Mike McGuire is the state senator for District 2, which runs from Marin County to the Oregon border, and was President pro Tempore of the Senate from 2024 to 2025. He is termed out of the Senate and on November 3 faces Rep. James Gallagher, a Republican, for the redrawn U.S. House District 1.
Background
Mike McGuire is from Healdsburg, where his family farmed prunes and grapes in the Alexander Valley for nearly half a century, according to his Senate biography. He earned a political science degree from Sonoma State University in 2002. He was elected to the Healdsburg school board at 19, joined the Healdsburg City Council in 2004 and became the city's youngest mayor, then served on the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors starting in 2011. Voters elected him to the State Senate in 2014 and re-elected him in 2018 and 2022. He lives in Sonoma County with his wife, Erika, an elementary school principal, and their son, Connor.
In office
McGuire represents Senate District 2, which runs from the Golden Gate Bridge to the Oregon border across Marin, Sonoma, Mendocino, Lake, Humboldt, Trinity and Del Norte counties. President pro Tem Toni Atkins named him majority leader on January 19, 2022, after three years as assistant majority leader. He was President pro Tempore from February 2024 until Monique Limón succeeded him in November 2025.
As pro Tem he was the lead Senate author, with Assembly Speaker Robert Rivas, of ACA 8, the congressional redistricting amendment the Legislature adopted on August 21, 2025. Voters approved it as Proposition 50 that November, and the new map moved the 1st Congressional District southwest to take in Santa Rosa.
Bills he wrote in the 2025-26 session that became law include SB 627, which makes it a crime for local, state and federal law enforcement officers to wear face coverings on duty except as specified (signed September 20, 2025); SB 727, on the Great Redwood Trail Agency (October 6, 2025); SB 669, on standby perinatal services at rural hospitals (October 11, 2025); and SB 1263, on contractors who remove hazardous debris after disasters (September 27, 2026). Governor Gavin Newsom vetoed his SB 512, which would have let voters in transportation districts raise sales taxes by initiative, on October 13, 2025.
McGuire voted for Scott Wiener's transit housing bill, SB 79, on June 3 and September 12, 2025; Newsom signed it on October 10, 2025.
On the ballot
McGuire is termed out of the Senate, where his term ends in December 2026. Assemblymember Damon Connolly, whom McGuire has endorsed, and Republican Tief Gibbs are running for the seat. On November 3 McGuire faces Rep. James Gallagher, a Republican and former Assembly member, in the redrawn 1st Congressional District, which includes part of Sonoma County. On June 2 Gallagher won the special primary under the old lines with 62.1 percent to McGuire's 17.3 percent; in the regular primary on the new map, Gallagher took 42.1 percent and McGuire 41.8 percent. On October 14, 2026, Gallagher faulted McGuire's votes on parole laws; McGuire's office said the senator does not control the state's independent parole board.
James Gallagher, the opposing candidate, accused McGuire of backing lenient sentencing laws that let violent offenders out early, citing his votes for SB 261, AB 1448 (2017) and AB 3234 (2020) (The Press Democrat, October 14, 2026).
What supporters say
Said in a statement that McGuire has been “an incredible champion for the North Coast” and will leave big shoes to fill.
Ariel Kelley, Healdsburg City Council member, appointed to the California Coastal Commission; The Press Democrat, April 3, 2025 SourceAnnouncing his own run for the Senate seat, called McGuire “one of the strongest, most energetic senators in all of the state of California.”
Damon Connolly, Assemblymember, District 12; The Press Democrat, April 3, 2025 SourceEndorsing him for Congress, said “From day one in the legislature, he has always been a friend of nurses.”
Mary Turner, President, National Nurses United; National Nurses United (press release), January 14, 2026 Source
What critics say
Wrote to McGuire, then the Senate leader, of his concern that housing progress the state needs could stall in the Senate as Democrats split over SB 79.
Jim Wunderman, President, Bay Area Council; Governing (first published by CalMatters), May 1, 2025 SourceDescribed McGuire as “someone who's really good at working within the system” and said his own aim was to change the system.
Kyle Wilson, Santa Rosa labor lawyer, then a Democratic candidate for the seat; The Press Democrat, November 13, 2025 Source
On the ballot
U.S. House, District 1
- Mike McGuireDem Endorsed by the California Democratic Party
- James GallagherRep Endorsed by the California Republican Party
Party endorsements are each party's official list, linked on each tag; a party preference on the ballot is not an endorsement. How we report endorsements.
SFBAYHCC does not endorse candidates in these pages. Every candidate in a contest gets the same fields, listed in the order the official source lists them. How we write these profiles. Profile last reviewed October 17, 2026.
