Review note: JJ Galvez for Assembly and Kate Sanchez for Assembly may have more bias because they are advocacy voter guides compared to other formal government and nonprofit journalism sources.
- sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)CA Secretary of State — Statement of Vote, June 2, 2026 primary (certified 2026-07-10)
- ballotpedia.org (opens in a new tab)Ballotpedia — June 2026 California primary
- ad71.asmrc.org (opens in a new tab)Assemblymember Kate Sanchez — Biography (official Assembly Republican Caucus site)
- sanchezforassembly.com (opens in a new tab)Kate Sanchez for Assembly — Legislative Wins / priorities (campaign site)
- calmatters.org (opens in a new tab)CalMatters — New California bill would block trans females from playing in girls' sports
- leginfo.legislature.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)California State Legislature — Bill Status, AB-89 (2025-2026), Interscholastic sports: gender equity
- ocregister.com (opens in a new tab)Orange County Register — Kate Sanchez, AD-71 candidate, 2026 primary election questionnaire
- ocregister.com (opens in a new tab)Orange County Register — JJ Galvez, AD-71 candidate, 2026 primary election questionnaire
- jjgalvez.com (opens in a new tab)JJ Galvez for Assembly — biography and priorities (campaign site)
- downloads.leginfo.legislature.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)California Legislative Information — public bill data (bulk download)
- sos.ca.gov (opens in a new tab)Cal-Access raw data export — California Secretary of State
Last updated September 24, 2026.
State of California
Member of the State Assembly, District 71
This person holds your district's seat in the California State Assembly (2-year term).
Assemblymember Kate Sanchez took 58.2% of the June 2 vote. Democrat JJ Galvez took 41.8%, the only other candidate on the primary ballot. The district covers part of southern Riverside and northern San Diego counties.
The winner holds one of 80 Assembly seats for a two-year term, inside a 12-year lifetime cap on service in Sacramento. An Assemblymember authors bills, sits on the policy committees that decide which bills advance, and argues for the district's share of the annual state budget. This district's member sits in the minority caucus, where enacting legislation requires majority-party agreement.
The incumbent has authored 18 bills this session and had 1 signed into law, among the lowest counts of any sitting member on this ballot. Minority-caucus membership is a real hurdle, but several of her Republican colleagues converted four or more. Weigh that against a challenger running on about a tenth of her money.
Kate Sanchez
Kate Sanchez is the Republican Assemblymember for District 71. Before running for office she worked for former Congressman Ed Royce and later led the California Women's Leadership Association. She has authored bills on tax relief for military retirees, childcare costs and access to the courts for crime victims.
Sanchez says she wants to keep taxes low and protect public safety. In 2025 she introduced a bill to bar transgender girls from playing on girls' school sports teams. The bill failed its first committee vote and died. She said the bill was meant to protect fairness in girls' sports.
Sanchez promises to never vote for a tax increase and to defend Proposition 13. She wants tax credits for childcare and a suspended gas tax. She also wants tougher penalties for shoplifting and stronger access to the courts for crime victims.
JJ Galvez
JJ Galvez is a strategy and operations manager who immigrated to the United States to attend college. They earned a degree and built a career in business and technology. They serve as treasurer of the Silverado-Modjeska Recreation and Park District. They have not served in the California Legislature or U.S. Congress.
Galvez says California should be a place where everyone from every background can get ahead. As treasurer of their local parks district, they say they helped rework the budget after county funding fell by a third, without cutting community programs. They are running for Assembly, they say, because hard work should still be enough to get by in California.
Galvez promises to lower the cost of living and expand job opportunities in technology. They want schools fully funded and better access to healthcare. They also promise to prepare communities for wildfires and floods.
Record in office
Kate Sanchez (Republican) is the sitting Assemblymember for this district and is lead author of 18 bills in the 2025–2026 session, 1 of them signed into law. JJ Galvez has not served in the California Legislature or U.S. Congress; these records cover only those offices. Per the California Legislature's public bill data (leginfo bulk download), retrieved 2026-09-21.
Financial info
- Small donors
- Individuals
- PACs & committees
- Businesses & other orgs
- Self-funding
Kate Sanchez
Primary — $546,988
- Small donors$125<1%
- Individuals$9,5002%
- PACs & committees$310,45457%
- Businesses & other orgs$223,53341%
November
No itemized funding reported yet.
JJ Galvez
Primary — $50,971
- Small donors$5,87612%
- Individuals$31,59562%
- PACs & committees$3,0006%
- Businesses & other orgs$2,5005%
- Self-funding$8,00016%
November — $1,765
- Individuals$1,765100%
1Figures are CA Form 460 filings through June 30, 2026 by committees controlled by each candidate, and can include transfers from a candidate's earlier committees. Semi-annual reports covering January–June 2026 were due July 31, 2026, so some totals lag a period behind. Per the California Secretary of State's Cal-Access raw data export, retrieved 2026-09-21.
2Kate Sanchez has no itemized contributions dated after the June 2, 2026 primary reported to Cal-Access yet.
3Total is itemized (Schedule A) contributions and self-funding loans dated after the June 2, 2026 primary, through June 29, 2026 — small-dollar unitemized (under $100) contributions aren't independently dated in Cal-Access's raw export, so they aren't reflected here and this may undercount true small-donor activity since the primary. This also doesn't include money reported only on 24-hour late-contribution reports (Form 497) that haven't yet appeared in a periodic Form 460 filing. Per the California Secretary of State's Cal-Access raw data export, retrieved 2026-08-30.