Phillip David Wyman (February 21, 1945 – November 28, 2019) was an American politician from California. A
Republican
Republican can refer to:
Political ideology
* An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law.
** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...
, he was a member of the California State Assembly from 1978 to 1992 and again from 2000 to 2002; he was also a member of the California Senate from 1993 to 1994.
Assembly races
Wyman was vice president of the
Antelope Valley
The Antelope Valley is located in northern Los Angeles County, California, and the southeast portion of Kern County, California, and constitutes the western tip of the Mojave Desert. It is situated between the Tehachapi, Sierra Pelona, and the ...
Board of Trade in 1976 when he first ran for
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
The A ...
from the
Tehachapi-
Palmdale
Palmdale is a city in northern Los Angeles County in the U.S. state of California. The city lies in the Antelope Valley region of Southern California. The San Gabriel Mountains separate Palmdale from the Los Angeles Basin to the south.
On Aug ...
based 34th District. He narrowly lost to Democratic incumbent
Larry Chimbole but went on to defeat him two
years later and served in the Assembly from 1978 until 1992,
when he opted not to seek reelection and instead run for congress.
In 2000 Wyman ran again for Assembly in the 34th Assembly District, which consisted of the Mojave Desert portion of San Bernardino County (except for the Morongo valley), the eastern Kern County desert/mountains area and Inyo County. He defeated the city manager of Victorville to win the Republican nomination, and then easily won the November 2000 general election in a heavily Republican district.
In 2002, redistricting after the 2000 Census prompted Wyman to run in the new 36th Assembly District. He moved to a small apartment in
Phelan, California
Phelan is an unincorporated community and census-designated place in San Bernardino County, California, in the Victor Valley of the Mojave Desert, north of the San Gabriel Mountains. The population was 14,304 in the 2010 census.
Geography
Situ ...
(in the rural San Bernardino County desert) to qualify to run, which caused his political opponents to accuse him of being a carpetbagger. He narrowly lost the Republican primary to
Sharon Runner
Sharon Runner (May 17, 1954 – July 14, 2016) was an American politician. She was a Republican California State Senator, who represented the 21st Senate District at the time of her death, and previously represented the 17th Senate District fr ...
of Lancaster, the wife of then-incumbent Assemblyman
George Runner
George C. Runner, Jr. (born March 25, 1952) is an American politician from California who served on the California State Board of Equalization, the only publicly elected tax commission in the United States. A Republican, he represented the Boar ...
.
In 2006, he ran again for Assembly in the 36th Assembly District, based in Kern County, but lost the Republican primary to Bakersfield Superintendent of Schools
Jean Fuller
Jeannie Lynn "Jean" Fuller ( née Guenther; born April 16, 1950) is an American educator and politician who served as the minority leader in the California State Senate. A Republican, she was previously a member of the California Assembly and t ...
.
Congressional race
The 25th Congressional district was created after the 1991 reapportionment and was centered on the new city of
Santa Clarita
Santa Clarita (; Spanish for "Little St. Clare") is a city in northwestern Los Angeles County in the U.S. state of California. With a 2020 census population of 228,673, it is the third-largest city by population in Los Angeles County, the 17t ...
in fast growing northern Los Angeles County. Wyman moved south from
Tehachapi in
Kern
KERN (1180 AM broadcasting, AM) is a commercial radio, commercial radio station city of license, licensed to Wasco, California, Wasco-Greenacres, California, and serving the Bakersfield metropolitan area. The station is owned by American General ...
County to run for the new 25th.
[California Journal Vol. XXIII, No.7 (July 1992) "Complete Primary Results". StateNet Publications, July 1992.] He narrowly lost the GOP primary to
Santa Clarita
Santa Clarita (; Spanish for "Little St. Clare") is a city in northwestern Los Angeles County in the U.S. state of California. With a 2020 census population of 228,673, it is the third-largest city by population in Los Angeles County, the 17t ...
Mayor
Buck McKeon
Howard Philip "Buck" McKeon (born September 9, 1938) is an American politician who served as a U.S. representative from California's 25th congressional district from 1993 to 2015. He is a member of the Republican Party. He is a former chairman of ...
, however.
State Senate races
Wyman bounced back less than a year later when he won a special election for the
Fresno
Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...
-based 16th state Senate district in 1993.
In 1994, despite huge Republican gains across the country, Wyman lost his state Senate seat to then Democratic Assemblyman
Jim Costa
James Manuel Costa (born April 13, 1952) is an American politician serving as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. representative for since 2023, previously representing the California's 20th congressional district, 20th congressio ...
