Political party strength in California
California is a Democratic stronghold and one of the "big three" Democratic states alongside New York and Illinois.
The following table indicates the party of elected officials in the U.S. state of California:
- Governor
- Lieutenant Governor
- Attorney General
- Secretary of State
- Treasurer
- Controller
- Insurance Commissioner
- California Superintendent of Public Instruction
The table also indicates the historical party composition in the:
- Board of Equalization
- State Senate
- State Assembly
- State delegation to the U.S. Senate
- State delegation to the U.S. House of Representatives
For years in which a presidential election was held, the table indicates which party's nominees received the state's electoral votes.
Note that ties on the Board of Equalization are broken by the vote of the State Controller.
The parties are as follows: American (A), Anti-Monopolist (AM), Constitutional Union (CU), Democratic (D), Independent (I), Nonpartisan (NP), National Union (NU), Progressive (P), Republican (R), Whig (W), and a tie or coalition within a group of elected officials.
Year | Executive offices | Board of Equalization | State Legislature | United States Congress | Electoral College votes | ||||||||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Governor | Lt. Governor | Attorney General | Secretary of State | Treas. | Cont. | Ins. Comm. | Supt. of Pub. Inst. | State Senate | State Assem. | U.S. Senator (Class I) | U.S. Senator (Class III) | U.S. House | |||
2018 | Jerry Brown (D) | Gavin Newsom (D) | Xavier Becerra (D) | Alex Padilla (D) | John Chiang (D) | Betty Yee (D) | Dave Jones (D) | Tom Torlakson (NP) | 2D, 2R[1] | 27D, 13R | 55D, 25R | Dianne Feinstein (D) | Kamala Harris (D) | 39D, 14R | |
2017 | |||||||||||||||
2016 | Kamala Harris (D) | 26D, 14R | 52D, 28R | Barbara Boxer (D) | H. Clinton/Kaine (D) | ||||||||||
2015 | |||||||||||||||
2014 | Debra Bowen (D) | Bill Lockyer (D) | John Chiang (D) | 25D, 12R | 55D, 25R | 38D, 15R | |||||||||
2013 | |||||||||||||||
29D, 11R | |||||||||||||||
2012 | 25D, 15R | 52D, 27R, 1I | 34D, 19R | Obama/Biden (D) | |||||||||||
52D, 28R | |||||||||||||||
2011 | |||||||||||||||
2010 | Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) | Abel Maldonado (R) | Jerry Brown (D) | Steve Poizner (R) | Jack O'Connell (NP) | 50D, 29R, 1I | |||||||||
2009 | John Garamendi (D) | ||||||||||||||
2008 | 48D, 32R | Obama/Biden (D) | |||||||||||||
2007 | |||||||||||||||
2006 | Cruz Bustamante (D) | Bill Lockyer (D) | Bruce McPherson (R) | Phil Angelides (D) | Steve Westly (D) | John Garamendi (D) | 33D, 20R | ||||||||
2005 | |||||||||||||||
Cathy Mitchell (D) | |||||||||||||||
Kevin Shelley (D) | |||||||||||||||
2004 | Kerry/Edwards (D) | ||||||||||||||
2003 | |||||||||||||||
Gray Davis (D) | |||||||||||||||
2002 | Bill Jones (R) | Kathleen Connell (D) | Harry W. Low (D) | Delaine Eastin (NP) | 26D, 14R | 50D, 30R | 32D, 20R | ||||||||
2001 | |||||||||||||||
