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Carl DeMaio
2024 - Present
2026
0
Carl DeMaio (Republican Party) is a member of the California State Assembly, representing District 75. He assumed office on December 2, 2024. His current term ends on December 7, 2026.
DeMaio (Republican Party) ran for election to the California State Assembly to represent District 75. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
DeMaio completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Carl DeMaio was born in Dubuque, Iowa. He earned a high school diploma from Georgetown Preparatory and a bachelor's degree from Georgetown University in 1996. He founded the Performance Institute, the American Strategic Management Institute, and Reform California. As of his 2020 campaign, DeMaio was chairman of Reform California and hosted a daily radio show, "The DeMaio Report," on KOGO in San Diego.[1][2][3][4]
Elections
2024
See also: California State Assembly elections, 2024
General election
General election for California State Assembly District 75
Carl DeMaio defeated Andrew Hayes in the general election for California State Assembly District 75 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Carl DeMaio (R)  | 57.0 | 121,167 |
 | Andrew Hayes (R) | 43.0 | 91,337 | |
| Total votes: 212,504 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for California State Assembly District 75
The following candidates ran in the primary for California State Assembly District 75 on March 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Carl DeMaio (R) | 42.9 | 54,350 |
| ✔ | | Andrew Hayes (R) | 18.7 | 23,664 |
| Kevin Juza (D) | 18.2 | 23,010 | ||
 | Christie Dougherty (D) | 10.0 | 12,675 | |
 | Joy Frew (D) | 7.4 | 9,362 | |
 | Jack Fernandes (R) | 2.8 | 3,596 | |
| Total votes: 126,657 | |||
| = 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
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for DeMaio in this election.
2020
See also: California's 50th Congressional District election, 2020
General election
General election for U.S. House California District 50
Darrell Issa defeated Ammar Campa-Najjar in the general election for U.S. House California District 50 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Darrell Issa (R) | 54.0 | 195,521 |
 | Ammar Campa-Najjar (D) | 46.0 | 166,869 | |
| Total votes: 362,390 | |||
| = 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 U.S. House California District 50
The following candidates ran in the primary for U.S. House California District 50 on March 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Ammar Campa-Najjar (D) | 36.5 | 74,121 |
| ✔ | | Darrell Issa (R) | 23.1 | 47,036 |
| Carl DeMaio (R) | 19.9 | 40,347 | |
 | Brian Jones (R) | 10.6 | 21,495 | |
 | Marisa Calderon (D) (Unofficially withdrew) | 5.7 | 11,557 | |
| Nathan Wilkins (R) | 2.1 | 4,276 | ||
 | Jose Cortes (Peace and Freedom Party of California) | 0.9 | 1,821 | |
 | Helen Horvath (Independent) | 0.6 | 1,249 | |
| Henry Ota (Independent) | 0.4 | 908 | ||
 | Lucinda Jahn (Independent) | 0.2 | 410 | |
| Total votes: 203,220 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Matt Rahn (R)
- Larry Wilske (R)
- Sam Abed (R)
- Duncan Hunter (R)
- Bill Wells (R)
- Hunter Spears Duncan (R)
- David Edick (Independent)
- Alex Balkin (D)
Candidate profile
Party: Republican Party
Incumbent: No
Political Office:
San Diego City Council (2008-2012)
Biography: DeMaio founded the Performance Institute and the American Strategic Management Institute. He sold both companies in 2007 and began hosting a talk radio show. He also founded Reform California, a grassroots political group. DeMaio received a bachelor's degree from Georgetown University.
Show sources
This information was current as of the candidate's run for U.S. House California District 50 in 2020.
