Gorell to challenge Brownley in congressional race
State Assemblyman Jeff Gorell, R-Camarillo, said Nov. 25 that he intends to run for California’s 26th Congressional District, which covers most of Ventura County and is currently held by Rep. Julia Brownley, D-Oak Park.
Gorell has been actively involved with business and economic development groups, forming the so-called “Gold Team” to focus on attracting and retaining jobs in the state. For that effort he partnered with Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom, a San Francisco Democrat. The Ventura County Economic Development Association and Chambers of Commerce Alliance for Ventura and Santa Barbara Counties were also involved.
In a campaign statement, Gorell said economic development would continue to be a key focus if elected to federal office.
The 26th Congressional District was newly redrawn in 2012 and was considered one of a handful of tossup districts in California. Much of its territory had previously belonged to the 24th Congressional District, held for years by Rep. Elton Gallegly, a Republican. Under the new open primary rules in 2012, Republican Tony Strickland won the most votes, with Brownley coming in second, sending the two into the general election, where Brownley prevailed with 53 percent of the vote to Strickland’s 47 percent.
