Speaker of the California State Assembly

Presiding officer of the California State Assembly

For information on the Assembly, see California State Assembly.

Speaker of the California State Assembly

Seal of the California State Assembly

Incumbent
Robert Rivas

since June 30, 2023

Style| Mister/Madam Speaker (informal)
The Honorable (formal)
Appointer| California State Assembly
Term length| Two years, Assembly term limits apply
Inaugural holder| Thomas J. White
Formation| 1849
Succession| Third

The speaker of the California State Assembly is the presiding officer and highest-ranking member of the California State Assembly, controlling the flow of legislation and committee assignments. The speaker is nominated by the majority party's caucus and elected by the full Assembly typically at the beginning of each two year session. Meanwhile, other floor leaders, such as the majority leader and minority leaders, are elected by their respective party caucuses according to each party's strength in the chamber. The current speaker is Democrat Robert Rivas of the 29th district.

The speaker formerly had far more power, and was able to issue committee assignments to both parties' members, control State Assembly funds, and had broad administrative authority, but many of these powers were transferred to committee chairs after the speakership of Curt Pringle.[1]

The speaker of the Assembly is also third in the order of succession to the governor of California, after the lieutenant governor and the president pro tempore of the California State Senate.[2][3][4]

## List of speakers

[edit]

The following is a list of speakers of the California State Assembly. It does not number those individuals who served abbreviated terms or those who served during an extraordinary session called by the governor of California for a narrowly defined agenda.

