Laura Richardson

Senator Laura Richardson (D-South Bay) is a veteran public servant who made history as the first woman of color to represent California's 35th Senate District, bringing decades of experience spanning city, state, and federal government ^[1,2]. A former three-term member of the U.S. House of Representatives, Richardson was named Assistant Majority Whip in her first year in the Senate and tied for the most bills signed by a freshman senator in the 2025 session ^[3,4]. While CFC will find significant policy divergences with Senator Richardson on social issues, her tangible work on public safety, disaster relief for families, housing affordability, and children's education offers meaningful ground for engagement ^[5,6]. With a 13% CFC Biblical Values Scorecard rating, Richardson's voting record has consistently placed her at considerable distance from the California Family Council's worldview framework on the sanctity of life (Chapter 6), parental authority in education (Chapter 8), and religious liberty (Chapter 9).

Richardson's political career began in earnest when she won a seat on the Long Beach City Council in 2000, prevailing in a razor-thin, six-vote margin victory ^[1,2]. During her six years on the council, she brought the first new bank to Long Beach's Central Area since the 1992 riots and opened the district's first job-training center for working families ^[2,8].

After more than a decade out of elected office, Richardson mounted a comeback campaign for California's 35th Senate District in 2024, running to succeed the term-limited Steven Bradford. She narrowly defeated Michelle Chambers in the November 2024 general election with 50.6% of the vote and took office on December 2, 2024 ^[1,3].

Her 15.0% Biblical Values Scorecard rating across 30 scored floor votes reflects consistent divergence from CFC's worldview framework. Her voting record has supported abortion access expansion over the sanctity of human life, government-directed education over parental authority and school choice, and progressive social mandates over religious liberty protections.

As a freshman senator, Richardson hit the ground running with a prolific legislative output. She tied for the most bills signed by a first-year senator in the 2025 session ^[3,4]. Among her notable legislation, SB 748 allows cities to use existing homelessness funds to clear unsafe RV encampments and connect people with shelter and services ^[5,6]. SB 652 strengthens public safety by mandating standardized training for security guards ^[10].