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Cristina Garcia

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Cristina Garcia
Democratic Party
Prior offices:
California State Assembly District 58
Years in office: 2012 - 2022
Successor: Sabrina Cervantes (D)
Elections and appointments
Last election
June 7, 2022
Education
Bachelor's
Pomona College
Graduate
Claremont Graduate University
Contact
Campaign website
Campaign Facebook
Campaign X
Campaign Instagram
Personal Facebook

Cristina Garcia (Democratic Party) was a member of the California State Assembly, representing District 58. She assumed office on December 3, 2012. She left office on December 5, 2022.

Garcia (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent California's 42nd Congressional District. She lost in the primary on June 7, 2022.

On February 9, 2018, Garcia announced that she was taking unpaid leave from her position in the Assembly due to an investigation into sexual misconduct allegations.[1] On May 17, she was stripped of her committee assignments after the state Assembly investigation into her actions concluded. To read more, click here.

Biography

Cristina Garcia lives in Los Angeles, California. Garcia earned a bachelor's degree from Pomona College and a master's degree and secondary teaching credential from Claremont Graduate University.[2]

Committee assignments

2021-2022

Garcia was assigned to the following committees:

2019-2020

Garcia 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
• Budget
• Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials
• Judiciary
• Natural Resources, Chair
• Utilities and Energy

2015 legislative session

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

2013-2014

At the beginning of the 2013 legislative session, Garcia 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

2022

See also: California's 42nd Congressional District election, 2022

General election

General election for U.S. House California District 42

Robert Garcia defeated John Briscoe in the general election for U.S. House California District 42 on November 8, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Robert Garcia
Robert Garcia (D)
 
68.4
 
99,217
Image of John Briscoe
John Briscoe (R)
 
31.6
 
45,903

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 145,120
Candidate Connection = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Nonpartisan primary election

Nonpartisan primary for U.S. House California District 42

The following candidates ran in the primary for U.S. House California District 42 on June 7, 2022.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Robert Garcia
Robert Garcia (D)
 
46.7
 
43,406
✔
Image of John Briscoe
John Briscoe (R)
 
26.1
 
24,319
Image of Cristina Garcia
Cristina Garcia (D)
 
12.6
 
11,685
Image of Peter Mathews
Peter Mathews (D) Candidate Connection
 
3.7
 
3,415
Image of Nicole López
Nicole López (D)
 
3.4
 
3,164
Image of Julio Cesar Flores
Julio Cesar Flores (G)
 
2.7
 
2,491
Image of William Summerville
William Summerville (D) Candidate Connection
 
2.5
 
2,301
Image of Joaquín Beltrán
Joaquín Beltrán (D)
 
2.4
 
2,254

There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source

Total votes: 93,035
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.

Withdrawn or disqualified candidates

2020

See also: California State Assembly elections, 2020

General election

General election for California State Assembly District 58

Incumbent Cristina Garcia defeated Margaret Villa in the general election for California State Assembly District 58 on November 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Cristina Garcia
Cristina Garcia (D)
 
74.9
 
122,864
Image of Margaret Villa
Margaret Villa (G)
 
25.1
 
41,100

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

Total votes: 163,964
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 Assembly District 58

Incumbent Cristina Garcia and Margaret Villa advanced from the primary for California State Assembly District 58 on March 3, 2020.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Cristina Garcia
Cristina Garcia (D)
 
77.3
 
55,553
✔
Image of Margaret Villa
Margaret Villa (G)
 
22.7
 
16,295

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

Total votes: 71,848
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.

2018

See also: California State Assembly elections, 2018

General election

General election for California State Assembly District 58

Incumbent Cristina Garcia defeated Michael Simpfenderfer in the general election for California State Assembly District 58 on November 6, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Cristina Garcia
Cristina Garcia (D)
 
70.4
 
84,003
Image of Michael Simpfenderfer
Michael Simpfenderfer (R) Candidate Connection
 
29.6
 
35,301

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

Total votes: 119,304
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 Assembly District 58

The following candidates ran in the primary for California State Assembly District 58 on June 5, 2018.

