Members of the California Senate Republican Caucus unanimously voted to elect Senator Brian Jones (R-Santee) as their next leader to succeed Senator Scott Wilk (R-Santa Clarita). 

Jones currently serves as Senate Republican Caucus Chair and is set to replace  Wilk, who was elected to the post by his colleagues in January 2021. 

Jones is set to officially take the reins of leadership on Jan. 1, 2023.

“As Senate Republican Caucus Chair, Senator Jones has been a valuable leader of our team and he’s ready to build upon the foundation we established. He enjoys my full confidence,” said Wilk. 

Jones released a statement regarding his new position, stating, “Californians are best served by hard-working elected officials that put bipartisanship and the betterment of the community first. This philosophy is something I have always tried to adhere to in the past and I will carry over as Senate Minority Leader.”

Jones went on to emphasize the issue of businesses and middle-class families moving out of California due to the increasing cost of living and lack of affordable jobs. In response to this he stated as the minority party in California, he hopes to offer alternative solutions rather than “big-government.”

In addition to the Leadership election, the California Senate Republican Caucus was joined by the following new members as they were sworn in:

Senator Janet Nguyen returns to the California State Senate, representing the 36th Senate District, covering portions of coastal Los Angeles and Orange counties. More recently, Senator Nguyen served in the California State Assembly from 2020-2022 and in the California State Senate from 2014-2018.

Senator Roger Niello represents the 6th Senate District, covering portions of Placer and Sacramento counties, and is a small business owner. Senator Niello served in the California State Assembly from 2004-2010. 

Senator Kelly Seyarto represents the 32nd Senate District, covering portions of Los Angeles, Riverside, San Bernardino and San Diego counties. He retired as a firefighter as Battalion Chief in 2015 and most recently, Senator Seyarto represented the 67th Assembly District from 2020-2022.

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