Speaker | Portrait | District | Party | Term of service

|
|
|
|

1\. Thomas J. White |  | Sacramento | Unaffiliated 1 | December 1849–February 1850
2\. John Bigler |  | 12 | Democratic | February 1850–May 1851
3\. Richard P. Hammond |  | 7 | Democratic | January 1852–May 1852
4\. Isaac B. Wall |  | 6 | Democratic | January 1853–May 1853
5\. Charles S. Fairfax |  | 15 | Democratic | January 1854–May 1854
6\. William W. Stow |  | 3 | Whig | January 1855–May 1855
7\. James T. Farley |  | 19 | American | January 1856–April 1856
8\. Elwood T. Beatty |  | 19 | Democratic | January 1857–April 1857
9\. Ninian E. Whiteside |  | 15 | Democratic | January 1858–April 1858
10\. William C. Stratton |  | 17 | Democratic | January 1859–April 1859
11\. Phillip Moore |  | 16 | Democratic | January 1860–April 1860
12\. Ransom Burnell |  | 19 | Douglas Democratic | January 1861–May 1861
13\. George Barstow |  | 8 | Republican | January 1862–May 1862
14\. Tim N. Machin |  | 12 | National Union | January 1863–April 1863
15\. William H. Sears |  | 21 | National Union | December 1863–April 1864
16\. John Yule |  | 20 | National Union | December 1865–April 1866
17\. Caius T. Ryland |  | 7 | Democratic | December 1867–March 1868
18\. George H. Rogers |  | 8 | Democratic | December 1869–April 1870
19\. Thomas Bowles Shannon |  | 8 | Republican | December 1871–April 1872
20\. Morris M. Estee |  | 8 | Independent 2 | December 1873–March 1874
21\. Gideon J. Carpenter |  | 23 | Democratic | December 1875–April 1876
22\. Campbell Polson Berry |  | 25 | Democratic | December 1877–April 1878
23\. Jabez F. Cowdery |  | 13 | Republican | January 1880–April 1880
24\. William H. Parks |  | 25 | Republican | January 1881–May 1881
25\. Hugh McElroy LaRue |  | 18 | Democratic | January 1883–May 1884
– William H. Parks |  | 25 | Republican | January 1885–September 1886
26\. William H. Jordan |  | 55 | Republican | January 1887–March 1887
27\. Robert Howe |  | 25 | Democratic | January 1889–March 1889
28\. Frank Leslie Coombs |  | 22 | Republican | January 1891–March 1891
29\. Frank H. Gould |  | 57 | Democratic | January 1893–March 1893
30\. John C. Lynch |  | 8 | Republican | January 1895–March 1895
– Frank Leslie Coombs |  | 18 | Republican | January 1897–March 1897
31\. Howard E. Wright |  | 51 | Republican | January 1899
32\. Alden Anderson |  | 19 | Republican | January 1899–February 1900
33\. Cornelius W. Pendleton |  | 74 | Republican | January 1901–March 1901
34\. Arthur G. Fisk |  | 37 | Republican | January 1903–March 1903
35\. Frank C. Prescott |  | 76 | Republican | January 1905–June 1906
36\. Robert L. Beardslee Sr. |  | 23 | Republican | January 1907–November 1909
37\. Phillip A. Stanton |  | 71 | Republican | January 1909–October 1910
38\. Arthur Hathaway Hewitt |  | 8 | Republican | January 1911–December 1911
39\. C. C. Young |  | 41 | Republican, Progressive 3 | January 1913–April 1917
40\. Henry W. Wright |  | 69 | Republican | January 1919–April 1921
41\. Frank F. Merriam |  | 70 | Republican | January 1923–October 1926
42\. Edgar C. Levey |  | 28 | Republican | January 1927–May 1931
43\. Walter J. Little |  | 60 | Republican | January 1933–July 1933
44\. Forsythe Charles Clowdsley |  | 11 | Democratic | September 1934 (extraordinary session)
45\. Edward Craig |  | 75 | Republican | January 1935–May 1936
46\. William Moseley Jones |  | 51 | Democratic | January 1937–March 1938
47\. Paul Peek |  | 71 | Democratic | January 1939–June 1939
48\. Gordon Hickman Garland |  | 38 | Democratic | January 1940–January 1942
49\. Charles W. Lyon |  | 59 | Republican | January 1943–July 1946
50\. Sam L. Collins |  | 75 | Republican | January 1947–August 1952
51\. James W. Silliman |  | 34 | Republican | January 1953–April 1954
52\. Luther H. Lincoln |  | 15 | Republican | January 1955–April 1958
53\. Ralph M. Brown |  | 30 | Democratic | January 1959–September 1961
54\. Jesse M. Unruh |  | 65 | Democratic | September 1961–January 1969
55\. Robert T. Monagan |  | 12 | Republican | January 1969–September 1970
56\. Bob Moretti |  | 42 | Democratic | January 1971–June 1974
57\. Leo T. McCarthy |  | 19/184 | Democratic | June 1974–November 1980
58\. Willie Brown |  | 17/135 | Democratic | December 2, 1980 – June 5, 1995
59\. Doris Allen |  | 67 | Republican 6 | June 5, 1995 – September 14, 1995
60\. Brian Setencich |  | 30 | Republican 6 | September 14, 1995 – January 4, 1996
61\. Curt Pringle |  | 68 | Republican | January 4, 1996 – November 30, 1996
62\. Cruz M. Bustamante |  | 31 | Democratic | December 2, 1996 – February 26, 1998
63\. Antonio Villaraigosa |  | 45 | Democratic | February 26, 1998 – April 13, 2000
64\. Robert M. Hertzberg |  | 40 | Democratic | April 13, 2000 – February 6, 2002
65\. Herb J. Wesson, Jr. |  | 47 | Democratic | February 6, 2002 – February 9, 2004
66\. Fabian Núñez |  | 46 | Democratic | February 9, 2004 – May 13, 2008
67\. Karen Bass |  | 47 | Democratic | May 13, 2008 – March 1, 2010
68\. John Pérez |  | 46/537 | Democratic | March 1, 2010 – May 12, 2014
69\. Toni Atkins |  | 78 | Democratic | May 12, 2014 – March 7, 2016
70\. Anthony Rendon |  | 63 | Democratic | March 7, 2016 – June 30, 2023
71\. Robert Rivas |  | 29 | Democratic | June 30, 2023 – present

* ^1 The First California Legislature was nonpartisan.
* ^2 Estee was also a Republican, but he was elected to the term in which he was Speaker as an independent.
* ^3 Young was elected as a Republican during the 40th and 42nd sessions (1913 and 1917), but a Progressive during the 41st session (1915).
* ^4 McCarthy's 19th District was renumbered the 18th District after the 1970s redistricting.
* ^5 Brown's 17th District was renumbered the 13th District after the 1990s redistricting.
* ^6 Allen and Setencich were Republican Assemblymembers whom Democrats elected after losing their majority in the chamber.
* ^7 Perez's 46th District was renumbered the 53rd District after the 2010s redistricting.

## See also

[edit]

* List of California state legislatures
* List of majority leaders of the California State Assembly
* List of minority leaders of the California State Assembly
* President pro tempore of the California State Senate

## References

[edit]

1. ^ "Leader in Allen Recall Pleads Guilty to Vote Fraud". LA Times. March 12, 1996. Archived from the original on April 10, 2017.
2. ^ "Constitution of California: Article V, Section 10". California Legislature. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
3. ^ "Government Code, Article 5.5, Section 12058 — Succession to the Office of Governor". California Legislature. Retrieved August 22, 2019.
4. ^ "Government Code, Article 5.5, Section 12061 — Succession to the Office of Governor in the Event of War or Enemy-Caused Disaster". California Legislature. Retrieved August 22, 2019.

