leno. Ting, Chiu and Rep. Lee were easily re-elected on Nov. 8; voters approved Measure RR.

Assembly District 20 — Republican Luis Wong lost to Assemblymember Bill Quirk (D-Hayward), 37,512 (25.8 percent) to 107,821 (74.2 percent). Wong, a loan officer and insurance consultant, was born in Nicaragua to a Chinese father and a Nicaraguan mother.

Assemblymember-elect Ash Kalra

Assembly District 25 — Assemblymember Kansen Chu (D-San Jose) defeated Republican Bob Brunton, 101,469 (72.8 percent) to 37,865 (27.2 percent). Chu was first elected in 2014 and previously served on the San Jose City Council.

Assembly District 27 — In a contest between two Asian American Democrats, San Jose City Councilmember Ash Kalra defeated former San Jose City Councilmember Madison Nguyen, 66,122 (53.2 percent) to 58,161 (46.8 percent). Kalra, the first Indian American elected to the Legislature, will succeed Assemblymember Nora Campos (D-San Jose), who is termed out.

Assembly District 28 — Assemblymember Evan Low (D-Campbell) defeated Republican Nicholas Sclavos, 128,990 (70.0 percent) to 55,291 (30.0 percent). Low was first elected in 2014 — at 31, the youngest Asian American legislator ever elected to the Assembly — and previously served on the Campbell City Council.

Assemblymember-elect Vince Fong

Assembly District 34 — Republican Vince Fong defeated Democrat Perrin Swanlund, 114,811 (73.8 percent) to 40,798 (26.2 percent). Fong, who has served as district director for Rep. Bill Thomas (R-Bakersfield) and House Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy (R-Bakersfield), will succeed termed-out Assemblymember Shannon Grove (R-Bakersfield).

Assembly District 49 — Assemblymember Ed Chau (D-Monterey Park) defeated Republican Peter Amundson, 59,245 (68.7 percent) to 27,026 (31.3 percent). Chau was first elected in 2012 and previously served on the board of the Montebello Unified School District.

Assemblymember-elect Phillip Chen

Assembly District 55 — Republican Phillip Chen defeated Democrat Gregg Fritchle, 83,748 (58.6 percent) to 59,181 (41.4 percent). Chen, a small business owner and educator, has served as a trustee of the Walnut Valley Unified School District and a reserve deputy for the Walnut/Diamond Bar Sheriff’s Station. The seat is currently held by Ling Ling Chang.

Assembly District 65 — Assemblymember Young Kim (R-Fullerton) was behind Democrat Sharon Quirk-Silva, 59,709 (48.3 percent) to 64,020 (51.7 percent). Quirk-Silva, who represented the 65th from 2012 to 2014, has declared victory. Formerly an aide to Rep. Ed Royce (R-Fullerton), Kim was first elected in 2014 and is the first Korean American Republican woman in the Legislature.

Assemblymember-elect Steven Choi

Assembly District 66 — Former Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi (D-Torrance) defeated Assemblymember David Hadley (R-Manhattan Beach), 75,649 (53.1 percent) to 66,741 (46.9 percent) in a rematch of the 2014 election. Muratsuchi was first elected in 2012.

Assembly District 68 — Republican Steven Choi, the mayor of Irvine, defeated Democrat Sean Jay Panahi, 100,255 (61.1 percent) to 63,861 (38.9 percent). Choi will succeed termed-out Assemblymember Don Wagner (R-Irvine).