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Ben Allen

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Ben Allen
Democratic Party
Candidate, California Commissioner of Insurance
California State Senate District 24
Tenure
2022 - Present
Term ends
2026
Years in position
3
Predecessor: Maria Elena Durazo (D)
Prior offices:
California State Senate District 26
Years in office: 2014 - 2022
Successor: Maria Elena Durazo (D)
Compensation
Base salary
$132,703/year
Per diem
$236/day
Elections and appointments
Last election
November 8, 2022
Next election
June 2, 2026
Education
High school
Santa Monica High School, 1996
Bachelor's
Harvard University, 2000
Law
University of California, Berkeley School of Law, 2008
Graduate
University of Cambridge, 2001
Personal
Birthplace
Santa Monica, CA
Profession
Attorney
Contact
Official website
Official X
Official Instagram
Campaign website
Campaign Facebook
Campaign Instagram
Personal Facebook
Personal Instagram
Personal LinkedIn

Ben Allen (Democratic Party) is a member of the California State Senate, representing District 24. He assumed office on December 5, 2022. His current term ends on December 7, 2026.

Allen (Democratic Party) is running for election for California Commissioner of Insurance. He declared candidacy for the primary scheduled on June 2, 2026.[source]

Biography

Ben Allen was born in and lives in Santa Monica, California. Allen graduated from Santa Monica High School in 1996. He earned a B.A., magna cum laude, in history from Harvard University in 2000, an M.Phil. in Latin American studies from the University of Cambridge in 2001, and a J.D. from the University of California, Berkeley, School of Law, in 2008. His career experience includes working as an attorney. Allen served as president of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District board of education.[1][2]

2026 battleground election

See also: California Insurance Commissioner election, 2026 (June 2 top-two primary)

Ballotpedia identified the June 2 primary as a battleground race. The summary below is from our coverage of this election here

Eight candidates are running in the top-two primary for insurance commissioner of California on June 2, 2026. Five have led in media attention: Ben Allen (D), Steven Bradford (D), Jane Kim (D), Stacy Korsgaden (R), and Patrick Wolff (D). Incumbent Ricardo Lara (D) is term-limited and is retiring from public office.

The Sacramento Bee's Stephen Hobbs wrote, "The race for California governor is going to get most of the attention. But the campaign to become the state’s next insurance commissioner might be almost as consequential."[3]

Wildfires across the state have affected insurance policies in recent years. CalMatters' Levi Sumagaysay wrote that wildfires "were a factor in insurance companies canceling homeowner policies or refusing to write new ones ... Many survivors of last year’s Los Angeles County fires are struggling to rebuild; they have sued insurance companies ... Many homeowners are continuing to turn to the last-resort FAIR Plan, which has seen a 146% increase in the number of policies since 2022."[4] Additionally, some insurers have been accused by lawmakers of intentionally denying or delaying action on claims.[5]

Allen has served as a state Senator since 2014. He says as commissioner, he would "demand transparency in rate filings, push back on increases that aren’t supported by the facts, and ensure insurers properly account for risk-reduction efforts."[6] Allen says he wants to implement more fire mitigation measures and will "push for neighborhood-scale fire prevention and risk reduction programs that lower losses across entire communities and make it possible for insurers to responsibly write policies again."[7] Sen. Adam Schiff (D-Calif.) has endorsed Allen.[8]

Bradford served in the state Senate from 2016 to 2024. He says that as commissioner, he would improve efficiency by "reviewing rate filings by increasing the rate review team, eliminating non-productive administrative hurdles ... and concentrating on eliminating the uncertainty and friction [in the current process.]"[9] Bradford also says he wants to offer residents premium reductions to make their homes more resilient to disasters. His website says, "I’ll make sure that when families take action to reduce their risk ... they get real, guaranteed premium discounts."[10] Former Senate President Pro Tempore Toni Atkins (D) has endorsed Bradford.[11]

Kim is a former San Francisco supervisor. She says she supports a state-run insurance plan called Disaster Insurance for All. Kim's website says the plan "would address climate disaster instead of avoiding it. The private insurance business model is to avoid losses, not to reduce risk ... A public insurer would invest in prevention and resiliency, and the public would benefit with fewer claims to pay out."[12] Kim supports capping insurance executive pay, and says, "We can do a far better job reining in profiteering and price gouging, and it is essential to restoring trust and affordability."[13] Kim is also affiliated with the Working Families Party, and Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.) has endorsed her.[14][15]

