Assembly District 59 (AD59) incumbent Reginald Jones-Sawyer is relying heavily on the Assembly speaker and special interest groups to fund his 2020 re-election. Jones-Sawyer recently met with members of the Canterbury Knolls community stating he has the “secret sauce” to victory: vote by mail ballots (VBM).
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed an executive order in June mandating that all Californians receive a VBM ballot whether they wished to receive one or not. As of October 2019 there were 20 million registered voters in the state of California where 6.9 million submitted VBM ballots and 9.6 million went to the polls.
VBM has become a highly focal component of the 2020 election due to President Donald Trump’s assertion that the VBM process is rigged by Democrats, which could pose a problem for Jones-Sawyer if that is how he is relying on garnering enough votes to remain in his seat.
Jones-Sawyer confidently explained he received more VBM ballots cast in his favor, while his opponent beat him at the polls. In the March primary Jones-Sawyer came in second to Efren Martinez who is also a member of the Democratic Party.
Related: Over 100K CA Mail Ballots, Many Late, Not Counted In March Primary
Jones-Sawyer recently published an article in the LA Sentinel discussing his fundraising achievement but failed to mention it was because of Asm. Speaker Anthony Rendon that he raised the vast majority from his Assembly colleagues and not through his own constituents.
The median income in the Canterbury/Vermont Knolls area of AD59 is a measly $27,000 according to 2010 census data and 70% of the district’s residents are renters.
AD59 shows zero signs of economic stability south of the University of Southern California (USC). In fact, Jones-Sawyer had to admit that USC received paycheck protection loans while most small businesses in his district did not.
Assemblymembers took funds from the 2020 campaign coffers to make maximum contributions in the amount of $4700 each while the average contribution from non business/elected’s averaged $100 per person.
Jones-Sawyer fell short 3,000 votes in the March primary, which has led him to accept campaign contributions from companies not only doing harm to South Central children but also a company caught in the crosshairs of U.S. attorneys looking into the cannabis industry.
Jones-Sawyer also took a $4700 contribution from JUUL labs who is facing multiple lawsuits for marketing tobacco products to kids and for shipping out contaminated products for consumption.
Jones-Sawyer also accepted $4700 from Ghost Management Group LLC, who received federal grand jury subpoenas last fall, seeking information related to “communications and payments to local, state, and federal employees, as well as elected officials and any candidates for those offices.”
In early March 2020, Marketwatch reported the broadly-written subpoena requested tax, banking, and additional financial documents, including transactions. Business-to-business communications between Weedmaps and “any person engaged in commercial cannabis activity” also were specified.
Related: Weedmaps Grand Jury Subpoena Raises Concerns for Entire Cannabis Industry

The AD59 race will come down to whether Speaker Rendon has the “secret sauce” to save a strategic Assembly seat that has been occupied by a do nothing political for nearly a decade.
Jones-Sawyer presents zero plans to address police reform, as he has taken thousands of dollars in campaign contributions from law enforcement unions throughout the state of California, while instead choosing to promote a bill making it a crime to call in racist 911 calls.
No one is asking why Jones-Sawyer hasn’t increased small business funding, economic development and home ownership during his tenure? Was he espousing empty rhetoric during a hand picked community call with strategically placed “leaders” to continue to blow smoke up the butts of South Central residents?
What has he been doing the last eight years he’s been in office?
The Assembly District 59 race has turned into Speaker Rendon’s campaign to save a seat and not the re-election of the incumbent.
Jones-Sawyer should be ashamed of himself.
1 Comment
I believe it’s time for all you negro ‘s so call leaders to do a self evaluation; all the promises you make during campaigning has left our communities void with empty promises and no progress.
I personally don’t think any of you are fit to represent a monkey.
We are tried of your bullshit….just go away!