Paul V. Horcher (born August 31, 1951 in

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

) is an American former politician from

California California is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States, located along the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. With nearly 39.2million residents across a total area of approximately , it is the List of states and territori ...

and a former member of the Republican Party.

Early career

A graduate of

California State Polytechnic University, Pomona California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (Cal Poly Pomona, CPP, or Cal Poly"Cal Poly" may also refer to California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo in San Luis Obispo. See the '' name'' section of this article for more info ...

, Horcher practiced law before joining the Diamond Bar Municipal Advisory Council in 1982. In 1989 he co-founded the city of

Diamond Bar Diamond Bar is a city in eastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2010 census it had a population of 55,544, and in 2019 the population was estimated to be 55,720. It is named after the "diamond over a bar" branding iron re ...

and was elected to its city council.

Legislative Races

In 1990 Horcher was elected to the

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 52nd district, which covered eastern

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, with 9,861,224 residents estimated as of 2022. It is the ...

including the cities of

West Covina West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth. Etymology The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some R ...

, Whittier and Horcher's hometown of

. He easily won reelection in the renumbered 60th district in

1992 File:1992 Events Collage V1.png, From left, clockwise: 1992 Los Angeles riots, Riots break out across Los Angeles, California after the Police brutality, police beating of Rodney King; El Al Flight 1862 crashes into a residential apartment buildi ...

. In early 1994 Horcher also ran, unsuccessfully this time, in a special election for the

California State Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature, the lower house being the California State Assembly. The State Senate convenes, along with the State Assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento, Cal ...

. The 29th district had been vacated by the resignation of GOP incumbent

Frank Hill Frank Robert Hill (21 May 1906 – 28 August 1993) was a Scottish association football, football player and manager. Playing career Forfar and Aberdeen Hill was born in Forfar and started his career at Forfar Athletic F.C., Forfar Athletic, jo ...

, who had been convicted of corruption. Horcher came in third behind then GOP Assemblyman

Dick Mountjoy Richard L. Mountjoy (January 13, 1932 – May 18, 2015) was an American Republican politician from Monrovia, California. Personal life Mountjoy was born in Los Angeles, California and graduated from Monrovia-Arcadia-Duarte High School in 1950. ...

and then

city councilman

Gary Miller Gary Miller may refer to: *Gary Miller (politician) (born 1948), American politician * Michael Dunn (actor) (Gary Neil Miller, 1934–1973), American actor * Gary L. Miller (1947–1969), American soldier and Medal of Honor recipient * Gary Miller ...

, with the mud between Mountjoy and Miller being especially nasty. Horcher did, however, have an easy reelection to the assembly later that November.

Assembly career

Although 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 ...

, Horcher carved a relatively moderate voting record while in the legislature. His support on many key votes endeared him to Democratic Speaker Willie Brown but made him a pariah among his fellow Republicans. After the 1994 elections, Republicans won control of the

by a single seat. Horcher, still fuming from his own party's rough treatment of him, declared himself an independent and voted to keep Democrat Brown in power. Furious Republicans qualified a

recall election A recall election (also called a recall referendum, recall petition or representative recall) is a procedure by which, in certain polities, voters can remove an elected official from office through a referendum before that official's term of offi ...

against Horcher, which voters supported May 16, 1995, and replaced him with, coincidentally,

city councilman

, who turned out to be a more loyal Republican.

Post Legislature

After leaving the Assembly, Horcher held various position in the administration of Willie Brown, who by then had been elected mayor of

San Francisco San Francisco (; Spanish language, Spanish for "Francis of Assisi, Saint Francis"), officially the City and County of San Francisco, is the commercial, financial, and cultural center of Northern California. The city proper is the List of Ca ...

. He served under Brown from 1996 until 2004, when Brown's term ended. Following his service to San Francisco, he returned to a real estate and administrative law practice. His niche law practice in San Francisco includes representing massage parlors who have been accused of violating San Francisco Health Code.

Electoral history

References

External links

Join California Paul Horcher
Election History for the State of California {{DEFAULTSORT:Horcher, Paul 1951 births Living people Republican Party members of the California State Assembly California Polytechnic State University alumni People from Diamond Bar, California 20th-century American politicians