Christopher Ward (born August 3, 1976) is an American politician serving as a member of the California Assembly for the 78th district. Prior to his election to the assembly, Ward served as a member of the San Diego City Council, representing the Third Council District. He is a Democrat.

Early life and education

Ward was born in

Germany Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...

in 1976. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree at

Johns Hopkins University The Johns Hopkins University (often abbreviated as Johns Hopkins, Hopkins, or JHU) is a private university, private research university in Baltimore, Maryland, United States. Founded in 1876 based on the European research institution model, J ...

and a Master in Public Policy and Urban Planning at the Harvard Kennedy School.

Career

He worked as an Environmental Planner at the firm EDAW, working with local government to develop land use plans and conduct environmental review, and as a Researcher at the Ludwig Cancer Research at the

University of California, San Diego The University of California, San Diego (UC San Diego in communications material, formerly and colloquially UCSD) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in San Diego, California, United States. Es ...

. He then served as the chief of staff to State Senator Marty Block. Chris is an active member of the San Diego chapter of the Truman National Security Project.

San Diego City Council

Elections

In 2016, Ward ran for an open seat on the San Diego City Council representing District 3. District 3 includes the neighborhoods of Balboa Park, Bankers Hill/Park West, Downtown San Diego, Golden Hill, Hillcrest, Little Italy, Mission Hills, Normal Heights, North Park,

Old Town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins. In some cases, newer developments on t ...

, and University Heights. Incumbent council member Todd Gloria ran for mayor of San Diego. Ward was elected in the June primary with a majority of the vote.

Tenure

As a councilmember, Ward worked to identify measures that will significantly reduce San Diego's overall homeless population. These included three temporary shelters to house 700 individuals, an additional storage facility to serve 500 clients, and a proposed centralized homeless navigation center. In July 2017, the City Council unanimously approved an Equal Pay Ordinance that was proposed by Ward. The ordinance requires companies that do business with the city to pay their employees equally regardless of gender or race. In January 2019, the City Council approved a measure proposed by Ward that bans, for environmental reasons, the use of

polystyrene Polystyrene (PS) is a synthetic polymer made from monomers of the aromatic hydrocarbon styrene. Polystyrene can be solid or foamed. General-purpose polystyrene is clear, hard, and brittle. It is an inexpensive resin per unit weight. It i ...

(Styrofoam) for most retail uses including food service, egg cartons, and coolers. The ordinance also stipulates that single-use plastic items such as straws and eating utensils be available only on request. According to Ward, San Diego is the largest city in California to take this action.

Committee assignments

* Active Transportation and Infrastructure Committee (Vice Chair) * Economic Development and Intergovernmental Relations Committee (Chair) * Land Use and Housing Committee (Vice Chair) * Rules Committee

California State Assembly

2020 California State Assembly

On January 24, 2019, Ward announced that he would be a candidate for the California State Assembly in district 78 to succeed Assemblyman Todd Gloria, who was running for mayor of

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

. Ward received the most votes and was elected to the Assembly in 2020.

2022 California State Assembly

Ward ran for reelection in 2022. He won by a 37 percentage point margin against Republican Eric Gonzales.

Tenure

Ward was involved in gun violence reduction legislation that was signed into law in 2022 that enables lawsuits against gun manufacturers and retailers for

negligence Negligence ( Lat. ''negligentia'') is a failure to exercise appropriate care expected to be exercised in similar circumstances. Within the scope of tort law, negligence pertains to harm caused by the violation of a duty of care through a neg ...

. He authored another bill that was signed into law in 2022 that changes procedures for altering gender and sex identifiers on government documents. Ward has been characterized as a "pro-housing" legislator. In 2022, he pushed for legislation that would have prioritized dense urban development while limiting sprawl. Ward is a member of the California Legislative Progressive Caucus.

Personal life

Ward is gay. He and his partner Thom are homeowners in University Heights, where they live with their two children.

References

External links

Official website

Join California Chris Ward
{{DEFAULTSORT:Ward, Chris 1976 births 21st-century American LGBTQ people American LGBTQ city council members Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly American gay politicians Harvard Kennedy School alumni Johns Hopkins University alumni LGBTQ state legislators in California Living people San Diego City Council members 21st-century members of the California State Legislature