LAGUNA HILLS : Ex-Cox Aide Seeks Ferguson’s Seat

Chuck DeVore, former senior assistant to Rep. C. Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach), declared his candidacy on Friday for the 70th Assembly District, becoming the second Republican to enter the race.

DeVore, 27, of Laguna Hills, is seeking the seat currently held by Republican Gil Ferguson. Ferguson is running in a March special election in the 31st State Senate District, a seat vacated by Republican William Campbell in December. Campbell left elected office to become president of the California Manufacturers’ Assn.

Besides DeVore, William M. Crosby, a self-proclaimed “citizen politician,” has announced he will run for Ferguson’s Assembly seat. Both DeVore and Crosby said they will not seek the GOP nomination in the 70th District if Ferguson fails to win Campbell’s state Senate seat and remains in the Assembly.

In announcing his candidacy Friday in Santa Ana, DeVore called for the abolition of the state capital gains tax and stronger efforts to solve the county’s transportation problems.

DeVore said he opposes the “current high rate of taxation in California,” adding that taxpayers deserve a break on both the state and federal levels.

“What do we get for the countless billions of dollars we fork over to the government?” DeVore asked. “Clogged freeways and roads, a broken criminal justice system and an inefficient public school system.”