Korsgaden is an insurance agent. Her website says she wants to bring new insurers into the state to lower premiums and says she supports "innovation and encouraging capital investments so insurers can offer a variety of products."[16] Korsgaden also says the current number of regulations insurance companies face should be reduced: "As insurers are once again able to grow and write policies in California, coverage will shift back where it belongs, into the private market, restoring balance and choice for our community."[17] State Senate minority leader Brian Jones (R) has endorsed Korsgaden.[18]

Wolff is a financial analyst. In his response to Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey, Wolff said he wanted to increase transparency and would create a system "that grade[s] insurance companies on how they handle claims ... and he will require those grades to be shown to consumers before they buy a policy."[19] Wolff also said he wanted to create incentives for insurers to stay in high risk areas, which he said "means allowing them to use to predict risk using models that take climate change into account as a reality ... it means allowing them to factor in the cost of reinsurance ... and it means streamlining the rate filing review process so that insurance companies can get all normal rate filings [reviewed quicker]"[20] Ballotpedia was not able to identify any endorsements for Wolff.

Merritt Farren (R), Robert Howell (R) and Eduardo Vargas (Peace and Freedom Party) are also running.

A Democrat has held the position since 2011. Since the position became elected in 1990, all but one election have had a Democrat and a Republican candidate competing in the November general election.

Committee assignments

2025-2026

Allen was assigned to the following committees:

2023-2024

Allen was assigned to the following committees:

2021-2022

Allen was assigned to the following committees:

2019-2020

Allen was assigned to the following committees:

2017 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2017 legislative session, this legislator served on the following committees:

California committee assignments, 2017
• Education, Chair
• Elections and Constitutional Amendments
• Natural Resources and Water
• Transportation and Housing
• Arts, Chair

2015 legislative session

At the beginning of the 2015 legislative session, Allen served on the following committees:

The following table lists bills this person sponsored as a legislator, according to BillTrack50 and sorted by action history. Bills are sorted by the date of their last action. The following list may not be comprehensive. To see all bills this legislator sponsored, click on the legislator's name in the title of the table.


Elections

2026

See also: California Insurance Commissioner election, 2026

General election

The primary will occur on June 2, 2026. The general election will occur on November 3, 2026. General election candidates will be added here following the primary.

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for California Commissioner of Insurance

The following candidates are running in the primary for California Commissioner of Insurance on June 2, 2026.

Candidate
Image of Ben Allen
Ben Allen (D)
Image of Steven Bradford
Steven Bradford (D)
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Merritt Farren (R)
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Robert Howell (R)
Image of Jane Kim
Jane Kim (D)
Image of Stacy Korsgaden
Stacy Korsgaden (R)
Image of Eduardo Vargas
Eduardo Vargas (Peace and Freedom Party) Candidate Connection
Image of Patrick Wolff
Patrick Wolff (D) Candidate Connection

There are no incumbents in this race.

Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Endorsements

Allen received the following endorsements. To send us additional endorsements, click here.

2022

See also: California State Senate elections, 2022

General election

General election for California State Senate District 24

Incumbent Ben Allen defeated Kristina Irwin in the general election for California State Senate District 24 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Ben Allen
Ben Allen (D)
 
67.1
 
248,642
Image of Kristina Irwin
Kristina Irwin (R) Candidate Connection
 
32.9
 
121,809

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 370,451
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for California State Senate District 24

Incumbent Ben Allen and Kristina Irwin defeated Edwin Duterte in the primary for California State Senate District 24 on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Ben Allen
Ben Allen (D)
 
96.2
 
165,421
✔
Image of Kristina Irwin
Kristina Irwin (R) (Write-in) Candidate Connection
 
3.6
 
6,260
Image of Edwin Duterte
Edwin Duterte (R) (Write-in)
 
0.1
 
213

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 171,894
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Campaign finance

2018

See also: California State Senate elections, 2018

General election

General election for California State Senate District 26

Incumbent Ben Allen defeated Baron Bruno in the general election for California State Senate District 26 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Ben Allen
Ben Allen (D)
 
77.2
 
298,609
Image of Baron Bruno
Baron Bruno (Independent) Candidate Connection
 
22.8
 
87,974

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 386,583
(100.00% precincts reporting)
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for California State Senate District 26

Incumbent Ben Allen and Baron Bruno defeated Mark Matthew Herd in the primary for California State Senate District 26 on June 5, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Ben Allen
Ben Allen (D)
 
76.8
 
144,283
✔
Image of Baron Bruno
Baron Bruno (Independent) Candidate Connection
 
12.3
 
23,119
Image of Mark Matthew Herd
Mark Matthew Herd (L)
 
10.9
 
20,534

Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified.