2000 | 25D, 15R | 47D, 32R, 1G | 27D, 25R | Gore/Lieberman (D) | |||||||||||
28D, 24R | |||||||||||||||
1999 | |||||||||||||||
J. Clark Kelso (R) | |||||||||||||||
Chuck Quackenbush (R) | |||||||||||||||
1998 | Pete Wilson (R) | Gray Davis (D) | Dan Lungren (R) | Matt Fong (R) | 23D, 16R, 1I | 43D, 37R | 29D, 23R | ||||||||
1997 | |||||||||||||||
1996 | 21D, 17R, 2I | 41R, 39D[2] | 26D, 26R | B. Clinton/Gore (D) | |||||||||||
1995 | |||||||||||||||
27D, 25R | |||||||||||||||
1994 | Leo T. McCarthy (D) | Tony Miller (D) | Kathleen Brown (D) | Gray Davis (D) | John Garamendi (D) | Vacant | 23D, 15R, 2I | 48D, 32R | 30D, 22R | ||||||
March Fong Eu (D) | |||||||||||||||
1993 | |||||||||||||||
1992 | Bill Honig (NP) | 25D, 14R, 1I | 46D, 34R | Alan Cranston (D) | 26D, 19R | B. Clinton/Gore (D) | |||||||||
John F. Seymour (R) | |||||||||||||||
1991 | |||||||||||||||
1990 | George Deukmejian (R) | John Van de Kamp (D) | Thomas W. Hayes (R) | 24D, 15R, 1I | 47D, 33R | Pete Wilson (R) | 28D, 17R | ||||||||
1989 | |||||||||||||||
1988 | Elizabeth Whitney (D) | 44D, 36R | Bush/Quayle (R) | ||||||||||||
Jesse Unruh (D) | |||||||||||||||
1987 | |||||||||||||||
1986 | Kenneth Cory (D) | 3D, 1R | 25D, 15R | 47D, 33R | |||||||||||
1985 | |||||||||||||||
1984 | 48D, 32R | Reagan/Bush (R) | |||||||||||||
1983 | |||||||||||||||
1982 | Jerry Brown (D) | Michael Curb (R) | George Deukmejian (R) | Wilson Riles (NP) | 26D, 14R | 47D, 33R | S. I. Hayakawa | 22D, 21R | |||||||
1981 | |||||||||||||||
1980 | 50D, 30R | 25D, 18R | Reagan/Bush (R) | ||||||||||||
1979 | |||||||||||||||
28D, 15R | |||||||||||||||
1978 | Mervyn M. Dymally (D) | Evelle J. Younger (R) | 4D | 28D, 12R | 57D, 23R | 29D, 14R | |||||||||
1977 | |||||||||||||||
1976 | 25D, 15R | 55D, 25R | John V. Tunney (D) | 28D, 15R | Ford/Dole (R) | ||||||||||
1975 | |||||||||||||||
1974 | Ronald Reagan (R) | John L. Harmer (R) | Jerry Brown (D) | Ivy Baker Priest (R) | Houston I. Flournoy (R) | 20D, 20R[3] | 51D, 29R | 24D, 19R | |||||||
Edwin Reinecke (R) | 23D, 20R | ||||||||||||||
1973 | |||||||||||||||
1972 | 21D, 19R | 43D, 37R | 20D, 18R | Nixon/Agnew (R) | |||||||||||
1971 | |||||||||||||||
1970 | Thomas C. Lynch (D) | H. P. Sullivan (R) | Max Rafferty (NP) | 21R, 19D | 41R, 39D | George Murphy (R) | 21D, 17R | ||||||||
Frank M. Jordan (R) | |||||||||||||||
1969 | |||||||||||||||
1968 | Robert Finch (R) | 20D, 20R[4] | 42D, 38R | Thomas Kuchel (R) | Nixon/Agnew (R) | ||||||||||
1967 | 21D, 19R | ||||||||||||||
1966 | Pat Brown (D) | Glenn M. Anderson (D) | Bert A. Betts (D) | Alan Cranston (D) | 27D, 13R | 49D, 31R | 23D, 15R | ||||||||
1965 | |||||||||||||||
1964 | 52D, 28R | Pierre Salinger (D) | Johnson/Humphrey (D) | ||||||||||||
Stanley Mosk (D) | Clair Engle (D) | ||||||||||||||
1963 | |||||||||||||||
24D, 14R | |||||||||||||||
1962 | Roy E. Simpson (NP) | 30D, 10R | 47D, 33R | ||||||||||||
1961 | |||||||||||||||
1960 | 26D, 14R | 16D, 14R | Nixon/Lodge (R) | ||||||||||||
1959 | |||||||||||||||
