NorCal Politician To Run For Lieutenant Governor Of California

RICHMOND, CA — Richmond City Councilmember and former Mayor Gayle McLaughlin announced Tuesday that she is stepping down from the Council to focus on her campaign to be the state's lieutenant governor.

McLaughlin made her announcement at the end of Tuesday's City Council meeting and said her last day in office will be July 18.

The lieutenant governor seat will be contested in the 2018 election, with current Lt. Gov. Gavin Newsom being termed out and already running for governor.

McLaughlin served as Richmond's mayor from 2006 to 2014 and started serving on the City Council in 2004.
She said in a statement that she is running for the state office to give voters "the choice of a corporate-free candidate."

"Our nation is in a catastrophic free-fall, and the Trump administration is dragging the world down with it," she said. "With the help of corporate-funded policy-makers, corporations are boldly grabbing all the
resources they can, dismantling every small protection gained by the people of our nation over the years."

— Bay City News; Image via City of Richmond