2014
Incumbent Scott Peters won re-election to California's 52nd Congressional District in 2014. The race was a battleground district in 2014 due to the low margin of victory for Democrats in the last election and last two presidential elections. Incumbent Scott Peters (D) and Carl DeMaio triumphed in the blanket primary over Kirk Jorgensen (R) and Fred Simon (R). The general election race between Peters and DeMaio remained too close to call for several days after the election. The Associated Press called the race for Peters late on November 7, 2014, but DeMaio did not concede the race until November 9, 2014, due to the fact that there were still between 10,000 to 15,000 ballots left to be counted.[5][6]
The National Republican Congressional Committee added DeMaio to their "On the Radar" list in November 2013. According to the NRCC, candidates that made this list were set to receive "...the tools they need to run successful, winning campaigns against their Democratic opponents."[7]
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |  Scott Peters Incumbent |
51.6% | 98,826 | |
| Republican | Carl DeMaio | 48.4% | 92,746 | |
| Total Votes | 191,572 | |||
| Source: California Secretary of State | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Vote % | Votes | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic |
Scott Peters Incumbent |
42.3% | 53,926 | |
| Republican | Carl DeMaio |
35.3% | 44,954 | |
| Republican | Kirk Jorgensen | 18.5% | 23,588 | |
| Republican | Fred Simon | 4% | 5,040 | |
| Total Votes | 127,508 | |||
| Source: California Secretary of State |
||||
Following his defeat in the general election, DeMaio filed documents to start a new super PAC, the New Generation Leadership Fund. DeMaio is listed as the PAC's designated agent and manager.[8]
Media
DeMaio was the first congressional candidate to feature his same-sex partner in a campaign ad.[9]
Endorsements
DeMaio was endorsed by the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association, and the Mexican American Business & Professional Association.[10]
2012
Carl DeMaio's philosophy of governing San Diego |
DeMaio was a candidate in the 2012 San Diego mayoral race. To earn a spot on the November 6, 2012, ballot, DeMaio had to survive a primary on the June 5, 2012 ballot. Five candidates competed in that primary. Only the top two vote-getters (Carl DeMaio and Bob Filner) moved on to the final contest on November 6.
The five candidates, and the number of votes they received in the June 5 primary, were:
| Candidate | # of votes |
|---|---|
| Carl DeMaio | 75,508 |
| Bob Filner | 73,209 |
| Nathan Fletcher | 57,933 |
| Bonnie Dumanis | 31,924 |
| Tobiah L. Pettus | 1,709 |
DeMaio lost to opponent Filner in the general election, 52.5% to 47.5%[11]
Endorsements
DeMaio was endorsed by:
- 6418 San Diego Taxpayers
- Roger Hedgecock
- The Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Carl DeMaio completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2024. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by DeMaio's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
| Collapse all
- FIGHT INFLATION: Block unfair tax hikes and costly mandates that are crushing working families and small businesses. Help homeowners find and keep affordable fire insurance and health insurance. Stop the gas tax and utility rate spikes politicians keep imposing!
- SECURE THE BORDER: Stop human trafficking and the dangerous flow of illegal drugs across the border by supporting border patrol with state guard deployments; repeal the irresponsible Sanctuary State law that shields criminals from deportation; and stop giving taxpayer-funded welfare handouts to illegal immigrants to incentivize them to come here illegally.
- COMBAT CRIME - IMPROVE SAFETY: Support police and fire by fully funding public safety budgets and giving them the tools to do their jobs! Carl DeMaio authored the citizens' initiative to guarantee police and firefighters death and disability benefits. DeMaio is also helping lead passage of Prop 36 to restore the power of police and prosecutors to arrest and punish criminals.
Insurance - so we can address the growing CA insurance crisis.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
2020
Carl DeMaio did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.
Campaign website
| “ |
Secure the Border Initiative Congressional Candidate Carl DeMaio received the endorsement of leading border security advocates who cited their support for DeMaio’s 5-point Border Security Initiative. Surrounded by Christopher Harris – retired Secretary, Local 1613 National Border Patrol Council, Roger Hedgecock – co-founder of “Hold their Feet to the Fire” Tour with Federation for American Immigration Reform (FAIR), Rob Davis – Secure the Border SuperPAC, and Agnes Gibboney – Angel Mom, DeMaio revealed his five-point plan to secure the border and combat the growing crisis of illegal immigration. DeMaio’s comprehensive plan includes:
