Rhodesia Ransom

Rhodesia Ransom
Official portrait, 2024
Member of the California State Assembly
from the 13th district
Incumbent
Assumed office
December 2, 2024
Preceded byCarlos Villapudua
Personal details
PartyDemocratic
EducationSan Francisco State University (BA)
Golden Gate University (MPA)

Rhodesia Ransom is an American politician serving as a member of the California State Assembly for the 13th district, based in San Joaquin County, since 2024. A Democrat, she previously served on the Tracy City Council from 2016 to 2020.

Early life and education

Ransom grew up in San Francisco and graduated from San Francisco State University with a Bachelor of Arts in political science and from Golden Gate University with a Master of Public Administration.[1]

Career

Ransom was elected to the Tracy City Council in 2016 and served on the council until November 2020.[2] She criticized the firing of the city's police department chief Larry Esquivel in 2018, calling the move by city manager Randall Bradley political.[3]

She ran for San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors in 2020, narrowly losing in the general election to Tracy mayor Robert Rickman.[4] In April 2021, Ransom was appointed district director for U.S. representative Josh Harder.[2] She was elected to serve as one of 30 representatives for California to the Democratic National Committee in 2022.[5]

California Assembly campaign

Ransom initially ran for the 5th district of the California State Senate, the seat of term-limited incumbent Susan Talamantes Eggman. She was endorsed by the California Democratic Party and faced realtor Edith Villapudua, wife of moderate Assemblymember Carlos Villapudua. However, the couple switched races on the day before California's candidate filing deadline, with Carlos running for Senate and Edith running for his Assembly seat.[6] The move was characterized as a ploy to better each of their electoral prospects; however it drove former U.S. Representative Jerry McNerney to join the Senate race and Ransom to also switch into the Assembly election.[7][8] Despite the last-minute switch, Ransom defeated Edith and McNerney defeated Carlos in their respective elections.[9]

Electoral history

Tracy City Council

2016 Tracy City Council election[10]
Candidate Votes %
Nancy D. Young 11,176 26.22
Rhodesia Ransom 10,613 24.90
Mary Souza Mitracos 8,006 18.78
Anne Marie Fuller 6,936 16.27
Amer Hammudi 5,777 13.55
Write-in 119 0.28
Total votes 49,627 100.00

San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors

2020 San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors 5th district election[11][12]
Primary election
Candidate Votes %
Robert Rickman 13,325 42.13
Rhodesia Ransom 9,332 29.51
Veronica Vargas 5,804 18.35
Mateo Morelos Bedolla 3,074 9.72
Write-in 93 0.29
Total votes 31,628 100.00
General election
Robert Rickman 34,180 50.52
Rhodesia Ransom 33,470 49.48
Total votes 67,650 100.00

California State Assembly

2024 California State Assembly 13th district election[13][14]
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Rhodesia Ransom 27,255 41.6
Republican Denise Aguilar Mendez 24,823 37.9
Democratic Edith Villapudua 13,415 20.5
Total votes 65,493 100.0
General election
Democratic Rhodesia Ransom 78,071 56.9
Republican Denise Aguilar Mendez 59,237 43.1
Total votes 137,308 100.0
Democratic hold

References

  1. ↑ Goldeen, Joe (November 3, 2020). "Ransom leading Rickman for seat on San Joaquin County Board of Supervisors". The Stockton Record. Retrieved November 2, 2025.
  2. 1 2 "Rhodesia Ransom appointed as Rep. Harder's new District Director". Tracy Press. April 16, 2021. Retrieved August 25, 2026.
  3. ↑ Langley, Michael Ellis (August 17, 2018). "Council members call for action". Tracy Press. Retrieved August 25, 2026.
  4. ↑ Brownne, Bob (December 4, 2020). "Rickman defeats Ransom by slim margin in supervisor race". Tracy Press. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  5. ↑ Howard, Jerry (July 17, 2022). "Virtual sports betting the only proposition CADEM opposes for November". KDRV. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  6. ↑ Gligich, Daniel (December 11, 2023). "Villapuduas switch races for Senate, Assembly. Now they both face tougher races". The San Joaquin Valley Sun. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
  7. ↑ White, Jeremy (December 8, 2023). "Former Rep. Jerry McNerney jumps into fast-shifting California state Senate race". Politico. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
  8. ↑ Workman, Hannah (December 11, 2023). "Democrat Jerry McNerney announces bid for Stockton-area Senate seat as Villapuduas swap races". Stockton Record. Retrieved January 18, 2024.
  9. ↑ Linesburgh, Scott (March 6, 2024). "Shoemaker, Ransom establish leads in state contests". Stocktonia. Retrieved March 29, 2024.
  10. ↑ "Presidential General Election - November 8, 2016" (PDF). San Joaquin County. December 2, 2016. Retrieved September 23, 2025.
  11. ↑ "County of San Joaquin 2020 Primary Statement of Vote" (PDF). San Joaquin County. April 5, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  12. ↑ "County of San Joaquin 2020 Final Official Results Cumulative Report" (PDF). San Joaquin County. December 3, 2020. Retrieved March 13, 2024.
  13. ↑ "March 5, 2024, Presidential Primary Election - State Assemblymember" (PDF). Secretary of State of California. Retrieved September 23, 2025.
  14. ↑ "November 5, 2024, General Election - State Assemblymember" (PDF). Secretary of State of California. Retrieved September 23, 2025.
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