Candidates hoping to fill the remainder of the Assembly District seat vacated by Assemblyman Jim Frazier, D-Solano, have until Feb. 10 to submit their candidacy papers.
A primary election for the seat is set for April 5, with candidates running in the old Assembly district, which includes parts of Solano, Contra Costa and Sacramento counties. The general election for the seat will be June 7, the same as the statewide primary election.
A longtime assemblyman, Frazier, 62, announced his intention to resign at the end of the year in December, saying he wanted to work in the transportation field. He had previously served as chair of the Assembly Committee on Transportation.
One day after Frazier’s announcement, Suisun City Mayor Lori Wilson – Solano County’s first Black female mayor – announced her intent to run for the seat during a press conference where she was endorsed by the former assemblyman, Rep. John Garamendi, D-Solano, and others.
Frazier, in his endorsement of Wilson, a Democrat, said: “Mayor Wilson is a public servant we can all depend on and I’m honored to support her for the district I’ve passionately served for almost a decade.”
Wilson was first elected in 2012 to Suisun City’s council and served six years as vice mayor before running for mayor in 2018. She has also served on regional boards such as the Bay Area Air Quality Management District and Association of Bay Area Governments.
As of Wednesday, the only other candidate to announce his intent to run for Assembly seat was Republican Ron Plunkett of Suisun City, according to the Solano County Elections office. No one else from Contra Costa or Sacramento counties had pulled papers, according to officials.
Plunkett is retired from the Solano County Sheriff’s Department after serving more than 20 years and is a certified sommelier.
Both Plunkett and Wilson have taken out in-lieu-of-filing fees petitions for the office.
The top two winners of the April 5 primary will face off in the June 7 election and the winner will serve out the remainder of Frazier’s term through December.
A separate election will be held during the general election for the new Assembly District 11. The newly redrawn district includes all of Solano County, parts of Sacramento and Contra Costa, including Oakley, Knightsen, Bethel Island, Discovery Bay and Byron. Brentwood and Antioch are in Assembly District 15 following redistricting.
Papers for the California Assembly Office are available at the Contra Costa Elections Office, 555 Escobar St., Martinez. They are also available at the Solano County and Sacramento Elections offices.
The Contra Costa Elections Division offers appointments on weekdays from 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. to those interested in running. Due to the current surge in COVID-19 cases, potential candidates are asked to schedule an appointment through email at candidate.services@vote.cccounty.us or by calling 925-335-7800.
For more on this special election, go to www.cocovote.us.
