District 78 — California State Assembly

Chris Ward is a parent of two young children who motivate him every day to make the world a better place for our kids to grow up.

He was elected to the San Diego City Council in 2016, and has focused on housing, homelessness, economic development, public safety and other critical local goals. He is the author of San Diego’s landmark Equal Pay Ordinance, and wrote a law to make San Diego the largest city in California to ban Styrofoam. He has served as Chair of the San Diego County Regional Task Force on the Homeless, transforming our outdated programs and services to align with national best practices and meaningfully address and respond to homelessness at a time when other cities are experiencing double-digit growth. On the City Council, he serves as Chair of the Economic Development and Intergovernmental Relations Committee, focusing on support for local business and help create good paying jobs.

He previously served as the Chief of Staff to State Senator Marty Block, representing most of the 78th Assembly District. In these capacities, Chris was committed to constituent services, facilitating public participation in policymaking, and organizing state and local resources to make our schools, universities, and neighborhoods a better place. Prior to that, Chris was an environmental planner at the firm EDAW, working with local government to update land use policies and law, and conduct CEQA environmental reviews.

Chris has been active in the community through volunteer services for years prior to taking office, serving on his community planning group and the San Diego Community College District’s Citizens Oversight Committee. Chris was a Board member of the San Diego Human Dignity Foundation and San Diego LGBT Center, and is a member of the Truman National Security Project. Chris earned his Bachelor of Arts degree at Johns Hopkins University and a Masters in Public Policy and Urban Planning at Harvard’s John F. Kennedy School of Government. He and his partner Thom are homeowners in University Heights with their two children, Betty and Billy, and their cairn terrier, Monty.

I’m running for the State Assembly to take the work we’ve done on these issues and others and apply them statewide. And frankly, state government has a lot more say whether the problems I’ve worked on get fixed.

I’ll make sure we support working families, reinvigorate opportunity to achieve the California Dream, and provide a sustainable and healthy natural environment. That means we must provide enough housing at every income level, deliver on the need for quality education for all, and support policies that achieve career security and upward mobility.

It also means incentivizing job creation that will be at the core of our changing economy, putting the training for those jobs in reach, making sure workers have a voice and a real chance to retire, and quality, affordable healthcare to help them get there and enjoy it. As I raise my kids, I am driven to make sure progress is secure and we pay it forward. 

If you elect me to the Assembly, I’ll bring the same prepared, never-take-no-for-an-answer, determined style from City Hall and apply it the issues most affecting our community, working families, and our overall quality of life at the State Capitol.

I look forward to connecting with you during this campaign and hope to earn your trust and your vote in the 2020 election.