Former Sacramento mayoral candidate changes course, will run for state Legislature instead
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Sacramento mayoral candidate Maggy Krell is dropping out of the race to run for a California Assembly seat.
Krell, a prosecutor specializing in sex trafficking prevention, is running for Democratic Assemblyman Kevin McCarty’s Sacramento-area seat, she said.
McCarty announced on May 25 he is running for mayor, about a month after Krell announced her run. Because he is running for mayor, he can’t run for re-election to his Assembly seat, though there is still time for him to change his mind.
“I’m running for Assembly because I understand the power of the law,” Krell said in a statement to The Sacramento Bee on Wednesday. “As Planned Parenthood’s lawyer I used the law to fight for the right to choose and to increase access to healthcare. As a volunteer lawyer, I used the law when I went to the border to help reunite immigrant children who were ripped from their mothers. As Deputy Attorney General, I use the law to prosecute criminals and protect survivors of human trafficking. I’ve used the law to take guns from domestic abusers and get restraining orders.
“But I’ve also seen loopholes, unintended consequences, and well-meaning policies that don’t work. I’m running for Assembly to write laws that get real results.”
Democrat Paula Villescaz, former state Health and Human Services Agency assistant secretary, has announced she will run for the Assembly seat. Villescaz, also a San Juan Unified School Board member, lost her bid for a state Senate seat last year against Roger Niello, a Republican.
California Democratic Party executive board member Sean Frame has also announced he is running for the Assembly seat. SMUD board member Rosanna Herber, a Democrat, is also rumored to be considering a run.
The Assembly seat represents the city neighborhoods of midtown, downtown, East Sacramento, Land Park, Curtis Park, Natomas and North Sacramento. It also includes Arden Arcade, Rio Linda and part of Carmichael.
Aside from McCarty, former state Sen. Richard Pan; former Councilman Steve Hansen; epidemiologist and activist Flojaune Cofer are all running for mayor next year. Mayor Darrell Steinberg is not seeking re-election.
The primaries for both mayor and the Assembly seat will be held March 5, with the general election Nov. 5.