Total votes: 187,936
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.

Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

2014

See also: California State Senate elections, 2014

Elections for the California State Senate took place in 2014. A primary election took place on June 3, 2014. The general election was held on November 4, 2014. The signature filing deadline for candidates wishing to run in this election was March 7, 2014. Ben Allen (D) and Sandra Fluke (D) defeated Barbi S. Appelquist (D), Betsy Butler (D), Amy Howorth (D), Vito Imbasciani (D), Patric M. Verrone (D) and Seth Stodder (I) in the blanket primary. Allen defeated Fluke in the general election.[21][22][23]

California State Senate, District 26, General Election, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngBen Allen 60.3% 122,901
     Democratic Sandra Fluke 39.7% 80,781
Total Votes 203,682
California State Senate, District 26 Blanket Primary, 2014
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngBen Allen 22.2% 25,987
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngSandra Fluke 19.4% 22,759
     Independent Seth Stodder 17.4% 20,419
     Democratic Betsy Butler 16.5% 19,301
     Democratic Amy Howorth 15.7% 18,411
     Democratic Vito Imbasciani 4.4% 5,189
     Democratic Patric M. Verrone 2.9% 3,446
     Democratic Barbi S. Appelquist 1.4% 1,630
Total Votes 117,142

Campaign themes

2026

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Candidate Connection

Ben Allen has not yet completed Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey. Send a message to Ben Allen asking him to fill out the survey. If you are Ben Allen, click here to fill out Ballotpedia's 2026 Candidate Connection survey.

Who fills out Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey?

Any candidate running for elected office, at any level, can complete Ballotpedia's Candidate Survey. Completing the survey will update the candidate's Ballotpedia profile, letting voters know who they are and what they stand for.  More than 26,000 candidates have taken Ballotpedia's candidate survey since we launched it in 2015. Learn more about the survey here.

You can ask Ben Allen to fill out this survey by using the button below or emailing benjaminallen@gmail.com.

Email

2022

Ben Allen did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2014

Allen's website highlighted the following campaign themes:[24]

  • Excerpt: "As a State Senator, Ben will focus on:
  • Creating jobs and opportunities for all residents;
  • Developing a long-term plan to get the state budget in line;
  • Challenging the culture of corruption in Sacramento and protecting taxpayers;
  • Fixing our troubled schools;
  • Making higher education more affordable; and
  • Most importantly, making sure that all of our communities, every zip code, every ethnic group, women and men are represented in our State Capitol."

Endorsements

2014

In 2014, Allen's endorsements included the following:[25]

  • José Serrano, Member of Congress
  • Fran Pavley, State Senator
  • Zev Yaroslavsky, Los Angeles County Supervisor
  • Tom Hayden
, State Senator (former)
  • Alan Sieroty, State Senator (former)
  • Richard Katz
, Assemblymember (former)
  • Terry B. Friedman
, Los Angeles County Superior Court Judge (retired); Assemblymember (former)
  • Ed Edelman, 
LA City Councilmember (former); LA County Supervisor (former)
  • Pam O'Connor
, Mayor, Santa Monica
  • John Heilman, 
Mayor Pro Tempore, West Hollywood
  • Gleam Davis
, Member, Santa Monica City Council
  • Ted Winterer
, Member, Santa Monica City Council
  • Kevin McKeown
, Member, Santa Monica Council
  • Skylar Peak
, Member, Malibu City Council
  • Richard Riordan, Mayor, Los Angeles (former)
  • Denny Zane, 
Mayor, Santa Monica (former)
  • Mike Feinstein
, Mayor, Santa Monica (former)
  • Nathaniel Trives, 
Mayor, City of Santa Monica (former); President, Rotary Club of Santa Monica
  • Steve Webb
, Mayor, Beverly Hills (former)
  • Todd Flora
, Chair, Santa Monica Rent Control Board

Campaign finance summary

Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.

