California's 17th senatorial district explained

District:17
Chamber:Senate
Population:931,341[1]
Population Year:2010
Voting Age:724,678
Citizen Voting Age:615,065
Percent White:56.49
Percent Black:2.33
Percent Latino:30.95
Percent Asian:8.06
Percent Native American:0.95
Percent Pacific Islander:0.39
Percent Other Race:0.30
Percent Remainder Of Multiracial:0.53
Registered:567,749[2]
Democratic:46.61
Republican:23.90
Npp:23.72

California's 17th senatorial district is one of 40 California State Senate districts. It is currently represented by Democrat John Laird of Santa Cruz.

District profile

The district encompasses the Big Sur section of the Central Coast, including Santa Cruz, San Benito, and Monterey Counties, along with northern San Luis Obispo County.

Election results from statewide races

YearOfficeResults
2021Recallalign="right" No 65.1 – 34.9%
2020PresidentBiden 66.8 – 30.8%
2018GovernorNewsom 63.8 – 36.2%
SenatorFeinstein 54.0 – 46.0%
2016PresidentClinton 63.4 – 29.6%
SenatorHarris 67.0 – 33.0%
2014GovernorBrown 66.0 – 34.0%
2012PresidentObama 62.8 – 33.9%
SenatorFeinstein 65.1 – 34.9%

List of senators

Due to redistricting, the 17th district has been moved around different parts of the state. The current iteration resulted from the 2011 redistricting by the California Citizens Redistricting Commission.

SenatorsPartyYears servedCounties representedNotes
Charles Dent ReynoldsDemocraticJanuary 8, 1883 - January 5, 1885Calaveras, Tuolumne
Andrew B. BeauvaisRepublicanJanuary 5, 1885 - January 3, 1887
Henry VroomanJanuary 3, 1887 - January 7, 1889Alameda
William E. DargieJanuary 7, 1889 - January 2, 1893
William J. DunnDemocraticJanuary 2, 1893 - January 4, 1897San Francisco
Samuel BraunhartJanuary 4, 1897 - June 28, 1900Resigned to become a member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors.
Joseph M. PlunkettJanuary 1, 1901 - January 2, 1905
Frank A. MarkeyRepublicanJanuary 2, 1905 - January 4, 1909
Thomas Francis FinnJanuary 4, 1909 - January 6, 1913
Archibald E. CampbellDemocraticJanuary 6, 1913 - January 8, 1917Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo
Elmer S. RigdonJanuary 8, 1917 - December 13, 1922Monterey, San Luis ObispoDied in office.[3]
Ralph Leon HughesRepublicanMarch 5, 1923 - January 5, 1925Sworn in after winning special election.[4]
C. C. BakerJanuary 5, 1925 - January 2, 1933
William Richard SharkeyJanuary 2, 1933 - January 4, 1937Contra Costa
Truman H. DeLapJanuary 4, 1937 - January 3, 1949
George Miller Jr.DemocraticJanuary 3, 1949 - January 2, 1967
Donald L. GrunskyRepublicanJanuary 2, 1967 - November 30, 1976Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Cruz
Bob NimmoDecember 6, 1976 - November 30, 1980Monterey, San Benito, Santa Barbara, Santa Cruz
Henry J. MelloDemocraticDecember 1, 1980 - November 30, 1992
Monterey, San Benito, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz
Don RogersRepublicanDecember 15, 1992 - November 30, 1996Inyo, Kern, Los Angeles, San BernardinoTook his seat in the 17th district after resigning from the 16th district.
William J. KnightDecember 2, 1996 – May 7, 2004Died in office.
George RunnerDecember 6, 2004 – December 21, 2010Kern, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, VenturaResigned from the Senate.
Sharon RunnerFebruary 18, 2011 – December 3, 2012Sworn in after winning special election.
Bill MonningDemocraticDecember 3, 2012 – November 30, 2020Monterey, San Luis Obispo, Santa Clara, Santa Cruz
John LairdDecember 7, 2020 – present

Election results (1992–present)

1992

See also

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Citizens Redistricting Commission Final Report, 2011.
  2. Web site: Report of Registration as of February 18, 2020.
  3. News: Senator Rigdon Dies, Following Collapse at Hotel . Santa Cruz Evening News . San Francisco . AP . 1 . 1922-12-13 . 2020-07-07 . Newspapers.com.
  4. Web site: Ralph Hughes Sworn in. babel.hathitrust.org.