Ken William Cooley (born March 18, 1953) is an American

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking ...

, who served in the California State Assembly. He is a

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

and represented California's 8th Assembly District, which encompasses most of eastern

Sacramento County Sacramento County () is a county located in the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 1,585,055. Its county seat is Sacramento, which has been the state capital of California since 1854. Sacramento County is the ...

, including the cities of Carmichael and Citrus Heights. Following the 2020 Census, Cooley ran for a sixth term in the 7th Assembly District during the 2022 November Elections but lost to Republican Josh Hoover. Prior to being elected to the Assembly in 2012, he was a

mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

and City Councilmember in Rancho Cordova.

Biography

Born in

Berkeley Berkeley most often refers to: *Berkeley, California, a city in the United States **University of California, Berkeley, a public university in Berkeley, California * George Berkeley (1685–1753), Anglo-Irish philosopher Berkeley may also refer ...

and raised in San Lorenzo, Hayward, and San Jose, Cooley graduated from the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant u ...

, in 1977 and the

McGeorge School of Law University of the Pacific, McGeorge School of Law is a private, American Bar Association (ABA)-approved law school in the Oak Park neighborhood of the city of Sacramento, California. It is part of the University of the Pacific and is located on t ...

at the University of the Pacific in 1984. From 1977 to 1985, Cooley was Chief of Staff to state Assemblyman Lou Papan. From 1985 to 1988, Cooley was Legislative Counsel at the California Land Title Association. In 1988, Cooley returned to the California State Assembly to be chief counsel to the Finance and Insurance Committee. Cooley was legal counsel to State Farm Insurance from 1991 to 2008. In 2002, Cooley was elected to the Rancho Cordova

City Council A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural counc ...

. In 2005, he became

Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...

2014 California State Assembly

2016 California State Assembly

2018 California State Assembly

2020 California State Assembly

References

External links

*
Campaign website

Former and Current Mayors and City Council Members

Join California Ken Cooley
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Cooley, Ken 1955 births Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly Living people Politicians from Berkeley, California People from Hayward, California People from Rancho Cordova, California Politicians from San Jose, California Mayors of places in California California lawyers McGeorge School of Law alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni People from San Lorenzo, California 21st-century American politicians