Top California state lawmaker won’t run for re-election amid harassment allegations

SACRAMENTO — Democratic Assemblyman Raul Bocanegra, the focus of mounting sexual harassment allegations, said Monday he won’t seek re-election next year but some party leaders are pressuring him to immediately step down.

The two-term lawmaker from Los Angeles is the first political casualty since sexual harassment allegations became a hot-button topic in the capital last month.

Bocanegra’s announcement came after a weekend when members of the California Democratic Party’s executive board called on him to resign and hours before the Los Angeles Times reported six more women have accused him of inappropriate behavior including groping and kissing.

Assemblywoman Cristina Garcia, a Bell Gardens Democrat and cochair of the Legislative Women’s Caucus, said Bocanegra should step down immediately.

“Don’t wait till 2018. Leave now,” Garcia wrote on Twitter. It’s troubling that Bocanegra is deciding his fate on his own terms, she said.

“He shouldn’t be the one driving this discussion about what happens with him,” she said.

Amar Shergill, a Democratic Party board member started a petition seeking his immediate resignation and that of Democratic Sen. Tony Mendoza, who faces an investigation into his behavior toward several young women who worked for him. Mendoza, of Artesia, has not commented on the call to step down and has denied any wrongdoing. The state party has taken no formal position.

Democrats would temporarily lose their legislative supermajorities if the two stepped down, but the party would almost certainly win both seats back in special elections because of strength in those districts.

Bocanegra issued a statement on Facebook announcing his intent to step down next year.

“As you may know, news stories were reported a few weeks ago about a regrettable encounter when I was a legislative staffer in 2009,” he said. “It was a moment that I truly regret, that I am very sorry for, and for which I have accepted responsibility for my actions.”

“These news reports have since fueled persistent rumors and speculation, and I do not believe that this is in the best interest of my constituents to continue to serve next term,” he wrote.

Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon, who last year appointed Bocanegra majority whip where he’s tasked with rounding up votes for the Democratic leadership, did not call on Bocanegra to resign. However, he said if the allegations are verified by investigators he will push to remove Bocanegra from office.

Rendon also announced Bocanegra would be out as majority whip, though hours earlier Bocanegra said he’d leave the job.