Candidate
%
Votes
✔
Image of Cristina Garcia
Cristina Garcia (D)
 
28.9
 
14,509
✔
Image of Michael Simpfenderfer
Michael Simpfenderfer (R) Candidate Connection
 
26.4
 
13,246
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
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Pedro Aceituno (D)
 
12.7
 
6,386
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Karla Salazar (D)
 
9.2
 
4,603
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Friné Medrano (D)
 
8.9
 
4,447
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Ivan Altamirano (D)
 
7.6
 
3,809
Image of John Paul Drayer
John Paul Drayer (D)
 
3.3
 
1,653
Silhouette Placeholder Image.png
Submit photo
Miguel Angel Alvarado (D)
 
3.1
 
1,568

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

Total votes: 50,221
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.

2016

See also: California State Assembly elections, 2016

Elections for the California State Assembly took place in 2016. The primary election was held on June 7, 2016, and the general election was held on November 8, 2016. The candidate filing deadline was February 25, 2016, for candidates filing with signatures. The deadline for candidates using a filing fee to qualify was March 11, 2016.[3]

Incumbent Cristina Garcia defeated Ramiro Alvarado in the California State Assembly District 58 general election.[4][5]

California State Assembly, District 58 General Election, 2016
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Cristina Garcia Incumbent 75.33% 105,170
     Republican Ramiro Alvarado 24.67% 34,449
Total Votes 139,619
Source: California Secretary of State


Incumbent Cristina Garcia and Ramiro Alvarado were unopposed in the California State Assembly District 58 Blanket primary.[6][7]

California State Assembly, District 58 Blanket Primary, 2016
Party Candidate
    Democratic Green check mark transparent.png Cristina Garcia Incumbent
    Republican Green check mark transparent.png Ramiro Alvarado

2014

See also: California State Assembly elections, 2014

Elections for the California State Assembly 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. Incumbent Cristina Garcia (D) was unopposed in the blanket primary and was unopposed in the general election.[8][9][10]

2012

See also: California State Assembly elections, 2012

Garcia won election in the 2012 election for California State Assembly District 58. She advanced past the blanket primary on June 5, 2012, defeating Tom Calderon (D), Daniel Crespo (D), Sultan Ahmad (D), and Luis Marquez (D). Garcia defeated Patricia Kotze-Ramos (R) in the general election on November 6, 2012.[11][12][13]

California State Assembly, District 58, General Election, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngCristina Garcia 71.8% 91,019
     Republican Patricia A. Kotze-Ramos 28.2% 35,676
Total Votes 126,695
California State Assembly, District 58 Blanket Primary, 2012
Party Candidate Vote % Votes
     Democratic Sultan Ahmad 3.7% 1,197
     Democratic Tom Calderon 22.7% 7,290
     Democratic Daniel Crespo 6.5% 2,096
     Democratic Green check mark transparent.pngCristina Garcia 26.6% 8,517
     Democratic Luis Marquez 12.3% 3,946
     Republican Green check mark transparent.pngPatricia Kotze-Ramos 28.1% 9,015
Total Votes 32,061

Campaign themes

2022

Ballotpedia survey responses

See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection

Cristina Garcia did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

2020

Cristina Garcia did not complete Ballotpedia's 2020 Candidate Connection survey.

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.

Cristina Garcia campaign contribution history
YearOfficeStatusContributionsExpenditures
2022U.S. House California District 42Lost primary$533,283 $417,783
2020California State Assembly District 58Won general$592,423 N/A**
2016California State Assembly, District 58Won $953,954 N/A**
2014California State Assembly, District 58Won $585,492 N/A**
2012California State Assembly, District 58Won $517,132 N/A**
Grand total$3,182,284 $417,783
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 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.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2014.

Below you can find the scorecards found for the California State Legislature in 2013.

Noteworthy events

Removal from committees following sexual misconduct investigation (2018)

See also: Sexual assault and harassment in American politics (2017-2018)

On May 17, 2018, the California State Assembly issued a report on investigations into allegations against Garcia. The report did not confirm the allegations. Speaker Anthony Rendon (D) stripped her of her committee assignments and issued the following statement: "Despite the decision that the most egregious allegations could not be substantiated, it is clear that Assemblymember Garcia has engaged in a pattern of behavior that must be addressed." He said she would have to attend sexual harassment training when she returned from her leave of absence.[14]

