State Senator looks to northern Congressional district for a new political seat.
[view:node_ad=5]Tom McClintock, who currently represents a small portion of Santa Clarita in his California State Senate District, has announced that he will be heading north to run for the 4th Congressional District.

The Congressional district begins just northeast of Sacramento, and extends up the eastern border of California to the Oregon border. Currently, McClintock’s State Senate seat represents Santa Clarita west of the I-5 freeway, as well as the Simi Valley, Ventura and Santa Barbara areas.   

McClintock says that he plans to move his family to the area he’s vying to represent soon, and that his political record should speak for his ability to hold the office. “The people of these communities already know me very well,” McClintock said when he announced his campaign. “Seven times I have appeared on the ballot here, and seven times the people of this district have responded with overwhelming margins of support, for which I am deeply humbled and very grateful.”

McClintock’s seven ballot appearances came by way of unsuccessful State office bids, including his run for Governor.

A staunch conservative, McClintock often campaigns on ideas reminiscent of Ronald Reagan. “It is true that we had a Republican Congress and a Republican President and they squandered Reagan's legacy.   They abandoned our Republican principles.  I want to return to them.”

However, Republican Doug Ose is also running for the seat, and he carries what he believes to be the most important factor: a lifetime of experience in the area.

In a phone interview with KHTS, Ose said: “I think your listeners would be scratching their heads if someone from the 4th district came down there and ran for office,” he said. “I think [McClintock] will find out that the issues we deal with up here are far different than the beachfront issues that he’s used to.”

And while Ose may not have any plans to campaign down here, he does have one significant tie to our area; our Congressman Buck McKeon has endorsed his bid for the 4th Congressional seat.

Ose first entered the political arena when he was elected to the 3rd Congressional District in 1998. When elected, he vowed to serve only three terms, and therefore in 2004 he did not run for reelection. He is running on a platform that centers on the ailing economy, national security and spending. “Congress has lost control of the appropriations process,” he told KHTS. “A little transparency goes a long way.”

The Congressional primary elections take place on June 3rd. Locally, Buck McKeon is running for the 25th district against Jacquese Conaway.

Also on June 3rd, State Senator George Runner will be running against Bruce McFarland, and Assemblyman Cameron Smyth is running against Carole Lutness.

Before that, April 8th will host the Santa Clarita City Council election. Two seats are available, with Bob Kellar, Maria Gutzeit, Diane Trautman, Bob Spierer and Laurie Ender running.