California Senate Defeats Bill Barring Registered Sex Offenders from Office

Rene Campos, a registered sex offender who pleaded no contest in 2018 to possession of child sexual-abuse material, announced a bid for Fresno City Council. The candidacy prompted Fresno Assemblymember Esmeralda Soria to draft Assembly Bill 2753, which would bar anyone on California’s three-tier sex-offender registry from holding public office, including school board, city council and state legislative seats. The bill cleared the Assembly unanimously but was reviewed by Senate Elections Committee on Tuesday. Committee Chair Scott Wiener warned the proposal was overly broad and would capture low-level offenses, supporting only a Tier-Three-only restriction. Soria rejected the amendment, insisting all tiers be disqualified. Assemblymember Don Addis, author of companion bill AB 2961, accepted changes to avoid penalizing consensual “Romeo-and-Juliet” situations. The committee vote was 2-yes (Sabrina Cervantes, Steven Choi), 1-no (Wiener), and 2-abstentions (Tom Umberg, Ben Allen).

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California’s registry assigns Tier 1 for up to 10 years, Tier 2 for up to 20 years, and Tier 3 for life. AB 2753 would have barred all three tiers; AB 2961 bars felony sex offenders only when victims are adults.

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The vote keeps registered sex offenders eligible for city-council, school-board and legislative seats, prompting victim-advocacy groups to demand stricter eligibility rules. Lawmakers argue a blanket ban could unintentionally affect consensual near-age relationships, while opponents say any offender erodes public trust.

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Soria said she was “extremely disappointed” and vowed to keep fighting to block offenders from office. Wiener stressed the bill would sweep up too many people and would only back a Tier-Three-only limit. Addis noted need to avoid penalizing “Romeo-and-Juliet” cases and said work is needed.

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Opponents argue AB 2753 fails to differentiate low-level from severe offenses, risking disenfranchisement of rehabilitated individuals. Supporters counter that any registered offender should be barred from public trust positions.

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AB 2961 still permits individuals convicted of felony child-sex crimes such as rape and sodomy to run for office. Addis’s office has not yet released a detailed list of offenses covered, leaving the bill’s exact scope unclear.

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• “I'm extremely disappointed and I feel like I'm still trying to process what we just saw,” — Esmeralda Soria, Assemblymember

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• “Wiener said he would only support the measure and allow it to move forward if it applied exclusively to Tier Three offenders.” — Scott Wiener, State Senator

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• “We didn't want to unintentionally wrap in what's known as Romeo and Juliet kinds of situations into this elections bill,” — Don Addis, Assemblymember

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• “But I will reemphasize I still think more work needs to be done,” — Don Addis, Assemblymember

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The Senate will reconvene after a month-long summer recess, giving legislators another chance to introduce revised eligibility bills or advance AB 2961. Advocacy groups say they will monitor new proposals.

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