A California state lawmaker announced on Thursday that she’s switching affiliation to the Republican Party in a bid to save the state from heading in the wrong direction under a Democratic supermajority.
State Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil, who represents the state’s fourth Senate district, said she joined the Senate Republican Caucus and party after deep reflection and to help “in their fight to fix California.”
“I was elected to serve the public, not a political ideology,” Alvarado-Gil said in a statement. “The status quo under a supermajority Democratic rule in the legislature is simply not working for this state.”
Democratic state Senate President Pro Tem Mike McGuire said her decision would be disappointing for voters who elected her in 2022.
“They trusted her to represent them, and she’s betrayed that trust,” he said in a statement.
However, Alvarado-Gil, who represents a largely conservative-leaning rural district in northeast Central Valley, said the decision was “right for the constituents that voted me into office” and about putting them first.
California has a Democrat supermajority in both the Assembly and the Senate. After Alvarado-Gil’s defection, which gives Republicans nine votes in the 40-member Senate, Democrats will retain their veto-proof majority.
Despite Democrats having more power and ability in the state Legislature, Alvarado-Gil said that since she’s been elected, she’s had a front-row seat to watching the Democratic supermajority push California in what she characterized as a wrong direction.
Republicans’ nine votes still leaves them well under the majority they need to control the chamber. Democrats hold supermajorities in both the Assembly and Senate at the Capitol.
Alvarado-Gil is known for working with Republicans and has split from Democrats to vote on issues where she feels politics is being put over public safety.
State Senate Minority Leader Brian W. Jones, in a statement welcoming Alvarado-Gil to the GOP, said it takes courage for a lawmaker to stand up to the supermajority the way she has.
“Her record on tackling crime, protecting communities from sexually violent predators, and prioritizing her constituents speaks for itself,” said Jones, who has recently worked with Alvarado-Gil on a number of key Republican measures.
Alvarado-Gil, who is in her first term, has broken with Democrats on a number of bills, including gun legislation, caps on oil industry profits, and restrictions on homeless encampments over the last year. She was one of three state Democratic senators to co-author legislation led by Jones to restrict homeless encampments.
She said on Thursday that she will continue to aggressively advocate for fiscal responsibility, public safety, supporting veterans, tackling the homelessness crisis, and lowering living costs.
Alvarado-Gil has supported legislation addressing crime, fentanyl, human trafficking, child sex trafficking, sexual assault, and relocating sexually violent predators to rural communities.
“I look forward to collaborating with my Republican colleagues on their plan to Fix California and continuing to lead with a pragmatic approach on issues affecting my district and this great state,” she said.
California Republican Party Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson said, “Senator Alvarado-Gil has represented her community as an independent, fiscally-conservative voice in Sacramento, and we are honored to have her represent them going forward as a member of the Republican Party.”
Alvarado-Gil beat out a progressive Democrat by more than five points in the 2022 election. Registered Republican voters in her district have increased since 2022 to nearly 39 percent to Democrats’ 34 percent in 2024.
It’s uncommon for a member of a majority party to switch affiliation, according to California State Library legislative historian Alex Vassar.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
