SACRAMENTO, Calif. — California Republican State Sen. Brian Dahle (R-Lassen County) announced on Tuesday in Redding he will run for governor against Gavin Newsom.
Currently, he represents the rural northeast corner of the state in the Senate.
In an announcement streamed online, Sen. Brian Dahle faulted the state’s dominant Democratic Party for a decaying quality of life, rising crime rates and an unchecked homelessness crisis. Republicans haven’t won a statewide race in the heavily Democratic state since 2006 and Dahle acknowledged the long odds against him, calling his run against Newsom a “David versus Goliath” challenge.
Here are some quick facts about Dahle:
- He was born Sep. 20, 1965 in Redding.
- He lives in Bieber, Calif., with his wife Megan Dahle.
- He has three children.
- Dahle and his wife have a wheat farm and a related seed grain transport business in Bieber.
- He was on the Lassen County Board of Supervisors for 16 years before being elected to the State Assembly in 2012.
- In 2019, Dahle defeated fellow Republican Assemblyman Kevin Kiley in a special election for California’s vacant District 1 Senate seat.
- He is on multiple committees including: education, transportation and environmental quality.
- He is currently vice-chair of the energy, utilities & communications committee.
According to the Associated Press, Dahle will be one of the first Republicans to publicly challenge Newsom since his decisive victory in a recall election just five months ago. California Democrats hold every statewide office, a nearly 2-to-1 edge in voter registrations over the GOP and dominate the congressional delegation and the Legislature.