(whom Wyman had defeated in the special election). He was the only Republican west of the Mississippi to be unseated.
[California Journal Vol. XXVII, No.5 (May 1996) "The 1996 Primary: The Endgame Begins". StateNet Publications, May 1996.] In 1996 he ran for a neighboring state Senate seat and lost the GOP primary again, this time to
Palmdale
Palmdale is a city in northern Los Angeles County in the U.S. state of California. The city lies in the Antelope Valley region of Southern California. The San Gabriel Mountains separate Palmdale from the Los Angeles Basin to the south.
On Aug ...
area Assemblyman
Pete Knight.
In 2010 he ran once more for the state Senate seat he had lost to Costa in 1994. He narrowly lost the primary to Tim Theissen, who then lost the general election to Democrat
Michael J. Rubio.
Reputation
Through the years Wyman gained a reputation for moving around the area in order to run for office. He originally served as an Assemblyman from
Tehachapi (in
Kern
KERN (1180 AM broadcasting, AM) is a commercial radio, commercial radio station city of license, licensed to Wasco, California, Wasco-Greenacres, California, and serving the Bakersfield metropolitan area. The station is owned by American General ...
County), moved south to run for congress in
Los Angeles
Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...
County in 1992, then won election to a state Senate seat in 1993 in
Fresno
Fresno () is a major city in the San Joaquin Valley of California, United States. It is the county seat of Fresno County and the largest city in the greater Central Valley region. It covers about and had a population of 542,107 in 2020, maki ...
County (north of Kern county) before losing a state Senate primary in 1996 in Los Angeles county again.
[California Journal Vol. XXVII, No.3 (March 1996) "Election '96". StateNet Publications, March 1996.]
Return
In 2000 Wyman made a comeback of sorts, winning his old 34th Assembly district. Two years later, however, he made a tactical error and decided to run for reelection in the neighboring 36th district instead. He was anticipating an opening in the state Senate in 2004, a district that was outside the boundaries of his 34th Assembly district, but within those of the 36th. His plans went awry when the 36th's incumbent, fellow Republican
George Runner
George C. Runner, Jr. (born March 25, 1952) is an American politician from California who served on the California State Board of Equalization, the only publicly elected tax commission in the United States. A Republican, he represented the Boar ...
decided to back his wife (
Sharon Runner
Sharon Runner (May 17, 1954 – July 14, 2016) was an American politician. She was a Republican California State Senator, who represented the 21st Senate District at the time of her death, and previously represented the 17th Senate District fr ...
), who actually lived within the district. Wyman narrowly lost the GOP primary, while his old 34th district was won by Republican
Bill Maze
Everet William Maze (born April 9, 1946) is an American politician from California and a member of the Republican Party. Maze is the president of Citizens for Saving California Farming Industries, a non-profit dedicated to dividing Californi ...
, a Tulare County supervisor, who found himself unopposed after Wyman decided not to run here.
[California Journal Vol. XXXIII, No.10 (February 2002) "Special Election Issue: Complete Ballot Analysis". StateNet Publications, February 2002.]
In 2014 Wyman was an unsuccessful candidate for California Attorney General, losing the GOP spot to former deputy state Attorney General Ronald Gold by just 1.2%.
In 2016, Wyman declared his candidacy in
the race for the Senate seat from California being vacated by Democrat
Barbara Boxer
Barbara Sue Boxer (née Levy; born November 11, 1940) is an American politician and lobbyist who served in the United States Senate, representing California from 1993 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as the U.S. ...
. In the June 7 primary, Wyman came in fourth in the overall field, with 247,397 total votes (4.9%), and thus was the second highest-performing Republican in the field, only behind George "Duf" Sundheim's 409,096 (8%).
Death
Wyman died from cancer in Tehachapi on November 28, 2019, aged 74.
Electoral history
References
External links
JoinCalifornia Election History for the State of California
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, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wyman, Phil
1945 births
2019 deaths
20th-century American politicians
21st-century American politicians
Republican Party California state senators
Candidates in the 1992 United States elections
Candidates in the 1994 United States elections
Candidates in the 1996 United States elections
Candidates in the 2010 United States elections
Candidates in the 2016 United States Senate elections
Deaths from cancer in California
Republican Party members of the California State Assembly
People from Hollywood, Los Angeles
People from Kern County, California
Politicians from Los Angeles
University of California, Davis alumni