Assemblyman Rich Gordon was first elected in November 2010 and represents the 24th Assembly District on the San Francisco Peninsula in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties.
Assemblyman Gordon chairs the Assembly’s Committee on Business, Professions and Consumer Protection and is a member of the following Assembly Committees: Budget, Local Government, Revenue & Taxation, and the Budget Subcommittee on Resources and Transportation. He is currently Chair of the Legislative LBGT Caucus, Co-Chair of the Bay Area Caucus, and is a member of the Environmental Caucus.
Assemblyman Gordon previously served for thirteen years on the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors. As a County Supervisor, Gordon worked to achieve government accountability by leading in the development of the County's outcome-based budgeting and was instrumental in the formation of regional partnerships including the Housing Endowment and Regional Trust. Gordon was actively involved in the creation of the Children's Health Initiative, which guarantees health care coverage for children. In 2008, Gordon served as President of the California State Association of Counties, which represents all 58 counties.
Assemblyman Gordon also served as a member of the San Mateo County Board of Education for five years. Prior to public service, he was a minister in the United Methodist Church, and for twenty years he worked in the nonprofit sector where he was the founder and Executive Director of Youth and Family Assistance.
As a legislator, Assemblyman Gordon has been committed to ending the gridlock in Sacramento by trying to fix the dysfunction of the state's governing system and structure, ensuring that California invests in the education of its children, maintaining the state's position as a leader in environmental protection, and fighting for all of California's residents having access to healthcare. Recognizing that heightened partisanship has limited the ability of legislators to fully serve their constituents, Assemblyman Gordon has worked to forge relationships on both sides of the aisle and across all political spectrums. He has also seen personal success in Sacramento, where in his first term, Assemblyman Gordon was among the most productive legislators - having 26 of his 35 bills signed into law by the Governor.
Assemblyman Gordon is a fourth generation Californian - born and raised in San Mateo County. He completed high school in Orange County, and graduated from the University of Southern California. He has a Masters in Divinity from Garrett Theological Seminary at Northwestern University. He resides in an unincorporated neighborhood in Menlo Park with his husband, Dr. Dennis McShane. Assemblyman Gordon and Dr. McShane have been in a committed relationship since 1982 and were married on August 16, 2008.