1958 | Goodwin Knight (R) | Harold J. Powers (R) | Pat Brown (D) | A. Ronald Button (R) | Robert C. Kirkwood (R) | 2R, 2D | 20D, 20R[5] | 42R, 38D | William F. Knowland (R) | 17R, 13D | |||||
1957 | |||||||||||||||
1956 | 22R, 18D | 47R, 33D | 19R, 11D | Eisenhower/Nixon (R) | |||||||||||
Charles G. Johnson (R) | |||||||||||||||
1955 | |||||||||||||||
1954 | 29R, 11D | 53R, 27D | |||||||||||||
1953 | 3R, 1D | ||||||||||||||
Earl Warren (R) | Goodwin Knight (R) | ||||||||||||||
1952 | Thomas Kuchel (R) | 28R, 12D | 47R, 33D | Richard Nixon (R) | 12R, 11D | Eisenhower/Nixon (R) | |||||||||
1951 | |||||||||||||||
1950 | Frederick N. Houser (R) | 26R, 14D | 45R, 35D | Sheridan Downey (D) | |||||||||||
1949 | |||||||||||||||
1948 | 27R, 13D | 48R, 32D | 14R, 9D | Truman/Barkley (D) | |||||||||||
1947 | |||||||||||||||
1946 | Frederick F. Houser (R) | Robert W. Kenny (D) | 42R, 37D, 1I | 16D, 7R | |||||||||||
Harry B. Riley (R) | |||||||||||||||
1945 | |||||||||||||||
Hiram Johnson (R) | |||||||||||||||
1944 | Walter F. Dexter (NP) | 24R, 16D | 44R, 36D | 13D, 10R | Roosevelt/Truman (D) | ||||||||||
1943 | |||||||||||||||
1942 | Culbert Olson (D) | Ellis E. Patterson (D) | Earl Warren (R) | Paul Peek (D) | 42D, 38R | 10D, 10R | |||||||||
1941 | |||||||||||||||
1940 | 21R, 19D | 44D, 36R | 11D, 8R, 1I | Roosevelt/Wallace (D) | |||||||||||
Frank C. Jordan (R) | |||||||||||||||
1939 | |||||||||||||||
1938 | Frank Merriam (R) | George J. Hatfield (R) | Ulysses S. Webb (R) | 4R | 25R, 15D | 47D, 33R | Thomas M. Storke (D) | 15D, 14R, 1I | |||||||
William Gibbs McAdoo (D) | |||||||||||||||
1937 | |||||||||||||||
1936 | Roy C. Riley (R) | Vierling C. Kersey (NP) | 31R, 8D, 1I | 42R, 37D, 1I | 13D, 7R | Roosevelt/Garner (D) | |||||||||
1935 | |||||||||||||||
1934 | Frank Merriam (R) | 35R, 5D | 55R, 25D | 11R, 9D | |||||||||||
James Rolph (R) | |||||||||||||||
1933 | |||||||||||||||
1932 | 36R, 4D | 73R, 7D | Samuel M. Shortridge (R) | 10R, 1D | Roosevelt/Garner (D) | ||||||||||
1931 | |||||||||||||||
1930 | Clement Calhoun Young (R) | H. L. Carnahan (R) | 35R, 5D | 71R, 7D, 2I | |||||||||||
1929 | |||||||||||||||
1928 | William John Cooper (NP) | 74R, 6D | Hoover/Curtis (R) | ||||||||||||
Buron Fitts (R) | |||||||||||||||
1927 | |||||||||||||||
1926 | Friend Richardson (R) | Clement Calhoun Young (R) | Will C. Wood (NP) | 3R, 1D | 37R, 3D | 75R, 5D | |||||||||
9R, 2D | |||||||||||||||
1925 | |||||||||||||||
1924 | 36R, 3D, 1I | 76R, 4D | Coolidge/Dawes (R) | ||||||||||||
1923 | |||||||||||||||
1922 | William Stephens (R) | Friend Richardson (P) | 33R, 7D | 73R, 7D | |||||||||||
1921 | |||||||||||||||
1920 | John S. Chambers (R) | 32R, 7D, 1I | 70R, 10D | James D. Phelan (D) | Harding/Coolidge (R) | ||||||||||
1919 | |||||||||||||||
1918 | Edward Hyatt (R) | 20R, 11D, 8 Prog., 1I[6] | 69R, 9D, 1 Prog., 1 Proh. | 5R, 4D, 1I, 1 Proh. | |||||||||||
1917 | |||||||||||||||
1916 | Hiram Johnson (R/P) | William Stephens (R) | 21R, 10D, 9 Prog. | 33R, 28 Prog., 15D, 3S, 1 Proh.[7] | John D. Works (R) | 5R, 3D, 1I, 1I, 1I | Wilson/Marshall (D) | ||||||||
