Assemblymember Kelly Seyarto Of Murrieta Announces Senate Bid

MURRIETA, CA — Assemblymember Kelly Seyarto (R-Murrieta) announced Thursday that he intends to run next year for the state's newly redrawn 32nd Senate District instead of vying for reelection to the state Assembly.

If elected to the 32nd, Seyarto would serve all of Southwest Riverside County, as well as communities in Orange, San Bernardino, and San Diego counties.

"The new district boundaries created for my existing Assembly seat have carved out many of the communities that I have enjoyed representing and serving. Those communities, along with some exciting new communities, are all drawn together in the new 32nd Senate District," Seyarto said in a released statement. "With our great Senator Melissa Melendez unable to run for the seat again due to term limits, I would be honored to step up and represent the 32nd Senate District.”

Melendez (R-Lake Elsinore) was elected to Senate District 28 in 2020, before redistricting. She terms out of the State Legislature in 2022.

Seyarto was elected to Assembly District 67 in 2020. Under the current district boundaries, the 67th includes Canyon Lake, East Hemet, El Sobrante, French Valley, Good Hope, Hemet, Homeland, La Cresta, Lake Elsinore, Lake Mathews, Lakeland Village, Menifee, Murrieta, Nuevo, Temescal Valley, Winchester, Wildomar, and Woodcrest.

The newly redrawn districts take effect with the June 2022 primaries and continue for the next decade.

With the new lines, some of Seyarto's District 67 cities and unincorporated areas become part of Assembly District 71, including La Cresta, Murrieta and Wildomar. But the others move into different districts, while Temecula and its unincorporated area, as well as some Orange County communities to the west, move into the 71st.

Seyarto won his Assembly seat in the 2020 general election with 60 percent of the vote over Democrat Jerry Carlos. Seyarto's Assembly term expires at the end of 2022.

Seyarto's background includes 35 years as a firefighter until his retirement in 2015. He also served several terms on the Murrieta City Council.

In a released statement, state Senate Republican Scott Wilk endorsed Seyarto.

“Kelly Seyarto has my full support for the State Senate," Wilk said. "His decades of experience in public safety and local government make him the perfect choice to be the next State Senator for this region.”