Andy Vidak

Andy Vidak
Member of the California State Senate
from the 14th district
Assumed office
December 1, 2014
Preceded by Tom Berryhill
Member of the California State Senate
from the 16th district
In office
August 10, 2013 – December 1, 2014
Preceded by Michael Rubio
Succeeded by Jean Fuller
Personal details
Born (1965-11-13) November 13, 1965
Visalia, California
Nationality American
Political party Republican
Residence Hanford, California
Alma mater Texas Tech University
Profession Cherry farmer

James Andrew "Andy" Vidak is an American politician and cherry farmer. A member of the Republican Party, he is a California state senator who has represented California's 16th State Senate district and now represents the 14th district.

Early life and career

Vidak was born in Visalia to James Vidak, the Tulare County superintendent of schools, and Kathleen Vidak. The oldest of five children, he graduated from Redwood High School in 1984 and then attended College of the Sequoias in Visalia and California State University, Fresno before receiving his Bachelor of Science degree in Animal Business from Texas Tech University. He returned to the San Joaquin Valley to work in the produce industry before opening his own cherry farm outside Hanford in 1997.[1]

Politics

Campaigns

2010 Congressional race

In the 2010 midterm elections, Vidak announced his intention to run for Congress in California's 20th congressional district, challenging longtime incumbent Democrat Jim Costa. The race was too close to call on election night and was only settled three weeks after Election Day. Costa ultimately won reelection with 51.8% of the vote against Vidak's 48.2%, with a total popular vote margin of 3,050,[2] in the closest race of Costa's Congressional career up to that point.

2013 special election to the State Senate

Following the sudden resignation of incumbent Democrat Michael Rubio on February 22, 2013, the 16th State Senate seat was left vacant and a special election was called.

Vidak's main challenger in the election was Leticia Perez, a former criminal defense attorney and supervisor of Kern County's 5th district. In the May 21 primary election, Vidak appeared to win outright with over 52% of the vote, but enough late absentee and provisional ballots counted in the next few days favored Perez and pushed Vidak down to 49.8%, sending the race to a general election on July 23 between him and Perez. In the general election, Vidak defeated Perez with 51.9% of the vote compared to Perez's 48.1%. The popular vote margin between the two was 3,084, just barely higher than the same margin by which Vidak lost to Jim Costa three years earlier.

Vidak's win marked the first time since 1996 in which the winning state Senate candidate of a special election was not from the same party as the incumbent. It is also marked the first time that a Republican took a Democratic State Senate seat since 1993, and the 8th time overall (in regards to special elections). It was also the first time in 18 years that the 16th district has seen a Republican State Senator, since Phil Wyman represented the district briefly during 1993–95.[3] (Then assemblyman Costa beat Wyman in 1994 and served until being termed out in 2002. He was succeeded by Democratic assemblyman Dean Florez who served from 2002 to 2010).[4]

2014 re-election

Vidak ran for reelection, for his first full term, in November 2014. By the time of the primary, the 16th district was redrawn into the 14th district. His sole Democratic challenger was Luis Chavez from Fresno.[5] In the June 3 primary, Vidak came in first with 61% of the vote ahead of Chavez.[6] In the November 4 general election, Vidak defeated Chavez by a smaller margin of 54.1% to Chavez's 45.9%.[6]

Tenure as State Senator

Vidak was sworn-in on August 10, 2013.

On September 11, 2013, Vidak asked for the Senate to vote on whether or not the people of California should be allowed to revote on the High-Speed Rail project due to a sharp increase in prices and costs of the project. The effort failed due to 24 Democrats voting against it, while 11 Republicans voted in favor.[7] Vidak has continued his efforts to delay, defund, or hold a revote on the project throughout his time in the Senate.

On October 16, 2013, Vidak joined fellow Senator Anthony Cannella of the 12th district in calling for an investigation into the California Employment Development Department after it ceased providing unemployment benefits to over 150,000 Californians and closed several offices in Turlock and Los Banos.[8]

In response to Governor Jerry Brown's declaration of a state of drought for California, Vidak joined with Senator Cannella once again to pass legislation geared towards storage and protection of water throughout the state. On January 30, 2014, they announced the result as Senate Bill 927, which would put a water bond on the November 2014 ballot that would include efforts to store and protect clean water and clean already-contaminated water, at a cost of $9.2 billion.[9] Vidak also wrote a letter to President Barack Obama asking for support,[10] and was interviewed by Lou Dobbs on the Fox Business Network to further explain the crisis, its causes, and ways to solve it.[11]

