The road ahead is steep. Communities in our district confront immense threats from wildfires, flooding, water cutbacks, and other consequences of climate change. We face ever-spiraling hikes in the cost of living, and failures in home insurance markets and our electrical grid. And on the same day I was elected, American voters narrowly chose a presidential candidate other than the one who received the votes of an overwhelming majority of our Senate district, and he has made repeated, unprecedented threats against California regarding disaster relief, reproductive freedom, water supply and environmental protection, immigrants, education, and the viability of the wine and farm sectors that are the backbone of our economic prosperity.
That’s why I’m not wasting any time waiting to be sworn into office on December 2. My team will be ready to serve constituents in the district offices and advance legislative priorities in the Capitol office on day one. We’re drafting bills to promote local economic development, build more housing that is affordable, strengthen career pathways and educational opportunities, protect the Delta and local water supplies, advance smart wildfire policies, stop extremists from blocking reproductive health clinics, and reengineer state and local government procedures so we can actually get things done again. I’m working with officials in other states to build coalitions and collaborating with California leaders at every level to parry the threats from the federal government that we know are coming.
Speaking of December 2, you’re invited! The Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court will administer the Oath of Office on the floor of the Senate scheduled for noon on December 2. The Senate floor and gallery isn’t big enough to accommodate more than a couple of guests, so we’re having a special celebration across the street.