Ben Allen campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2022California State Senate District 24Won general$1,053,273 $908,408
2018California State Senate District 26Won general$1,848,495 N/A**
2014California State Senate, District 26Won $1,318,884 N/A**
Grand total$4,220,651 $908,408
Sources: OpenSecrets,  Federal Election Commission ***This product uses the openFEC API but is not endorsed or certified by the Federal Election Commission (FEC).
** Data on expenditures is not available for this election cycle
Note: Totals above reflect only available data.

Scorecards

See also: State legislative scorecards, State legislative scorecards in California

A scorecard evaluates a legislator’s voting record. Its purpose is to inform voters about the legislator’s political positions. Because scorecards have varying purposes and methodologies, each report should be considered on its own merits. For example, an advocacy group’s scorecard may assess a legislator’s voting record on one issue while a state newspaper’s scorecard may evaluate the voting record in its entirety.

Ballotpedia is in the process of developing an encyclopedic list of published scorecards. Some states have a limited number of available scorecards or scorecards produced only by select groups. It is Ballotpedia’s goal to incorporate all available scorecards regardless of ideology or number.

Click here for an overview of legislative scorecards in all 50 states. To contribute to the list of scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2025.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2024.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2023.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2022.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2021.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2020.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2019.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2018.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2017.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2016.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2015.

See also

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External links

Candidate

California Commissioner of Insurance
  • Website
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    Officeholder

    California State Senate District 24
  • Website
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    		•

    Personal

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    Footnotes

    1. ↑ LinkedIn, "Ben Allen," accessed January 15, 2023
    2. ↑ Ben Allen, "Biography," accessed January 15, 2023
    3. ↑ The Sacramento Bee, "Who’s running for California insurance commissioner in 2026?" February 1, 2026
    4. ↑ CalMatters, "California’s next insurance commissioner will have ‘brutal’ balancing act," March 5, 2026
    5. ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Lawmakers demand insurers explain tough requirements for payouts to wildfire victims," February 3, 2026
    6. ↑ Capitol Weekly, "Meet the insurance commissioner candidates: Sen Ben Allen," February 18, 2026
    7. ↑ CalMatters, "Candidate comment: After disasters, California should ensure people recover, not be forced out," January 8, 2026
    8. ↑ Ben Allen 2026 campaign website, "Endorsements," accessed March 11, 2026
    9. ↑ Capitol Weekly, "Meet the insurance commissioner candidates: Steven Bradford," February 22, 2026
    10. ↑ Steven Bradford 2026 campaign website, "Vision," accessed March 11, 2026
    11. ↑ Steven Bradford 2026 campaign website, "Endorsements," accessed March 11, 2026
    12. ↑ Jane Kim 2026 campaign website, "Jane Kim believes in Lower Costs," accessed March 11, 2026
    13. ↑ CalMatters, "Candidate comment: Insurers’ blockbuster profits enrich shareholders and CEOs, not customers," February 12, 2026
    14. ↑ Working Families Party, "WFP Endorses Jane Kim for California Insurance Commissioner," January21, 2026
    15. ↑ Jane Kim 2026 campaign website, "Endorsements," accessed March 11, 2026
    16. ↑ Stacy Korsgaden 2026 campaign website, "A PLAN FOR CALIFORNIA ," accessed March 11, 2026
    17. ↑ CalMatters, "Candidate comment: California’s insurance crisis is pervasive but fixable," January 9, 2026
    18. ↑ Stacy Korsgaden 2026 campaign website, "Endorse Stacy for Insurance Commissioner," accessed March 11, 2026
    19. ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on December 10, 2025
    20. ↑ Capitol Weekly, "Meet the insurance commissioner candidates: Patrick Wolff," March 10, 2026
    21. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official 2014 Primary election candidate list," accessed March 27, 2014
    22. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official primary election results," accessed July 15, 2014
    23. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official general election results," accessed December 14, 2014
    24. ↑ benallenforsenate.com "Priorities," accessed May 2, 2014
    25. ↑ benallenforsenate.com "Endorsements," accessed May 2, 2014

    Political offices
    Preceded by
    Maria Elena Durazo (D)     		California State Senate District 24
    2022-Present    		 Succeeded by
    -
    Preceded by
    -     		California State Senate District 26
    2014-2022    		 Succeeded by
    Maria Elena Durazo (D)


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