Stan Ellis

Stan Ellis is a Republican member of the California State Assembly representing the 32nd District, which covers portions of Kern and Tulare counties, including parts of Bakersfield and Visalia. ^[1,3] A self-made entrepreneur who grew up on a hog farm in South Dakota and worked his way through college at the Colorado School of Mines, ^[2,4] Ellis holds a doctorate in quantum computing from the University of Maryland and founded Qubitekk, a quantum photonics company that was later acquired by IonQ. ^[2,4] He won a February 2025 special election to fill the seat vacated by Vince Fong, who had replaced Kevin McCarthy in Congress. ^[1] With an 83% CFC Biblical Values Scorecard rating in his first session, Ellis has demonstrated strong alignment with the California Family Council's core priorities. As a father of five and grandfather of twenty ^[4] whose entrepreneurial career embodies the principle that families — not government — are the engine of human flourishing, Ellis brings to Sacramento a worldview consistent with CFC's framework on limited government (Chapter 11), family-centered policy (Chapter 3), and fiscal responsibility.

Ellis won the special election for the 32nd District in February 2025 with sixty-five percent of the vote, securing an outright victory in a four-candidate field and avoiding a runoff. ^[1,6] The seat had been vacant for nearly a year since Vince Fong departed to replace Kevin McCarthy in Congress. ^[6] Ellis assumed office on March 3, 2025, and currently serves as vice chair of the Aging and Long-Term Care, Environmental Safety and Toxic Materials, and Natural Resources committees, with additional seats on Insurance and the Select Committee on Downtown Recovery. ^[1,3] Prior to his Assembly campaign, he ran for the U.S. House of Representatives in California's 20th Congressional District in 2024, placing sixth in the blanket primary with 2.1 percent of the vote. ^[2]

Born on July 4, 1952, Ellis grew up on a hog farm in South Dakota and worked to put himself through the South Dakota School of Mines and Technology, graduating with a degree in mathematics. ^[1,2,5] He moved to Kern County in 1975 and began his career in the oil industry as a mud engineer before founding his first company, West Coast Mud, in 1981. ^[2,5] From there, he launched a series of small businesses in oil, agriculture, chemical processing, and reclamation, including Global Environmental, which focused on minimizing waste from oil refineries. ^[5] His most notable venture was in quantum physics: he founded Qubitekk, Inc., a laboratory that became a leader in the design and manufacture of entangled photon sources and state measurement systems, with applications in quantum communication, networking, and cybersecurity. ^[2,5] IonQ acquired Qubitekk in January 2025. ^[2] Ellis also formerly owned the Bakersfield Jam, a professional basketball franchise, ^[2] and has served on the California State University, Bakersfield Engineering Advisory Board. ^[5]

As a freshman legislator with an 83% CFC Biblical Values Scorecard rating, Ellis has already demonstrated strong alignment with the California Family Council's worldview framework. His entrepreneurial background and advocacy for reduced government regulation reflect the principle of subsidiarity that CFC's framework values — governance that empowers individuals and families rather than expanding bureaucratic authority. His deep roots in the conservative Kern County community and his family life as a father of five and grandfather of twenty embody the kind of multigenerational family stability that CFC identifies as the foundational institution of human civilization. With five children and twenty grandchildren, Ellis has spoken publicly about being motivated by a sense of duty to future generations. ^[5]