Tony Strickland

Tony Strickland
Current candidacy
Running for U.S. House, California, District 26
General election	November 4, 2014
Current office
California State Senate District 19
In office
2008-2012
Party	Republican
Elections and appointments
Last election	November 6, 2012
Term limits	2 terms (8 years)
Prior offices
California State Assembly, District 37
1998-2004
Education
Bachelor's	Whittier College
Personal
Birthday	February 17, 1970
Place of birth	Fort Ord, CA
Profession	Vice President, Green Wave Energy Solutions LLC
Religion	Christian
Websites
Office website
Personal website

Tony Strickland (b. 1970) is a former Republican member of the California State Senate, representing District 19 from 2008 to 2012.

In 2012, Strickland ran for U.S. House representing the 26th congressional district of California, losing to Democrat Julia Brownley in the general election. He is seeking a re-match against Brownley in 2014. The general election will take place on November 4, 2014.

Prior to joining the state senate, Strickland served in the California State Assembly (District 37) from 1998-2004. He ran for the statewide position of California State Controller in 2006.

Strickland has a B.A. in Political Science from Whittier College. He is the vice-president of Green Wave Energy Solutions, LLC.

Issues

Legislative scorecard

Capitol Weekly

Capitol Weekly, California's major weekly periodical covering the state legislature, publishes an annual legislative scorecard to pin down the political or ideological leanings of every member of the legislature based on how they voted on an assortment of bills in the most recent legislative session. The 2009 scores were based on votes on 19 bills, but did not include how legislators voted on the Proposition 1A (2009). On the scorecard, "100" is a perfect liberal score and "0" is a perfect conservative score. ,

On the 2009 Capitol Weekly legislative scorecard, Strickland ranked as a 20.

Political positions

Taxes

Sen. Strickland blasted Democrats in June 2011 for not committing the recently discovered $6.6 billion additional state tax revenues to public safety and education. Public safety and education groups are the two in the state claiming to be hit the hardest with cuts. Strickland said it does not appear the money was spent wisely.

“Democrats would like to claim that this budget is about public safety and education,” Strickland said. “Let’s be clear: You can make no mistake that this budget is not about protecting public safety or education. If you extend these taxes, it’s going to mean more people out of work at a time when people can least afford it. If you vote for this, it will actually be a full year of tax increases even if people in September vote it down.”

In 2011, Republicans blocked the passage of a tax bill requiring a two-thirds vote (AB X1 18).

Immediately following the failed tax vote, Sen. President Pro Tem Darrell Steinberg brought up a bill (SB 1X 23) that housed his local taxation bill (SB 653) and would allow local governments to bring local tax opportunities to a vote.

“I believe that it is another club to use over Republicans and our constituencies, saying, if you don’t do this bridge tax, if you don’t raise the taxes of people that have already said no, then we are going to have all these different taxes,” said Republican Sen. Bob Huff.

However Steinberg and other Democrats said they planned to allow local governments to fund their own public programs, especially if Republicans and voters rejected the tax extensions in 2011. Senate Bill 653 was a bargaining tool to get Republicans to go along with Jerry Brown’s tax extensions.

Under SB 653, local governments could pass local taxes increases on not just goods and services, but also on income taxes. In the course of the 2011 session, Democrats said they would create a local car tax, additional business taxes, property taxes and many different excise taxes on cigarettes, liquor, soda and even locally sold medical marijuana.

Redistricting

See also: Redistricting in California and California Proposition 40, Referendum on the State Senate Redistricting Plan (2012)

In August 2011, the California Citizens Redistricting Commission completed the new Congressional and state legislative maps for the 2012-2020 elections. A referendum began in August 2011 to repeal the Senate map. Supporters have until November 13, 2011 to collect the 504,760 signatures that are required to qualify the measure for the ballot. Among the drive supporters are former Governor Pete Wilson and State Senate Minority Leader Bob Dutton. Four other GOP senators immediately contributed more than $5,000 to the referendum group FAIR:

• Tony Strickland: $25,000
• Mimi Walters: $25,000
• Joel Anderson: $10,000
• Doug La Malfa: $5,000

Campaign themes

2012

Strickland's campaign website listed the following issues:

• Keeping Ventura County First

Excerpt: "Too many Ventura County families are struggling to make ends meet. Our local recovery and return to sound policies are necessary in order to get our neighbors working and our County thriving economically again. Creating new jobs and keeping jobs already in Ventura County, here, must be the focus of our government and our elected officials."

• Creating American Jobs

Excerpt: "Ventura County needs independent leaders who will work to unite our community around economic policies that provide hope and prosperity for families struggling to make ends meet. Over the past three and a half years, our government has failed in its core duty: promoting an economy where lasting, well-paying jobs can be created in America."

• Protecting Medicare and Social Security

Excerpt: "Social Security and Medicare are a sacred trust with our country’s seniors who have worked and paid into the system their entire lives. I will steadfastly oppose any effort to reduce Social Security or Medicare benefits for America’s retirees or those nearing retirement. I will also oppose any plan that changes the system in any way for those who count on Social Security or Medicare."

• Making America Energy Independent

Excerpt: "Energy independence isn’t an option, it’s a necessity. America must lead the world in both energy production and renewable energy development. It’s time to transition our economy from traditional fossil fuels and into a renewable energy independent economy that will provide high paying jobs and improve our environment."

