Cruz Bustamante
Cruz Bustamante | |
|---|---|
 Bustamante in 2006 | |
| 45th Lieutenant Governor of California | |
| In office January 4, 1999 – January 8, 2007 | |
| Governor | Gray Davis Arnold Schwarzenegger |
| Preceded by | Gray Davis |
| Succeeded by | John Garamendi |
| 62nd Speaker of the California State Assembly | |
| In office December 2, 1996 – February 26, 1998 | |
| Preceded by | Curt Pringle |
| Succeeded by | Antonio Villaraigosa |
| Member of the California State Assembly from the 31st district | |
| In office April 29, 1993 - November 30, 1998 | |
| Preceded by | Bruce Bronzan |
| Succeeded by | |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Cruz Miguel Bustamante January 4, 1953 Dinuba, California, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Arcelia |
| Children | 3 |
| Education | Fresno City College California State University, Fresno (BA) |
Cruz Miguel Bustamante (born January 4, 1953) is an American politician. He was the 45th Lieutenant Governor of California from 1999 to 2007, serving under governors Gray Davis and Arnold Schwarzenegger. A member of the Democratic Party, Bustamante previously served as the Speaker of the California State Assembly from 1996 to 1998.
Early life and education[]
The eldest of six children, Cruz Bustamante was born in Dinuba, California. His family later moved to San Joaquin, California. He attended and graduated from Tranquillity High School in the 1970s, where he excelled in both football and wrestling, and later attended Fresno City College and California State University, Fresno.[1][2]
Career[]
As a resident of Fresno, Bustamante was elected to the California State Assembly in a special election in 1993, and became the Speaker of the Assembly in 1996.[2] He was elected Lieutenant Governor in 1998, the first Latino elected to statewide office in California in more than 120 years. He was also the highest-ranking elected Latino officeholder in the United States until Bill Richardson became Governor of New Mexico in 2003. Bustamante earned his BA via distance learning from California State University, Fresno in 2003.
2003 recall election[]
He was the most prominent Democrat to run in the 2003 California recall election to remove Governor Gray Davis, and placed second to Republican Arnold Schwarzenegger, with about 2.7 million votes, 31.5% of votes cast (see full election results).
Bustamante had an apparently icy relationship with Governor Davis, a fellow Democrat, during his tenure. They reportedly had not talked in months before the recall election approached. Bustamante's decision to run in the recall election was controversial, as many supporters of Governor Davis had urged prominent Democrats not to run, in an attempt to undermine the legitimacy of the event. During the recall election, Bustamante ran on a platform slogan of "No on Recall, Yes on Bustamante,"[3][4] indicating he opposed the recall.
2006 Insurance Commissioner election[]
Bustamante was the Democratic nominee for California Insurance Commissioner in 2006. In his official candidate statement, he said "I want to become an example to others to lead healthier lives by losing weight myself. Obesity in California costs $7.7 billion a year." Bustamante claimed to have shed 43 pounds, to a weight of 235 pounds, by means of diet and exercise.[5]
He easily won the June 6, 2006 Democratic primary, receiving 70.5% of the vote and defeating his challenger, John Kraft. Bustamante received 1,606,913 votes to 674,309 for Kraft. Many political analysts believed that Kraft, who ran a low-key campaign where he took no campaign contributions, received those votes as a protest for Bustamante's behavior during the 2003 recall election.[6] However, Kraft planned to actively campaign for Bustamante in the general election, and donated a significant portion of his fortune as an heir to Kraft Foods to Bustamante's campaign.[7]
Bustamante ran against Republican Steve Poizner in November. Bustamante announced that he would not be returning insurance industry contributions to his campaign, a position criticized by Poizner and campaign ethicists. Bustamante also failed to meet a deadline to submit a campaign statement to voters. According to the Field Poll, on November 3, 2006, Bustamante trailed Poizner by 9%.[8] and lost to Poizner by 12% in the general election.
It was speculated that Bustamante would run for the U.S. House of Representatives in California's 21st congressional district in 2012,[9] but ultimately he did not run.
Personal life[]
With his wife Arcelia, Bustamante has three daughters.
