Heath Flora Explained

Heath Flora
Office:Member of the California State Assembly
Constituency:12th district (2016–2022)
9th district (2022–present)
Term Start:December 5, 2016
Predecessor:Kristin Olsen
Birth Name:Heath Hubert Flora[1]
Birth Date:19 July 1983
Birth Place:Stanislaus County, California, U.S.
Party:Republican
Spouse:Melodie Flora (div.)
Children:2
Residence:Ripon, California, U.S.
Occupation:Politician, firefighter, farmer, business owner
Website:https://ad09.asmrc.org/

Heath Flora (born July 19, 1983) is an American politician in the California State Assembly. He represents the northern San Joaquin Valley, including the city of Manteca.

Early life

On July 19, 1983, Flora was born in Stanislaus County, California.[2]

Career

Flora served for over 15 years as a volunteer fire fighter.[3] From 2005 to 2007, Flora was a firefighter with the California Department Forestry and Fire Protection. Flora is a businessman and owner of Golden Valley Equipment.

In, 2016, Flora's political career began when he ran for the California State Assembly to succeed fellow Republican Kristen Olsen, who ran successfully for the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors. In a surprise, he won the election and became a Republican member of California State Assembly for District 12, encompassing part of the San Joaquin Valley. Flora defeated Ken Vogel, a former San Joaquin County Supervisor, with 52.2% of the votes in an upset.[4] [5] [6]

On November 6, 2018, as an incumbent, Flora won the election and continued serving District 12. Flora defeated Robert D. Chase with 60% of the votes.[7] [8]

In Flora's first term as a member of the Assembly, Flora authored seven bills that were ultimately signed into law,[9] including bills to develop a firefighter pre-apprenticeship program[10] and to reduce the impact of property taxes on new construction.[11]

In 2020, Flora was reelected with 67% over Lathrop City Councilman Paul Akinjo.

In November 2020, amidst the COVID-19 pandemic, Heath Flora travelled to Hawaii to attend a conference with 120 other people.[12]

Electoral history

2016 California State Assembly

See also: California State Assembly election, 2016.

2018 California State Assembly

See also: 2018 California State Assembly election.

2020 California State Assembly

See also: 2020 California State Assembly election.

Personal life

Flora has two children. In 2015, Flora and his family moved from Modesto to Ripon, California, where he no longer lives.[4] [5] [13] Flora’s wife, Melodie, filed for divorce in April 2022 in San Joaquin County Superior Court.[14]

In July 2022, a woman named Emily Hughes claimed that Flora had multiple extra-marital affairs, one of which was with her.[15] Hughes' affair with Flora took place while Hughes worked as a lobbyist for the California Medical Association and Flora was serving on the Assembly Health Committee which deals with issues of interest to the California Medical Association. In August 2022, Flora promised to issue a formal statement about the affair, but has yet to issue a statement as of a week after the promise.

External links

Notes and References

  1. Web site: JoinCalifornia - Heath Flora .
  2. Web site: Heath Flora . joincalifornia.com . June 19, 2020.
  3. Web site: Heath Flora . heathflora.com . January 25, 2019.
  4. Web site: Heath Flora . votesmart.org . January 25, 2019.
  5. Web site: Galgiani, Eggman and Flora win seats . recordnet.com . Emma Franklin . Henterly . November 8, 2016 . June 19, 2020.
  6. Web site: November 8, 2016 General Election . joincalifornia.com . November 8, 2016 . June 19, 2020.
  7. Web site: November 6, 2018 General Election . joincalifornia.com . November 6, 2018 . June 19, 2020.
  8. Web site: Flora's second term to focus on community funding . turlockjournal.com . Angelina . Martin . December 24, 2018 . June 19, 2020.
  9. Web site: Bills Introduced by Asm. Flora. ca.gov.
  10. Web site: AB 579, 2017. ca.gov.
  11. Web site: AB 652, 2017. ca.gov.
  12. Web site: California lawmakers' Maui getaway: Here's who is there. November 23, 2020.
  13. Web site: Assembly campaign choice: Tried and true, or fresh and new . modbee.com . Garth . Stapley . October 15, 2016 . June 19, 2020.
  14. News: Carlson . Ken . August 12, 2022 . California lawmaker faces scandal after lobbyist tweets about alleged affair . .
  15. News: Sacramento lobbyist alleges Valley lawmaker engaged in multiple extramarital affairs. Reid. Stone. July 12, 2022. San Joaquin Valley Sun.