Incumbent Grade F

Political Party:

Republican

Ballot Designation:

 California State Assemblywoman

Law Enforcement Contributions:

Riverside Sheriffs’ Association Public Education Fund
California Statewide Law Enforcement Association (CSLEA) PAC
California Correctional Peace Officers Association (CCPOA) PAC

Background:

Assemblymember Sanchez was first elected to the State Assembly in 2022. Prior to running for office she was Vice President of American Ground Transportation, an Orange-County based company.

Public Safety Platform:

Assemblymember Sanchez has been a fierce opponent of justice reform, introducing multiple pieces of legislation aimed at increasing criminalization. She voted against ACA 8 to end slavery in prisons, AB 2178 to reduce prison capacity, and AB 2709 to strengthen visitation rights. Meanwhile, she voted for every criminalization bill including AB 1990 and AB 1960. This voting record earned her an F on our Legislative Scorecard in both 2023 and 2024.

On her campaign website, she states: “Criminals seem to have more rights than law-abiding citizens” and lists some of the harmful bills she introduced, such as AB 75 which would increase penalties for shoplifting, and AB 257 which “would prohibit a person from sitting, lying, sleeping, or storing, using, maintaining, or placing personal property in any street, sidewalk, or other public property within 500 feet of a school, daycare center, park, or library.”

Furthermore, Assemblymember Sanchez has endorsed Proposition 36, a measure that will appear on the November 2024 General Election ballot that would bring back felony charges for drug possession, create new enhancements for retail theft, and gut major components of Proposition 47. It is being led by district attorneys, police and prison associations, and big corporations like Walmart and Home Depot. For these reasons, and due to the lack of a serious challenger, IJ Action has no recommendation in the AD 71 race.

Website:

https://www.sanchezforassembly.com/

Political Party:

Democrat

Ballot Designation:

 Software Engineer

Law Enforcement Contributions:

The candidate has not reported any campaign funds as of 8/23/24

Background:

 Kephart is a software engineer. He previously ran unsuccessfully for state senate in 2014, and for the 71st Assembly District in 2010.

Public Safety Platform:

Kephart’s website appears to be a word press personal bog that was reformatted into a campaign site. The only policy issue on his page is the environment, where he talks about destruction of the Amazon Rainforest and mountaintop removal coal mining.

Website:

http://garykephart.com/wordpress/