Robert Rivas
2022 - Present
2026
2
Robert Rivas (Democratic Party) is a member of the California State Assembly, representing District 29. He assumed office on December 5, 2022. His current term ends on December 7, 2026.
Rivas was unanimously elected speaker of the Assembly on November 10, 2022, and his term began on June 30, 2023, succeeding Anthony Rendon (D).[1] After his election, Rivas said, "As the grandson of immigrant farmworkers, I hope to ensure the door of opportunity that was available to my family remains open for future generations."[2] Cal Matters' Alexei Koseff wrote that "Rivas has a similar ideological profile to his longtime predecessor — the outgoing Speaker Anthony Rendon, a progressive Democrat from Lakewood — so supporters do not expect a dramatic shift in the priorities of Assembly Democrats."[3] The Democratic caucus elected Rivas to another two-year term in December 2024.[4]
Rivas was born in Henderson, Nevada.[5] He earned a bachelor’s in government from California State University-Sacramento in 2003 and an M.P.A. from San Jose State University in 2011.[6] Before entering electoral politics, he worked as a student support member at San Benito High School, an adjunct professor at Gavilan College, a senior board clerk for the County of Monterey, and a senior field representative for Assemblymember Anna Caballero (D).[7] Rivas was elected to the San Benito County Board of Supervisors in 2010 and re-elected in 2014.[6]
Rivas was first elected to the California State Assembly in 2018, winning 68% of the vote for an open seat. He won re-election in each consecutive election with more than 60% of the vote. Rivas' official biography says he has "championed legislation to improve California’s supply of affordable housing, increase workplace health and safety protections, create the Golden State Teacher Grant Program, and secure the first-in-the-nation COVID-19 Farmworker Relief Package, which included critical efforts related to access to PPE and testing, temporary housing, and health care."[6]
At a swearing-in ceremony in December 2024, Rivas highlighted his priorities for the next legislative session. Rivas said, "California will always be America’s destination for dreams and opportunities. But we need to consider every bill through the lens of Californians who are anxious about affordability. Specifically, we must focus on building more housing and lowering energy costs. . . . Affordable, decent housing is the civil rights struggle of our time. Working people have a right to live near their jobs, in the communities they help enrich, and I’m going to do everything in my power to make that possible."[4]
Biography
Rivas was born in Henderson, Nevada.[5] He earned a bachelor’s in government from California State University-Sacramento in 2003 and a Master’s in Public Administration (MPA) from San Jose State University in 2011. His career experience includes working as a student support member at San Benito High School, an adjunct professor at Gavilan College, a senior board clerk for the County of Monterey, and a senior field representative for California State Assemblymember Anna Caballero (D). Rivas was elected to be a county supervisor for San Benito County, California in 2010.[7]
Committee assignments
Note: This membership information was last updated in September 2023. Ballotpedia completes yearly updates of committee membership. If you would like to send us an update, email us at: editor@ballotpedia.org
2023-2024
Rivas was assigned to the following committees:
- Agriculture Committee, Chair
- Appropriations Committee
- Governmental Organization Committee
- Judiciary Committee
- Local Government Committee
- Fairs, Allocation, and Classification Committee, Chair
2021-2022
Rivas was assigned to the following committees:
- Fairs, Allocation, and Classification Committee, Chair
- Agriculture Committee, Chair
- Appropriations Committee
- Governmental Organization Committee
- Local Government Committee
2019-2020
Rivas was assigned to the following committees:
- Fairs, Allocation, and Classification Committee, Chair
- Rules Committee
- Agriculture Committee
- Appropriations Committee
- Governmental Organization Committee
- Local Government Committee
- Rules Committee
Sponsored legislation
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
2024
See also: California State Assembly elections, 2024
General election
General election for California State Assembly District 29
Incumbent Robert Rivas defeated James Paine in the general election for California State Assembly District 29 on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Robert Rivas (D) | 66.0 | 99,600 |
| James Paine (R) | 34.0 | 51,291 | ||
| Total votes: 150,891 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for California State Assembly District 29
Incumbent Robert Rivas and James Paine advanced from the primary for California State Assembly District 29 on March 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Robert Rivas (D) | 64.8 | 40,756 |
| ✔ | James Paine (R) | 35.2 | 22,145 | |
| Total votes: 62,901 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
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Campaign finance
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Rivas in this election.
