JoinCalifornia: Election History for the State of California

Information Home Elected Offices Elections by Decade Longest Service Shortest Service Most & Fewest Votes Uncontested Races Closest Contests Redistricting Recalls
Elections 2024 General 2024 CD-20 Special 2023 US Senate Appt 2022 General Prior 2020s Elections Elections by Decade
Other Stuff Advanced Search CA Constitution CA in Congress Line of Succession Highest Ranking SCOTUS Cases

[search tips] [advanced search]

Searching tips

  • Enter a candidate's name to find a candidate
  • Enter the name of a political party to find the party and all candidates
  • Enter a date to find an election
  • Enter a year to find all elections within that year

Jess R. Dorsey

Republican

Picture of Jess R. Dorsey
CA Blue Book
Date Party Office Votes Result
11-04-1902 Republican AD-66 2141 Win
11-08-1904 Republican AD-66 2256 Win
11-03-1942 Republican SD-34 22803 Win
11-05-1946 Republican SD-34 28522 Win
11-07-1950 Republican SD-34 50511 Win
11-02-1954 Republican SD-34 18828 Win
11-04-1958 Republican SD-34 57105 Loss
 

Candidate Biography:

Jesse Richard Dorsey
Born: September 2, 1877 in Argentville, Missouri
Married: Marian
Died (in office): September 27, 1958 in Bakersfield, CA

1899-1900: Deputy District Attorney, Kern County
1900-1902: District Attorney, Kern County
1917-1922: District Attorney, Kern County

  • TENURE: Jesse Dorsey served in the Legislature with 487 other legislators, from Frederick Lux (first elected in 1862) to Ralph Dills (who left office in 1998). Dorsey was first sworn into office about a year before the Wright Brothers first flight and died in office about a year after Sputnik 1 was launched.
  • FATHER OF THE CODE: Dorsey authored SB 987 (1951), which established the California Public Utilities Code.
  • LEGISLATION: Dorsey authored California's first child labor law (in 1905).
  • Dorsey was the second youngest member of the State Assembly in 1903 at age 25.
  • Dorsey was the oldest member of the State Senate in 1958 at age 81. 
  • Posthumous Election: Dorsey appeared as a State Senate candidate on the 1958 General Election ballot five weeks after he died in office. Dorsey was not reelected in 1958, so no Special Election was called to fill the vacancy.

Source: California Blue Book (1903), (1946), (1958)