On February 8, the Washington Post and Politico reported that Garcia, a high profile figure in the late 2017 response to sexual misconduct, was being investigated for the harassment of former staffer Daniel Fierro. Fierro said that Garcia attempted to grope him in 2014 while she was inebriated at the Assembly's annual softball game. He reported the alleged incident in January 2018 and it was referred to the Assembly Rules Committee for investigation.[15]

In response to the allegations, Garcia said, “Every complaint about sexual harassment should be taken seriously and I will participate fully in any investigation that takes place. The details of these claims have never been brought to my attention until today. I can confirm that I did attend the 2014 legislative softball game with a number of members and my staff. I can also say I have zero recollection of engaging in inappropriate behavior and such behavior is inconsistent with my values.” On February 9, Garcia announced that she was taking unpaid leave from her position in the Assembly while the investigation into these allegations takes place.[1]

Politico also reported that an unnamed male lobbyist was alleging that Garcia attempted to grope him in May 2017. He did not report the alleged incident.[16]

On February 15, Politico reported that four former Garcia employees were claiming that she kept alcohol in her Assembly office and regularly talked about her sex life, including saying, "having sex with other elected officials was a good way of getting information." They also said that Garcia required them to assist with her personal tasks at times, such as taking care of her pets.

In response, Garcia said, “I am confident I have consistently treated my staff fairly and respectfully. In a fast-paced legislative office, not everyone is the right fit for every position and I do understand how a normal employment decision could be misinterpreted.”[17]

On February 18, Politico reported that former Garcia staffer David John Kernick had filed a formal complaint with the California Department of Fair Employment and Housing claiming that he was fired from his job in retaliation for questioning the appropriateness of an alleged incident where Garcia asked a group of staffers to play the kissing game Spin the Bottle while they were intoxicated. Kernick said the game never occurred after Garcia suggested it. He also said that Garcia wrote him up for insubordination after he brought the alleged incident up with her and then fired him two days later.[18]

On February 19, a letter from Kernick's personnel file signed by former Garcia Chief of Staff Tim Reardon was leaked around the state capitol. Reardon had previously criticized Kernick. Kernick's attorney accused Reardon of leaking the letter, a charge which Reardon denied. In response to the leaked letter, Christine Pelosi, the legal counsel for #WeSaidEnough, said, “Obviously, it’s improper. It’s a violation of privacy, and it does nothing to counter the narrative for a boss that was accused of being very vindictive. In fact, it seems to confirm it…Whoever thought they were helping Cristina Garcia did her no favors.”[19]

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External links

Candidate

U.S. House California District 42
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    Footnotes

    1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Los Angeles Times, "Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia to take leave of absence during investigation of misconduct allegations," February 9, 2018
    2. ↑ California State Assembly, “Assemblymember Cristina Garcia” accessed September 27, 2019
    3. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Key Dates and Deadlines," accessed April 18, 2017
    4. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Certified List of Candidates for the November 8, 2016, General Election," accessed September 7, 2016
    5. ↑ California Secretary of State, "2016 General Election results," accessed December 23, 2016
    6. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Certified List of Candidates for Voter-Nominated Offices," accessed April 4, 2016
    7. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Statement of Vote," accessed August 22, 2016
    8. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official 2014 Primary election candidate list," accessed March 27, 2014
    9. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official primary election results," accessed July 15, 2014
    10. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official general election results," accessed December 14, 2014
    11. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official primary candidate list," accessed March 13, 2014
    12. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official 2012 Primary election results," accessed March 13, 2014
    13. ↑ California Secretary of State, "Official 2012 General election results," accessed March 13, 2014
    14. ↑ Los Angeles Times, "Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia disciplined for sexual harassment as investigation comes to a close," May 17, 2018
    15. ↑ Washington Post, "Female California lawmaker behind #MeToo push is accused of groping male staffer," February 9, 2018
    16. ↑ Politico, "#MeToo movement lawmaker investigated for sexual misconduct allegations," February 8, 2018
    17. ↑ Politico, "Playbook," February 15, 2018
    18. ↑ Politico, "‘Spin the bottle’ and a kegerator: #MeToo movement lawmaker faces new sexual misconduct allegations," February 18, 2018
    19. ↑ Politico, "California Playbook," February 20, 2018

    Political offices
    Preceded by
    -     		California State Assembly District 58
    2012-2022    		 Succeeded by
    Sabrina Cervantes (D)


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