Tony Strickland

Tony Strickland is a Republican member of the California State Senate representing District 36, encompassing coastal Orange County and parts of Los Angeles County ^[1,2]. A veteran legislator who first won election to the State Assembly at age 28, Strickland has served in both houses of the California Legislature and as Mayor of Huntington Beach, earning a lifetime 'A' rating from the Howard Jarvis Taxpayers Association and an 85% score on the California Family Council's 2025 Legislative Scorecard for his votes defending life, family, and religious liberty ^[2,3,5]. His 85% CFC Biblical Values Scorecard rating confirms him as one of the Legislature's most consistent champions of the values the California Family Council defends — the sanctity of life (Chapter 6), parental authority in education (Chapter 8), religious liberty (Chapter 9), and limited, family-centered governance (Chapter 11).

Anthony A. Strickland was born on February 17, 1970, at Fort Ord, California, where his father was stationed as an Army Drill Sergeant ^[1,2]. He grew up in the Simi Valley area and became politically active at 12 years old, distributing campaign signs for then-Assemblyman Tom McClintock ^[6]. Strickland attended Whittier College, earning a bachelor's degree in political science, was recognized as a Nixon Scholar, and competed on the college basketball team ^[2,3].

Strickland launched his legislative career in 1998 when he was elected to the California State Assembly representing District 37 in Ventura County at age 28 ^[1,2,3]. During his six years in the Assembly, he served as Vice-Chair of both the Health and Governmental Organization Committees. He was termed out in 2004, and his then-wife Audra Strickland succeeded him in the seat ^[1,6].

In 2008, Strickland advanced to the State Senate, winning District 19 by just 857 votes against Democrat Hannah-Beth Jackson ^[1,2,6]. With his election and his wife Audra's simultaneous re-election to the Assembly, the Stricklands became only the second husband-and-wife pair to serve concurrently in the California Legislature ^[1]. He represented Ventura County through 2012, then ran for Controller in 2006 and 2010, and Congress in 2012 and 2014, without success ^[1,2].

After relocating to Orange County, Strickland was elected to the Huntington Beach City Council in November 2022 as part of a conservative slate. As Mayor in 2022-2023, he led a conservative agenda: cracking down on homelessness in parks, banning pride flags at city properties, suing Governor Newsom over state housing mandates, and closing a $7 million budget deficit without raising taxes ^[5,6]. He became a prominent voice for local control against Sacramento's overreach on high-density housing requirements ^[5,7].

Strickland returned to the State Senate in 2025, winning the special primary election for District 36 with 51.3% on February 25, 2025. He was sworn in on March 11, 2025, and serves as Vice-Chair of the Senate Transportation Committee and Vice-Chair of the Labor, Public Employment and Retirement Committee ^[1]. His legislative agenda: SB 1015 creates criminal penalties for predators who coerce or use a minor to exploit another minor, SB 926 allocates $280 million for behavioral health and drug treatment, SB 979 empowers cities to appeal unfair state housing mandates, and SB 1035 proposes a gas tax holiday for families ^[8]. He earned an 85% score on CFC's 2025 Legislative Scorecard ^[9].

His 86.2% Biblical Values Scorecard rating across 29 scored floor votes demonstrates strong alignment with CFC's worldview framework, reflecting consistent support for the sanctity of human life, parental authority in education, and religious liberty protections.

Strickland is married to Carla Strickland and has four children: Ruby, Tony Jr., and stepchildren Graeme and Jameson ^[3,5]. He is a Christian and owns a political and business consulting firm in Huntington Beach ^[1,2].