California lawmaker switches party, criticizes Democratic leadership

Associated Press

SACRAMENTO, Calif. (AP) — A moderate California Democratic state lawmaker is announcing Thursday that she is switching to the Republican Party. State Sen. Marie Alvarado-Gil said she had long been a Democrat, but she and the Democratic Party have moved in different directions since she was elected in 2022. Alvarado-Gil represents a largely rural district northeast of the Central Valley. She said the Democratic Party’s policies are hurting the middle class and children in California. Her defection gives Republicans nine votes in the 40-member Senate, still well under the majority they need to control the chamber. Democrats hold supermajorities in both the Assembly and Senate at the Capitol.