Read Carl’s Full Plan “Powerful interests want open borders and amnesty for illegal immigrants no matter what the financial cost or security risk to our country,” said Carl DeMaio. “We cannot wait for Washington politicians to act; it is time that citizens rise up and force action to secure the border and combat illegal immigration.” Fix Congress First Initiative The Only Way to Drain the Swamp… Starts with Congress! Carl DeMaio’s 10-Point Plan to Hold Congress Accountable for Living Under the Same Laws as the Rest of Us – No Special Exemptions! Carl DeMaio is the author of the 10-point Fix Congress First Initiative that will fundamentally shake up Congress and break through the dysfunction and corruption in our political system. First, DeMaio proposes to force Congress to live under the same laws as the rest of us — no special exemptions. Second, DeMaio strips politicians of their lavish perks and pensions. Third, DeMaio ends government shutdowns by imposing a strict No Budget, No Pay rule. Fourth, DeMaio requires full transparency on all Congressional records. Fifth, DeMaio imposes a Single Subject rule on all proposed legislation and extends the ban on earmarks. Sixth, DeMaio proposes to send Congress home by requiring votes on legislation be conducted remotely during public Town Halls in their District. Seventh, DeMaio proposes new campaign finance reform rules to curb special interest contributions and expands audits of campaign spending by politicians. Eighth, DeMaio requires a Read the Bill First rule to force politicians to disclose what is in bills before they vote on them. Ninth, DeMaio proposes elimination of the filibuster in the Senate. Tenth, DeMaio proposes lobbying reforms and ends the revolving door in Washington by imposing a lifetime ban on Members of Congress being lobbyists. Reform California To Win Back Congress, We Must First Take Back California! California represents more than one-fifth of our nation’s economy and population. If we want to address problems in our country, we must reform California. Moreover, if we want to take back the House Majority from the Left, we must make progress in California! The Left takes its dominance in California for granted and holds 45 of the 53 Congressional seats. Take back some of those Congressional seats and the House Majority can be recaptured! That’s why all Americans should be helping the “Resistance” to take back California! Carl DeMaio is organizing and leading the “Resistance” in California. DeMaio has proposed a 7-point California Reform Agenda – and is recruiting grassroots activists to advance it statewide. Stop the Tax Hikes California has the highest taxes in the nation – and that has resulted in the highest cost-of-living. To fuel their out-of-control spending, Sacramento politicians are proposing even more tax hikes: gas tax, water tax, property tax, sales tax – it never ends. Carl DeMaio is leading a broad-based statewide coalition to oppose the tax hikes on the 2020 ballot. In addition to opposing new tax hikes, DeMaio is fighting to rollback the unfair and unnecessary gas and car taxes that are having the biggest impact on working families. Protect Citizens, Not Criminals California politicians have promoted extreme measures that put the interest of criminals over the interests of law-abiding citizens – undermining the safety of our neighborhoods. Props 47 and Prop 57 have taken law enforcement’s tools away and resulted in early release of dangerous individuals from prison. The so-called Sanctuary State (SB54) and associated laws makes it a crime for local law enforcement, or a private business for that matter, to cooperate with federal law enforcement agencies to identify, detain, and process criminals. Carl DeMaio supports the repeal of Props 47 and 57 – as well as SB54 Sanctuary State Law – before more Californians are hurt by these reckless policies. Pension Reform The single biggest driver of the financial crisis facing California state and local government are the unsustainable salaries and pension benefits they offer to government workers. The government pension crisis is not just a financial crisis, it is also unfair to increase the cost-of-living on working families just so funds can be diverted to make outrageous pension payouts for government workers. Carl DeMaio proposes to reform government compensation plans so state and local government workers are paid no more, but also no less than the local labor market requires for those jobs to be done. In addition DeMaio proposes to switch to a simple 401k defined contribution retirement system for all new hires. Cancel High Speed Rail: Fix Our Roads First! After years of neglect, our infrastructure has fallen into disrepair. Politicians continually raid our road repair funds to cover their wasteful spending elsewhere in the budget. That’s why Carl DeMaio is proposing a Citizens’ Infrastructure Lockbox that would mandate that 100% of any gas tax collected would be spent on roads – no more diversions. Funds should also be regularly audited and overseen by independent citizen watchdog panels. Carl DeMaio also proposes to cancel the wasteful boondoggle known as the High Speed Rail Project and put any remaining funds from this misguided project back into roads. Finally DeMaio will insist that any taxpayer-funded construction project be awarded using Fair and Open Competitive Bidding – no more backroom and discriminatory union-only deals such as Project Labor Agreements. Address the Crisis of Homelessness California’s homeless crisis has reached epidemic proportions – figuratively and literally. Homelessness is not an economic issue, it is a public health and social service issue as three-quarters of homeless individuals suffer from mental health and substance abuse problems. These individuals are homeless by choice. With political cover from ACLU lawsuits, politicians have opted to coddle these troubled individuals and suspend enforcement of vagrancy, loitering, pan-handling, and other