2022
See also: California State Assembly elections, 2022
General election
General election for California State Assembly District 29
Incumbent Robert Rivas defeated Stephanie Castro in the general election for California State Assembly District 29 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Robert Rivas (D) | 63.8 | 63,439 |
| Stephanie Castro (R) | 36.2 | 36,030 | ||
| Total votes: 99,469 | |||
| = 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 29
Incumbent Robert Rivas and Stephanie Castro advanced from the primary for California State Assembly District 29 on June 7, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Robert Rivas (D) | 64.3 | 38,163 |
| ✔ | Stephanie Castro (R) | 35.7 | 21,148 | |
| Total votes: 59,311 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
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Campaign finance
2020
See also: California State Assembly elections, 2020
General election
General election for California State Assembly District 30
Incumbent Robert Rivas defeated Gregory Swett in the general election for California State Assembly District 30 on November 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Robert Rivas (D) | 69.6 | 123,617 |
| Gregory Swett (R) | 30.4 | 53,928 | ||
| Total votes: 177,545 | |||
| = 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 30
Incumbent Robert Rivas and Gregory Swett advanced from the primary for California State Assembly District 30 on March 3, 2020.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Robert Rivas (D) | 69.4 | 64,086 |
| ✔ | Gregory Swett (R) | 30.6 | 28,308 | |
| Total votes: 92,394 | |||
| = 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
General election
General election for California State Assembly District 30
Robert Rivas defeated Neil Kitchens in the general election for California State Assembly District 30 on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Robert Rivas (D) | 68.2 | 83,162 |
| Neil Kitchens (R) | 31.8 | 38,719 | ||
| Total votes: 121,881 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary election
Nonpartisan primary for California State Assembly District 30
Robert Rivas and Neil Kitchens defeated Peter Leroe-Muñoz, Trina Coffman-Gomez, and Bill Lipe in the primary for California State Assembly District 30 on June 5, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Robert Rivas (D) | 45.5 | 30,379 |
| ✔ | Neil Kitchens (R) | 30.1 | 20,099 | |
| Peter Leroe-Muñoz (D) | 10.6 | 7,099 | ||
| Trina Coffman-Gomez (D) | 7.5 | 5,003 | ||
| Bill Lipe (D) | 6.3 | 4,217 | ||
| Total votes: 66,797 | |||
| = 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. | ||||
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Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Robert Rivas did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
2022
Robert Rivas did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
2020
Robert Rivas 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.
Notable endorsements
This section displays endorsements this individual made in elections within Ballotpedia's coverage scope.
Scorecards
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2024
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2024, click [show]. |
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In 2024, the California State Legislature was in session from January 3 to August 31. A special session in the Assembly was from August 31, 2024 to October 14, 2024 and another special session started on December 2, 2024.
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2023
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2023, click [show]. |
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In 2023, the California State Legislature was in session from January 1 to September 14.
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2022
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2022, click [show]. |
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In 2022, the California State Legislature was in session from January 3 to August 31.
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2021
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2021, click [show]. |
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In 2021, the California State Legislature was in session from December 7 to September 10.
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2020
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2020, click [show]. |
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In 2020, the California State Legislature was in session from January 6 to August 31.
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2019
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2019, click [show]. |
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In 2019, the California State Legislature was in session from January 7 through September 13.
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2018
| To view all the scorecards we found for this legislator in 2018, click [show]. |
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In 2018, the California State Legislature was in session from January 3, 2018 through August 31, 2018.
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See also
2024 Elections
External links
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Candidate California State Assembly District 29 |
Officeholder California State Assembly District 29 |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ Courthouse News Service', "California gets new Assembly speaker," June 30, 2023
- ↑ BenitoLink, "Robert Rivas elected as next Speaker of the California State Assembly," November 10, 2022
- ↑ Cal Matters, "Robert Rivas takes charge as California Assembly speaker," June 30, 2023
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 Contra Costa News, "Speaker Rivas Seeks to Lower Cost of Living, Limit Bills Introduced," December 2, 2024
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Join California, "Robert Rivas," accessed September 3, 2025
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 Robert Rivas - Speaker of the Assembly, "Biography," accessed May 13, 2025
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 LinkedIn, "Robert Rivas," accessed May 13, 2025
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Mark Stone (D) |
California State Assembly District 29 2022-Present |
Succeeded by - |
| Preceded by - |
California State Assembly District 30 2018-2022 |
Succeeded by Dawn Addis (D) |