Electoral history[]
| Public Offices | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Office | Type | Location | Elected | Term began | Term ended |
| State Assemblyman | Legislature | Sacramento | 1993 | May 3, 1993 | December 5, 1994 |
| State Assemblyman | Legislature | Sacramento | 1994 | December 5, 1994 | December 2, 1996 |
| Speaker of the Assembly | Legislature | Sacramento | 1996 | December 2, 1996 | December 7, 1998 |
| Lieutenant Governor | Executive | Sacramento | 1998 | January 4, 1999 | January 6, 2003 |
| Lieutenant Governor | Executive | Sacramento | 2002 | January 6, 2003 | January 8, 2007 |
| California State Assembly service | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Session | Majority | Governor | Committees | District |
| 1993–1994 | Democratic | Pete Wilson | 31 | |
| 1995–1996 | Republican | Pete Wilson | 31 | |
| 1997–1998 | Democratic | Pete Wilson | 31 | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Cruz Bustamante | 4,290,473 | 52.7 | |
| Republican | Tim Leslie | 3,161,031 | 38.8 | |
| Green | Sara Amir | 247,897 | 3.0 | |
| Libertarian | Thomas M. Tryon | 167,523 | 2.1 | |
| Peace and Freedom | Jaime Luis Gomez | 109,888 | 1.3 | |
| American Independent | George M. McCoy | 92,349 | 1.1 | |
| Reform | James G. Mangia | 74,180 | 0.9 | |
| Total votes | 8,143,341 | |||
| Majority | 1,129,442 | 13.9 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Cruz Bustamante | 3,658,942 | 49.4 | -3.3 | |
| Republican | Bruce McPherson | 3,094,392 | 41.8 | +3.0 | |
| Green | Donna Warren | 307,254 | 4.1 | +1.1 | |
| Libertarian | Pat Wright | 107,127 | 1.4 | -0.7 | |
| American Independent | James King | 93,026 | 1.3 | +0.2 | |
| Reform | Paul Jerry Hanosh | 82,053 | 1.1 | +0.2 | |
| Natural Law | Kalee Przybylak | 68,366 | 0.9 | +0.9 | |
| Total votes | 7,411,160 | ||||
| Majority | 564,550 | 7.6 | -6.3 | ||
| Democratic hold | Swing | -6.3 | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Arnold Schwarzenegger | 4,206,284 | 48.6 | |
| Democratic | Cruz Bustamante | 2,724,874 | 31.5 | |
| Republican | Tom McClintock | 1,161,287 | 13.5 | |
| Green | Peter Miguel Camejo | 242,247 | 2.8 | |
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Democratic | Cruz Bustamante | 1,651,858 | 70.4 | |
| Democratic | John Kraft | 693,662 | 29.6 | |
| Total votes | 2,345,520 | |||
| Majority | 958,196 | 40.8 | ||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Steve Poizner | 4,233,986 | 50.8 | |
| Democratic | Cruz Bustamante | 3,204,536 | 38.5 | |
| Libertarian | Dale Ogden | 305,772 | 3.7 | |
| Green | Larry Cafiero | 270,218 | 3.2 | |
| Peace and Freedom | Tom Condit | 187,618 | 2.3 | |
| American Independent | Jay Earl Burden | 127,267 | 1.5 | |
| Total votes | 8,329,397 | |||
| Majority | 1,029,450 | 12.3 | ||
| Republican gain from Democratic | ||||
References[]
- ^ "Lt. Governor Cruz Bustamante". digital.library.ucla.edu. Archived from the original on June 10, 2017. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Zarembo, Alan (August 30, 2003). "Slow but Steady Approach Has Served Bustamante Well". Los Angeles Times. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved May 5, 2016.
- ^ "Special Election - Candidate Statement". Vote2003.ss.ca.gov. October 7, 2003. Archived from the original on June 11, 2007. Retrieved March 12, 2011.
- ^ Fouhy, Beht (August 22, 2003). "State Democrats in Congress say no to recall, yes to Bustamante". Napa Valley Register. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
- ^ Oldham, Jennifer. "Bustamante Hopes to Win Insurance Post by Losing". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Feist, Paul (June 7, 2006). "Politics Blog : Election results not good news for Bustamante". SFGate. Retrieved March 12, 2011.
- ^ Capitol Weekly: The Newspaper of California State Government and Politics Archived June 17, 2006, at the Wayback Machine
- ^ Mark DiCamillo and Mervin Field; November 3, 2006; "Lt. Governor's race deadlocked" Archived March 6, 2016, at the Wayback Machine; ''Field Research Corporation; url accessed November 4, 2006,
- ^ Ellis, John (February 21, 2012). "Dinuba native Bustamante eyes 21st District congressional bid". The Fresno Bee. Archived from the original on July 10, 2012. Retrieved February 22, 2012.
External links[]
- California June Primary Results
- Cruz Bustamante on Manny Fernandez Internet Media Mogal
- Appearances on C-SPAN
| show Speakers of the California State Assembly |
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- 1953 births
- 21st-century American politicians
- Mexican-American people in California politics
- California Democrats
- Lieutenant Governors of California
- Living people
- People from Dinuba, California
- People from Fresno, California
- Speakers of the California State Assembly
- Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in California