The
California State Assembly is the
lower house of the
California State Legislature.
There are 80 members in the Assembly, representing an approximately
equal number of constituents, with each district having a
population of at least 420,000.
Due to the state's large population and
relatively small legislature, the Assembly has the largest
population per representative ratio of any state legislature lower
house and second largest of any legislative lower house in the
United States
; only the
federal U.S.
House of
Representatives has a larger ratio. Since a
referendum in 1990, members of the Assembly are
restricted by
term
limits, confining them to three two-year terms (six
years).
The
Assembly convenes at the California State
Capitol
in Sacramento
.
Leadership of the Assembly
The
Speaker of the Assembly
presides over the Assembly in the chief leadership position,
controlling the flow of legislation and committee assignments. The
Speaker is elected by the majority party caucus, followed by
confirmation of the full Assembly on passage of a
floor vote. Other Assembly leaders, such as the
majority and
minority leaders, are elected by their
respective
party caucuses according to
each party's strength in the chamber.
The
current Speaker is Democrat Karen Bass (47th-Los
Angeles
).
The
Majority Leader is Democrat Alberto Torrico (20th-Newark
). The Minority
Leader is Republican
Sam Blakeslee (33rd-San Luis Obispo
).
Assembly chamber
The
chamber's green tones are based on the British House of Commons
. The dais rests along a wall shaped like an
"E", with its central projection housing the rostrum. Along the
cornice appears a portrait of
Abraham
Lincoln and a quotation from him in Latin:
legislatorum est
iustas leges condere ("It is the duty of legislators to pass
just laws"). Almost every decorating element is identical to the
Senate Chamber.
Assembly
| Affiliation |
Party
(Shading indicates majority
caucus)
|
Total |
|
|
|
|
|
| Democratic |
Independent |
Republican |
Vacant |
| End of previous
legislature |
48 |
0 |
32 |
80 |
0 |
|
| Begin |
51 |
0 |
29 |
80 |
0 |
| May 19, 2009 |
50 |
79 |
1 |
| June 23, 2009 |
49 |
1 |
| September 9, 2009 |
28 |
78 |
2 |
| September 10, 2009 |
50 |
79 |
1 |
| Latest voting share |
63.3% |
1.3% |
35.4% |
|
Sessions
See:
Seating chart
Candidate qualifications
To run for Member of the Assembly, the candidate must be a United
States citizen and a registered voter in the district at the time
nomination papers are issued and may not have served three terms in
the State Assembly since
November 6,
1990. According to Article IV, Section 2(c) of
the
California Constitution,
the candidate must have one year of residency in the legislative
district and California residency for three years, even though it
is the legal opinion of the
California Secretary of
State's office that these provisions violate the
United States Constitution.
Officers information
The Office of the
Sergeant at Arms is the division
which protects the assemblymen of the California State Assembly.
The chief sergeant at arms is the head of this division. This
position has existed since
December 15
1849 when
Samuel
N. Houston became California's
first Sergeant at Arms.
Official
website of the Sergeant at Arms
See also
References
- Curren
Price resigned after being elected to the State Senate
- Steven
Bradford elected to succeed Price
External links
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