* Office of the Chief Clerk of the Assembly (2006). "Appendix A, B". California's Legislature. Sacramento: California Legislature, Assembly. OCLC 71402845.
* "Speakers of the Assembly (Ex Officio Regents)". Hall of Distinguished Berkeleyan. The Bancroft Library. 2008. Retrieved March 3, 2008.
* California State Capitol Museum (2008). "California State Capitol: Legislative History". State of California. Archived from the original on June 20, 2007. Retrieved March 3, 2008.

Links to related articles

* v
* t
* e

Speakers of the California State Assembly

* White
* Bigler
* Hammond
* Wall
* Fairfax
* Stow
* Farley
* Beatty
* Whiteside
* Stratton
* Moore
* Burnell
* Barstow
* Machin
* Sears
* Yule
* Ryland
* Rogers
* Shannon
* Estee
* Carpenter
* Berry
* Cowdery
* Parks
* LaRue
* Parks
* Jordan
* Howe
* Coombs
* Gould
* Lynch
* Coombs
* Anderson
* Pendleton
* Fisk
* Prescott
* Beardslee
* Stanton
* Hewitt
* Young
* Wright
* Merriam
* Levey
* Little
* Craig
* Jones
* Peek
* Garland
* Lyon
* Collins
* Silliman
* Lincoln
* R. Brown
* Unruh
* Monagan
* Moretti
* McCarthy
* W. Brown
* Allen
* Setencich
* Pringle
* Bustamante
* Villaraigosa
* Hertzberg
* Wesson
* Núñez
* Bass
* Pérez
* Atkins
* Rendon
* Rivas

* v
* t
* e

Speakers of U.S. lower houses

United States House of Representatives: ▌Mike Johnson (R)

▌Ledbetter (R), ▌Pringle (R)

▌Edgmon (I/C)

▌Montenegro (R), ▌Carter (R)

▌Evans (R), ▌Wing (R)

▌Rivas (D), ▌Lowenthal (D)

▌McCluskie (D), ▌Boesenecker (D)

▌Ritter (D), ▌Godfrey (D)

▌Melissa Minor-Brown (D)

▌Perez (R), ▌Duggan (R)

▌Burns (R), ▌Jones (R)

▌Nakamura (D), ▌Ichiyama (D)

▌Moyle (R)

▌Welch (D), ▌Buckner (D)

▌Huston (R), ▌Karickhoff (R)

▌Grassley (R), ▌Wills (R)

▌Hawkins (R), ▌Carpenter (R)

▌Osborne (R), ▌Meade (R)

▌DeVillier (R), ▌Johnson (R)

▌Fecteau (D)

▌Jones (D), ▌Stein (D)

▌Mariano (D), ▌Hogan (D)

▌Hall (R), ▌Smit (R)

▌Demuth (R), ▌Olson (R)

▌White (R), ▌Barton (R)

▌Patterson (R), ▌Perkins (R)

▌Ler (R), ▌Zolnikov (R)

▌Kelly (R), ▌Arch (R)*

▌Yeager (D), ▌Monroe-Moreno (D)

▌Packard (R), ▌Kofalt (R)

▌Coughlin (D), ▌Quijano (D)

▌Martínez (D)

▌Heastie (D), ▌Hunter (D)

▌Hall (R), ▌Setzer (R)

▌Weisz (R)

▌Huffman (R), ▌Manning (R)

▌Hilbert (R), ▌Moore (R)

▌Fahey (D), ▌Gomberg (D)

▌McClinton (D)

▌Shekarchi (D), ▌Kennedy (D)

▌Smith (R), ▌Pope (R)

▌Hansen (R), ▌Lems (R)

▌Sexton (R), ▌Marsh (R)

▌Burrows (R), ▌Moody (D)

▌Schultz (R), ▌Dunnigan (R)

▌Krowinski (D)

▌Scott (D)

▌Jinkins (D), ▌Stearns (D)

▌Hanshaw (R), ▌Rohrbach (R)

▌Vos (R), ▌Petersen (R)

▌Neiman (R), ▌Haroldson (R)

Federal districts:

▌Mendelson (D)*

Territories:

▌Ale (R)

▌Blas (D)*

▌Villagomez (I)

▌Méndez (NPP/R), ▌Peña (NPP)

▌Potter (D)*

Italics indicate speakers pro tempore
*Unicameral body
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