laws. Without these tools, law enforcement has no leverage to get people the help they need to change their lives. Carl DeMaio will propose legislation requiring law enforcement be given the full right to enforce laws related to homelessness in exchange for any taxpayer-funding on these issues. In addition, DeMaio proposes a Community Service Mandate be imposed on any individual who receives public housing. Funding for homeless programs MUST be linked to accountability. Safe and Successful Schools Carl DeMaio is concerned that our schools are failing our children. The basics (reading, writing, and arithmetic) have been replaced by social agendas. That’s why Carl DeMaio believes all parents – not just the wealthy – should have an opportunity to make a real choice when it comes to their children’s education. By expanding parental choice and charter schools, Carl DeMaio is encouraging competition to provide the highest quality education at all schools – public or private. Academic standards, testing systems and curriculum should be set by local educators with input from parents – without coercion from the state or federal government – to ensure those who know our children best are able to shape their education to excel in college and the workplace. Election Integrity Reforms California’s voter rolls are a complete mess – with ineligible, inactive and duplicate voter registrations. To restore integrity to our elections, Carl DeMaio proposes to clean up the voter rolls by conducting a comprehensive audit county-by-county. In addition, DeMaio proposes suspending California’s flawed motor-voter law immediately and replacing it with a Real Voter ID law. In addition, DeMaio is concerned that state politicians have essentially stripped citizens of the right to use ballot initiatives and recall elections to hold politicians accountable – resulting in a loss of precious Constitutional rights. Carl DeMaio proposes to remove the ability of politicians to change the ballot title of Citizen Initiatives. In addition, DeMaio proposes to repeal recent laws that make it harder to recall politicians from office when they violate the trust of the constituents they serve. Carl DeMaio is working with a team of election lawyers and reformers to effect these changes through litigation and legislative action.[12] |
” |
| —Carl DeMaio's 2020 campaign website[13] | ||
2014
DeMaio's campaign website listed the following issues:[14]
| “ |
|
” |
| —Carl DeMaio's campaign website, http://carldemaio.com/issues | ||
2012
In his candidacy for mayor, DeMaio frequently mentioned the "Three P" issues:
- Pension
- Potholes
- Prosperity[15]
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.
Noteworthy events
Denial of allegations of sexual harassment
As of November 2019, this misconduct story appeared to be concluded and Ballotpedia discontinued active coverage. Please contact us if new developments occur with this story.
During his 2014 congressional campaign, DeMaio denied sexual harassment allegations made by two former campaign staffers. In October 2014, Todd Bosnich accused DeMaio of sexual harassment. DeMaio denied the allegations to CNN.[16] A second staffer, Justin Harper, accused DeMaio of sexual harassment in November 2014. DeMaio denied the allegation and called it "a character assassination attempt" carried out by his opponent's campaign.[17]
In November 2015, Bosnich was sentenced to five years of probation for obstructing justice by falsifying threatening emails to himself supposedly from the DeMaio campaign.[18]
Scorecards
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 California scorecards, email suggestions to editor@ballotpedia.org.
See also
2024 Elections
External links
|
Candidate California State Assembly District 75 |
Officeholder California State Assembly District 75 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Carl DeMaio 2020 campaign website, "Home," accessed March 22, 2020
- ↑ Campaign website, "About," accessed April 28, 2014
- ↑ Carl DeMaio 2020 campaign website, "About," accessed January 30, 2020
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on September 30, 2024
- ↑ UT San Diego, "Peters on the verge of victory," November 7, 2014
- ↑ Politico, "Rep. Scott Peters beats Carl DeMaio for San Diego seat," November 7. 2014
- ↑ Roll Call, "House Republicans Put 36 Recruits ‘On the Radar’," accessed November 21, 2013
- ↑ Inewsource.org, "Carl DeMaio launches super PAC," December 9, 2014
- ↑ Wall Street Journal, "Gay Republican Candidate's Ad Poses Test for Party," February 13, 2014
- ↑ Times of San Diego, "DeMaio, Peters Hail Endorsements by Taxpayers, Mexican-American Groups," April 17, 2014
- ↑ San Diego County, "Primary election," accessed September 3, 2014
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Carl DeMaio's 2020 campaign website, "Reform agenda," accessed February 21, 2020
- ↑ Campaign website, "Issues," accessed April 28, 2014
- ↑ Smart Voter, "San Diego Mayoral Contest," June 5, 2012
- ↑ CNN, "Gay Republican congressional candidate accused of sexual harassment," October 10, 2014
- ↑ CBS 8, "Second staffer accuses Carl DeMaio of sexual harassment," November 2, 2014
- ↑ NBC 7, "DeMaio Accuser, Todd Bosnich, Sentenced for Obstructing Justice," November 23, 2015
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Marie Waldron (R) |
California State Assembly District 75 2024-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
San Diego City Council 2008-2012 |
Succeeded by - |