John M. Eshleman (P) | |||||||||||||||
1915 | |||||||||||||||
1914 | A. J. Wallace (R) | Edward D. Roberts (R) | 4R | 30R, 10D | 54R, 25D, 1S | George Clement Perkins (R) | 6R, 3D, 1I, 1I | ||||||||
1913 | |||||||||||||||
1912 | A. B. Nye (R) | 32R, 8D | 69R, 11D | 7R, 1D | T. Roosevelt/Hiram Johnson (P) | ||||||||||
1911 | |||||||||||||||
1910 | James N. Gillett (R) | Warren R. Porter (R) | Charles F. Curry (R) | William R. Williams (R) | 30R, 9D, 1I | 60R, 20D | Frank P. Flint (R) | 8R | |||||||
1909 | |||||||||||||||
1908 | 33R, 6D, 1I | 73R, 6D, 1 Ind. Lea. | Taft/Sherman (R) | ||||||||||||
1907 | |||||||||||||||
1906 | George Pardee (R) | Alden Anderson (R) | Truman Reeves (R) | Thomas J. Kirk (R) | 2R, 2D[8] | 33R, 4 Un. Lab., 3D | 72R, 4D, 4 Un. Lab. | ||||||||
Edward P. Colgan (R) | |||||||||||||||
1905 | |||||||||||||||
1904 | 33R, 7D | 60R, 19D, 1 Un. Lab. | Thomas R. Bard (R) | 5R, 3D | T. Roosevelt/Fairbanks (R) | ||||||||||
1903 | |||||||||||||||
1902 | Henry Gage (R) | Jacob H. Neff (R) | 34R, 6D | 60R, 20D | 7R | ||||||||||
Tirey L. Ford (R) | |||||||||||||||
1901 | |||||||||||||||
1900 | 26R, 14D | 59R, 20D, 2I | McKinley/T. Roosevelt (R) | ||||||||||||
1899 | 6R, 1D | ||||||||||||||
1898 | James Budd (D) | William T. Jeter (D) | William F. Fitzgerald (R) | Lewis H. Brown (R) | Will S. Green (D) | Charles T. Meredith (D) | 3R, 1D | 28R, 12D | 47R, 16 Fus., 9P, 8D | Stephen M. White (D) | 3R, 2D, 2P | ||||
Levi Ratcliffe (R) | Samuel T. Black (R) | ||||||||||||||
1897 | |||||||||||||||
1896 | 25R, 15D | 64R, 14D, 2 Peop. | 4R, 2D | McKinley/Hobart (R) | |||||||||||
1895 | |||||||||||||||
Millard (R) | |||||||||||||||
1894 | Henry Markham (R) | John B. Reddick (R) | William H. H. Hart (R) | Albert Hart (R) | J. R. McDonald (R) | J.W. Anderson (R) | 22R, 18D | 45D, 31R, 2I, 2 Peop. | |||||||
Edwin G. Waite (R) | |||||||||||||||
1893 | |||||||||||||||
Leland Stanford (R) | |||||||||||||||
1892 | 28R, 12D | 60R, 19D, 1A | Charles N. Felton (R) | Cleveland/Stevenson (D) | |||||||||||
1891 | |||||||||||||||
George Hearst (D) | |||||||||||||||
1890 | Robert Waterman (R) | Steven M. White (D) | George A. Johnson (D) | William C. Hendricks (D) | Adam Herald (D) | John P. Dunn (D) | Ira G. Haitt (R) | 3D, 1R | 22D, 18R | 42D, 38R | |||||
1889 | |||||||||||||||
1888 | 26D, 14R | 41R, 39D | Harrison/Morton (R) | ||||||||||||
1887 | |||||||||||||||
Washington Bartlett (D) | Robert Waterman (R) | ||||||||||||||
1886 | George Stoneman (D) | John Daggett (D) | Edward C. Marshall (D) | Thomas Larkin Thompson (D) | Denis J. Oullahan (D) | William T. Weckler (D) | 20D, 20R[9] | 60R, 20D | Abram P. Williams (R) | 5R, 1D | |||||
George Hearst (D) | |||||||||||||||
John Franklin Miller (R) | |||||||||||||||
1885 | |||||||||||||||
1884 | 32D, 8R | 61D, 19R | James T. Farley (D) | 6D | Blaine/Logan (R) | ||||||||||
1883 | |||||||||||||||
William A. January (D) | |||||||||||||||