• Keeping America Strong

Excerpt: "Keeping America safe at home is the most important duty for our leaders in government. The enduring flame of liberty was lit on our shores in 1776, and has been transcendent for over two centuries because of the resolve of the American people and the hard work of our men and women in uniform. The United States remains a leader in the world, and a strong national defense will allow America to remain a global force for good. "

Committee assignments

2011-2012

In the 2011-2012 legislative session, Strickland served on these committees:

• Business, Professions and Economic Development
• Energy, Utilities and Communications
• Environmental Quality Committee, California State Senate, Vice Chair
• Governmental Organization Committee, California Senate
• Health Committee, California Senate, Vice Chair
• Human Services Committee, California Senate

2009-2010

In the 2009-2010 legislative session, Strickland served on these committees:

• Health
• Budget and Fiscal Review
• Energy, Utilities and Communications
• Elections, Reapportionment and Constitutional Amendments

Elections

2014

See also: California's 26th congressional district elections, 2014 and United States House of Representatives elections in California, 2014

Strickland has filed his campaign paperwork with the Federal Election Commission to begin raising money for his 2014 campaign for U.S. House representing the 26th congressional district seat of California. After losing his bid for the 26th district seat to Democrat Julia Brownley in the general election, Strickland will once again run as a Republican in the 2014 primary election, the date of which has yet to be scheduled. The general election will be held on November 4, 2014.

Race background

Incumbent Julia Brownley (D) is a member of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Frontline Program. The program is designed to help protect vulnerable Democratic incumbents heading into the 2014 election.

Brownley defeated Republican former state legislator Tony Strickland for the open 26th district seat in the November 6, 2012 general election, earning 52.7% of the total vote. The following April, Strickland filed his campaign paperwork with the Federal Election Commission to begin raising money for a 2014 re-match against Brownley.

2012

See also California's 26th congressional district elections, 2012

Strickland ran in the 2012 election for the U.S. House, representing California's 26th District. Redistricting combined a portion of Strickland's senate district with that of Fran Pavley. Because of this, they could have met in the 2012 general election this November, but Strickland decided to run for the U.S. House instead of running for re-election against Pavley. He and Julia Brownley (D) advanced past the June 5, 2012, blanket primary, defeating Albert Maxwell Goldberg (D), Jess Herrera (D), David Cruz Thayne (D), and Linda Parks (Ind). They faced off in the November 6, 2012, general election and Brownley won.

U.S. House, California, District 26 General Election, 2012
Party		Candidate	Vote %	Votes
	Democratic	Julia Brownley	52.7%	139,072
	Republican	Tony Strickland	47.3%	124,863
Total Votes				263,935
Source: California Secretary of State "Official Election Results, 2012 General Election"

2008

In 2008 Strickland was elected to the California State Senate, District 19. In a close race Strickland finished with 207,976 votes just barely edging out his opponent Hannah-Beth Jackson who finished with 201,119 votes. Strickland raised $4,196,857 in campaign funds.

California State Senate, District 19
Candidates		Votes
Tony Strickland (R)		207,976
Hannah-Beth Jackson (D)		207,119

Campaign donors

2012

Breakdown of the source of Strickland's campaign funds before the 2012 election.

Strickland did not win election to the U.S. House in 2012. During that election cycle, Strickland's campaign committee raised a total of $2,454,653 and spent $2,377,030.

U.S. House, California District 26, 2012 - Tony Strickland Campaign Contributions
Total Raised	$2,454,653
Total Spent	$2,377,030
Total Raised by Election Winner	$2,155,828
Total Spent by Election Winner	$2,106,886
Top contributors to Tony Strickland's campaign committee
Northwest Excavating	$25,000
Cke Restaurants	$20,500
Amgen Inc	$19,000
Fidelity National Financial	$18,461
Blue Cross/Blue Shield	$12,750
Top 5 industries that contributed to campaign committee
Leadership PACs	$189,000
Real Estate	$169,861
Retired	$117,900
Insurance	$101,150
Oil & Gas	$86,000

2010 (Off-cycle)

California State Senate 2010 election - Campaign Contributions
Top contributors to Tony Strickland's campaign in 2010
California Medical Association	$7,800
American College Of Emergency Physicians	$7,800
CKE Restaurants	$7,800
Farmers Insurance Group	$6,900
Wal-Mart	$6,500
Total Raised in 2010	$629,741

2008

Senator Strickland on the California budget

In 2008 Strickland raised $4,196,857 in campaign donations. His top five donors are listed below.

Donor	Amount
California Republican Party	$1,771,461
San Joaquin Republican Central CMTE	$127,500
Republican Party of Riverside County	$118,200
Republican Central CMTE of Orange County	$95,200
Monterey County Republican Party	$75,200

Personal

Strickland is married to Audra Strickland, who is a former member of the California State Assembly. The Stricklands have two children and live in Moorpark, California.

Recent news

This section displays the most recent stories in a google news search for the term Tony + Strickland + California + Senate

All stories may not be relevant to this page due to the nature of the search engine.

Tony Strickland News Feed

• Stanley Cup Final Predictions and Picks - Huffington Post Canada
• Israeli minister has giggle fit after saying 'penetration' in speech [VIDEO - Daily Caller]
• Ottawa Senators Eliminated From Playoffs After Loss To Pittsburgh Penguins In ... - Huffington Post Canada

External links

Suggest a link

• Tony Strickland's campaign website
• Official website of State Senator Tony Strickland
• Legislative profile of Tony Strickland on Project Vote Smart
• Biographical profile of Tony Strickland on Project Vote Smart
• Campaign contributions: 2010, 2008, 2006, 2002, 2000, 1998
• Tony Strickland on Facebook
• Tony Strickland on Twitter

References

Political offices
Preceded by -	California State Senate District 19 2008–2012	Succeeded by Hannah-Beth Jackson (D)