Eduardo Garcia Will Not Seek Final Term In Assembly

Assemblyman Eduardo Garcia (D-Coachella) decided to not run for another term this week, making the 36th District the latest Assembly District to have an open race for it next year.

A former member of the Coachella City Council and a former Mayor of Coachella, Garcia was first elected as an Assemblyman in 2014. A proponent of energy and environmental issues, Garcia is best known for his bills for the restoration of the Salton Sea in his district. This included securing $80.5 million  in funding for area restoration and wildlife habitat restoration in 2015.

While popular in the 2010s, support for Garcia has waned in recent years, especially following district realignment in 2021. Whereas before Garcia always won races with at least 60% of the vote, realignment reshaped his district to loop between the Inland Empire and San Diego and cover a large swath of the desert. Now in a suddenly very competitive district, Garcia barely held off Republican Ian Weeks in 2022, winning by a slim 53%-47% margin. With demographics since then shifting slightly towards Republicans, the question of it Garcia would run again has continuously come up. This week, he finally gave his answer.

A statement from a representative of his, the deadline for paperwork coming and going, and Garcia’s statement of support for a candidate in the race have all confirmed that Garcia won’t go for a final term in the Assembly. He is instead backing Coachella Valley Unified School District board member Joey Acuna to help stave off the GOP in a still vulnerable district.

“I believe that Joey is the best candidate to succeed me in the State Assembly and continue the fights to address climate change, build affordable housing, expand access to higher education, and improve mental healthcare infrastructure,” said Garcia earlier this week. “I’m proud to endorse Joey Acuna, and I look forward to playing an active role in his campaign.”

As the Globe noted on Tuesday, Garcia is one of many sitting lawmakers in California who have decided to not run for Congress in 2024. While the reasons have differed for each candidate, Garcia himself has not said why, with the few statements from his office not giving specifics. However, since the 36th District has now gone more red, and with Garcia barely hanging onto victory last year, election vulnerability appears to be a major reason behind the decision.

“The district is not an easy Democrat win, but neither should it be thought of as an easy seat for the GOP to take over,” explained Darren Cortez, a pollster in the area, to the Globe. “A lot of Democrats moved out here in recent years remember. Garcia is still pretty young, so he may be thinking of higher office or going back into more local positions in Coachella. Losing that final race for the Assembly would not look very good in future races. So that may be the reason. We’ll have a more official reason soon, but you know if he says something like “because I wanted to spend more time with my family” or “I wanted to seek other opportunities”, it is because there were huge other factors.”

In addition to Acuna, Indio Councilman Waymond Fermon, nonprofit director Kalin Morse, and school board member Eric Rodriguez have all also looked into running for the seat.