In June 2014, Vidak was one of five State Senators who was awarded a perfect score by the California Chamber of Commerce for voting against Senate bills that were identified as "job-killers."[12]

In October 2014, Vidak was named the "Most Fascinating Person of 2014" by the Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired (CBVI) and the Advanced Center for Eyecare (ACE).[13] He was also named "Legislator of the Year" by the California Small Business Association (CSBA) and the California Small Business Roundtable (CSBR).[14]

In March 2016, Vidak introduced Senate Bill 976, which sought to extend the one-year ban on lobbying by ex-lawmakers to two years, and possibly up to four years, in an effort to curtail the revolving door effect.[15] Later that same month, Vidak was credited with saving a woman's life by directing traffic away from a Sycamore tree with a breaking branch about half a mile from the Capitol, after he could hear the sound of the wood cracking. Due to his intervention, driver Tracy Courtney stopped her car just as the branch broke, crushing the front end of the car but narrowly missing her. Vidak credited the incident to Divine Intervention, saying: "I walked that direction for a reason I guess. God put me on that path and in that direction and I heard it."[16]

Electoral history

California's 20th congressional district election, 2010
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Jim Costa (incumbent) 46,247 51.8
Republican Andy Vidak 43,197 48.2
Total votes 89,444 100.0
Democratic hold
California's 16th State Senate district special election, 2013
Vacancy resulting from the resignation of Michael Rubio
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Andy Vidak 31,610 49.8
Democratic Leticia Perez 27,854 43.9
Democratic Francisco "Frank" Ramirez 1,890 3.0
Democratic Paulina Miranda 1,623 2.6
Peace and Freedom Mohammed "O" Arif 471 0.7
Total votes 63,448 100.0
General election
Republican Andy Vidak 42,224 51.9
Democratic Leticia Perez 39,140 48.1
Total votes 81,364 100.0
Republican gain from Democratic
California's 14th State Senate district election, 2014
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Andy Vidak (incumbent) 35,953 61.2
Democratic Luis Chavez 22,771 38.8
Total votes 58,724 100.0
General election
Republican Andy Vidak (incumbent) 54,251 54.1
Democratic Luis Chavez 46,035 45.9
Total votes 100,286 100.0
Republican hold

References

  1. ↑ http://vidakforsenate.com/biography/[]
  2. ↑ Trygstad, Kyle (November 23, 2010). "Costa Holds Seat, Keeps GOP Pickups at 63". Roll Call. Retrieved July 30, 2013.
  3. ↑ California Journal Vol. XXVII, No.5 (May 1996) "The 1996 Primary: The Endgame Begins". StateNet Publications, May 1996.
  4. ↑ California Journal Vol. XXXIII, No.10 (February 2002) "Special Election Issue: Complete Ballot Analysis". StateNet Publications, February 2002.
  5. ↑ "Archived copy". Archived from the original on February 21, 2014. Retrieved February 4, 2014.
  6. 1 2 "Archived copy". Archived from the original on June 6, 2014. Retrieved June 4, 2014.
  7. ↑ "Andy asks the Senate to let the people re-vote on High Speed Rail". California State Senate Republican Caucus. September 11, 2013.
  8. ↑ "Senators Cannella and Vidak Call For Investigation of EDD". California State Senate Republican Caucus. October 16, 2013.
  9. ↑ "Cannella/Vidak: It's Time to Pass an Essential Water Bond". California State Senate Republican Caucus. January 30, 2014.
  10. ↑ "Senator Andy Vidak's Open Letter to President Barack Obama". California State Senate Republican Caucus. February 11, 2014.
  11. ↑ "Federal government not doing enough for California's drought?". FOX Business. February 14, 2014.
  12. ↑ "Cal Chamber rates Valley legislators". The Business Journal. June 11, 2014.
  13. ↑ "Vidak Named 'Most Fascinating Person of 2014'". California State Senate Republican Caucus. October 21, 2014.
  14. ↑ "Small Business Groups Name Vidak 'Legislator of the Year'". California State Senate Republican Caucus. October 24, 2014.
  15. ↑ "Vidak Introduces Measure to Extend Lobbying Ban for Ex-Lawmakers". Retrieved May 31, 2016.
  16. ↑ "Central Valley Lawmaker Saves Woman From Falling Tree Limb". CBS San Francisco. Retrieved May 31, 2016.

External links

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