Farris Announces State Assembly Bid

Michael Farris of Thousand Oaks on Wednesday announced his candidacy for the 37th District seat in the state Assembly.

Farris, who has been active in the reform movement since 1993, is bidding to succeed Assemblyman Nao Takasugi (R-Oxnard), who is being forced to step down because of voter-approved term limits.

Education and political reform will be at the forefront of Farris’ campaign to increase “the ability of people to direct their own public policy,” he said.

Farris has built local chapters of United We Stand America in West Los Angeles and the Conejo Valley.

The 29-year-old is a senior scientist at Arete Associates in Sherman Oaks, where he does ocean physics research.

Port Hueneme Mayor Pro Tem Toni Young announced her candidacy for the 37th District, which stretches from Oxnard and Port Hueneme to Thousand Oaks and Moorpark, on Jan. 14.

Young is a five-year council veteran and the first woman mayor in the city’s history.

The Republican pledged to build a Southern California caucus of lawmakers whose goal would be to protect the region and focus the region’s legislative power.

Others expected to announce candidacies in the heavily Republican district include Tony Strickland, an aide to Assemblyman Tom McClintock (R-Northridge); Rich Sybert, an attorney and a former top aide to Gov. Pete Wilson; H. Jere Robings, president of the Ventura County Alliance of Taxpayers and aide to Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley); and Jon Williams, a Camarillo podiatrist.