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

Don Perata

Democratic

Picture of Don Perata
oaklandnorth.net
Date Party Office Votes Result
11-05-1996 Democratic AD-16 82842 Win
11-03-1998 Democratic AD-16 71548 Win
11-03-1998 Democratic SD-09 164476 Win
11-07-2000 Democratic SD-09 218550 Win
11-02-2004 Democratic SD-09 248614 Win
 

Candidate Biography:

Born: April 30, 1945 in Alameda, CA
Married: ????? (div.)
Children: Nick Perata and Rebecca Perata-Rosati

1975: Candidate for Mayor of Alameda (Lost)
1980-1985: Chief Fundraiser for Congressmen Howard Berman, Henry Waxman, and Mel Levine
1986-1994: Member, Alameda County Board of Supervisors
1994: Primary Candidate for Controller (Lost; 27.27%)
1994-1996: Staff Assistant, Senate Pro Tem Bill Lockyer
1998: Declined to serve the Assembly term to which he had been elected.
2002-2004: Majority Leader, California State Senate
2004-2008: President pro Tempore, California State Senate
2008: Proponent, Proposition 93 [Amending Term Limits] (Failed; 46.5%)
2008: Early Candidate for SBOE-01 in 2010 (Withdrew)
2010: Candidate for Mayor of Oakland (Lost; 48.9%)
2012: Early Candidate for Contra Costa County Board of Supervisors (Withdrew)

  • Perata ordered three State Senators (Ronald S. Calderon, Gloria Negrete McLeod, and Lou Correa) locked-out of their offices at the Capitol as punishment for attending a fundraiser in support of moderate Assembly Democrats.
  • LEGISLATION: Author of SB 23 (1999) makes it a crime, beginning January 1, 2000, to manufacture, import, or sell, any firearm magazine with a capacity of more than 10 rounds.
     
  • LOCKDOWN: Perata ordered a legislative lockdown of the State Senate on July 20, 2007 in order to force Republicans to compromise on the state budget. The Senate remain in session for 19 hours. 
  • ON THE BALLOT TWICE: Because of the concurrent victories in the SD-09 Special Election and AD-16 General Election, Perata was actually elected to both houses of the legislature for the 1999-00 Session. Perata remained in the Assembly until the start of December 1999, when he was sworn into the Senate.

Source: California Blue Book (2000)
Source: "Vorderbrueggen: Perata says 'no thanks' to supe bid" by Lisa Vorderbrueggen, Contra Costa Times (12/22/2011)