1882 | George Clement Perkins (R) | John Mansfield (R) | Augustus L. Hart (R) | Daniel M. Burns (R) | John Weil (R) | Daniel M. Kenfield (R) | Frederick M. Campbell (R) | 3R, 1D | 23R, 10 Work., 7D | 42R, 33D, 4 Work., 1G | 2D, 2R | ||||
1881 | |||||||||||||||
1880 | 46R, 18D, 16 Work. | Newton Booth (AM) | 3R, 1D | Hancock/English (D) | |||||||||||
1879 | William Irwin (D) | James A. Johnson (D) | Jo Hamilton (D) | Thomas Bock (D) | Jose G. Estudillo (D) | Ezra S. Carr (R) | 27D, 10R, 2I, 1 Work. | 55D, 24R, 1 Work. | |||||||
1878 | Aaron Augustus Sargent (R) | 2D, 2R | |||||||||||||
1877 | 20D, 11I, 6R, 3ID | 64D, 12R, 4I | 3R, 1D | ||||||||||||
1876 | William B. C. Brown (D) | 3D, 1R | Hayes/Wheeler (R) | ||||||||||||
1875 | Romualdo Pacheco (R) | William Irwin (D) | James W. Mandeville (D) | 18R, 14D, 8I[10] | 34I, 27R, 19D[11] | ||||||||||
Newton Booth (R) | Romualdo Pacheco (R) | ||||||||||||||
1874 | John Lord Love (R) | Drury Melone (R) | Ferdinand Baehr (R) | James J. Green (R) | Henry N. Bolander (R) | John S. Hager (D) | 3R, 1D | ||||||||
1873 | 22D, 17R, 1I | 54R, 25D, 1I | |||||||||||||
Eugene Casserly (D) | |||||||||||||||
1872 | Cornelius Cole (R) | 3R | Grant/Wilson (R) | ||||||||||||
1871 | Henry Huntly Haight (D) | William Holden (D) | 26D, 12R, 2I | 67D, 10R, 3I | |||||||||||
1870 | Jo Hamilton (D) | Henry L. Nichols (D) | Antonio F. Coronel (D) | Robert Watt (D) | Oscar Penn Fitzgerald (D) | 2D, 1R | |||||||||
1869 | 21R, 19D | 52D, 28R | |||||||||||||
1868 | John Conness (R) | Grant/Colfax (R) | |||||||||||||
1867 | Frederick Low (R) | Tim M. Machin (R) | 31R, 9D | 61R, 19D | |||||||||||
1866 | John L. McCullogh (R) | Benjamin B. Redding (R) | Romualdo Pacheco (R) | George R. Oultan (R) | John Swett (R) | James A. McDougall (D) | 3R | ||||||||
1865 | 35R, 5D | 70R, 10D | |||||||||||||
1864 | Lincoln/Johnson (NU) | ||||||||||||||
1863 | Leland Stanford (R) | John F. Chellis (R) | 31R, 9D | 63R, 17D | |||||||||||
1862 | Frank M. Pixley (R) | John F. Chellis (R) | Delos R. Ashley (R) | Gilbert R. Warren (R) | Andrew J. Moulder (D) | 23D, 17R | 41D, 39R | Milton Latham (D) | |||||||
William H. Weeks (R) | |||||||||||||||
1861 | John G. Downey (D) | Pablo de la Guerra (D) | Thomas H. Williams (D) | Johnson Price (D) | Thomas Findley (D) | James S. Gillan (D) | 30D, 6R | 60D, 19R, 1 Const. Un. | |||||||
1860 | Isaac N. Quinn (D) | Samuel H. Brooks (D) | 33D, 2R | 78D, 2R | William M. Gwin (D) | 2D | Lincoln/Hamlin (R) | ||||||||
Milton Latham (D) | John G. Downey (D) | Henry P. Haun (D) | |||||||||||||
1859 | John B. Weller (D) | Joseph Walkup (D) | Ferris Foreman (D) | Aaron R. Melony (D) | 30D, 4R, 1I | 72D, 8R | |||||||||
David C. Broderick (D) | |||||||||||||||
1858 | 27D, 5R, 3A | 66D, 9R, 4A, 1I | |||||||||||||
1857 | J. Neely Johnson (A) | Robert M. Anderson (A) | William T. Wallace (A) | David F. Douglass (A) | James L. English (A) | Edward F. Burton (A) | 19D, 11A, 3R | 61D, 11R, 8A | |||||||
George W. Whitman (A) | |||||||||||||||
1856 | Henry Bates (A) | Paul K. Hubbs (D) | 16A, 16D, 1W[12] | 56A, 23D, 1I | John B. Weller (D) | vacant | Buchanan/Breckenridge (D) | ||||||||
1855 | John Bigler (D) | Samuel Purdy (D) | John R. McConnell (D) | Charles R. Hempstead (D) | Selden A. McMeans (D) | Samuel Bell (D) | 26D, 7W | 42D, 36W, 2I | |||||||
1854 | James W. Denver (D) | 26D, 8W | 68D, 12W | William M. Gwin (D) | |||||||||||
1853 | Serranus Clinton Hastings (D) | Richard Roman (D) | Winslow S. Pierce (D) | John G. Marvin (D) | 20D, 7W | 41D, 22W | |||||||||
1852 | William Van Voohies (D) | 26D, 2W | 41D, 21W, 1I | Pierce/King (D) | |||||||||||
1851 | John McDougall (D) | David C. Broderick (D) | James A. McDougall (D) | John S. Houston (D) | 10D, 4W, 2I | 18W, 17D, 1I[13] | vacant | ||||||||
1850 | Peter Burnett (D) | John McDougall (D) | Edward J. C. Kewen (D) | 16NP | 36NP | John C. Fremont (D) | John S. Houston (D) | ||||||||
1849 | |||||||||||||||
Year | Governor | Lt. Governor | Attorney General | Secretary of State | Treas. | Cont. | Ins. Comm. | Supt. of Pub. Inst. | Board of Equalization | State Senate | State Assem. | U.S. Senator (Class I) | U.S. Senator (Class III) | U.S. House | Electoral College votes |
Executive offices | State Legislature | United States Congress |
See also
- Government and politics in California
- California locations by voter registration
- Politics of California
- Elections in California
- Government of California
References
- ↑ Democratic State Controllers have held office for the entire duration of this tie, giving Democrats control of the Board.
- ↑ Democrat Willie Brown continued as Speaker for the first half of 1995 with the support of an Republican-turned-Independent, Paul Horcher, and two Republicans, and those two Republicans, Doris Allen and Brian Setencich, each served as Speaker for three months the second half of 1995. Republican Curt Pringle was then selected as Speaker in 1996 after the Independent and two Republicans were recalled and/or removed from office.
- ↑ Democrat James Mills continued as Senate President Pro Tempore.
- ↑ A Republican, Milton Marks, picked up a seat in a special election from the Democrats.
- ↑ A Democrat, Hugh M. Burns, became Senate President Pro Tempore.
- ↑ A Republican, Arthur H. Breed, was elected President Pro Tempore with the helped of the minor parties.
- ↑ A Progressive was elected Speaker with Democratic support.
- ↑ Republicans held the State Controller's office for the duration of this tie and cast the tie-breaking vote here, giving control of the Board to the Republicans.
- ↑ Elected a Democrat as President Pro Tempore.
- ↑ A Democrat, William Irwin, was elected President Pro Tempore with the help of the People's Independent Party.
- ↑ A representative of the People's Independent Party, Morris M. Estee, was elected Speaker with the help of Democrats.
- ↑ The Whig sided with the Know-Nothings to elect a Know-Nothing President Pro Tempore, Delos R. Ashley.
- ↑ A Democrat, John Bigler, was re-elected Speaker, continuing in his service from when it was a non-partisan body.