Scott Peters (politician)

Scott Harvey Peters (born June 17, 1958) is an American politician who has been the United States Representative for California's 52nd congressional district since 2013.[2] He is a member of the Democratic Party. The district includes coastal and central portions of the city of San Diego, as well as the suburbs of Poway and Coronado.[3]

Scott Peters
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from California's 52nd district
Assumed office
January 3, 2013
Preceded byBrian Bilbray (Redistricting)
Chairman of the Port of San Diego Board of Commissioners
In office
2011 – December 2012
Preceded byRobert Valderrama
Succeeded byLou Smith
Commissioner of the Port of San Diego Board of Commissioners
In office
January 2009 – December 2012
President of San Diego City Council
In office
December 2006 – December 2008
Preceded byPosition established
Succeeded byBen Hueso
Member of San Diego City Council
from the 1st district
In office
December 2000 – December 2008
Preceded byHarry Mathis
Succeeded bySherri Lightner
Commissioner of the California Coastal Commission
In office
June 2002 – July 2005
Appointed byHerb Wesson
Member of the California Commission on Tax Policy in the New Economy
In office
January 2002 – November 2003
Appointed byGray Davis
Personal details
Born
Scott Harvey Peters[1]

(1958-06-17) June 17, 1958
Springfield, Ohio, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)
Lynn Gorguze
(
m. 1990)
Children2
EducationDuke University (BA)
New York University (JD)
WebsiteHouse website

Peters previously served two terms on the San Diego City Council from 2000 to 2008, and he was the first person to hold the post of President of the City Council (2006–2008). He also served as a Commissioner for the Unified Port of San Diego before becoming a member of Congress.

Peters was born in 1958 in Springfield, Ohio.[4] He was raised in Michigan. His father was a Lutheran minister and his mother was a homemaker.[5][6][7] In an interview, Peters said that he took out student loans and participated in his school's work-study program, through which he was given jobs answering phones and cleaning pigeon cages.[5] He received his undergraduate degree from Duke University.[8]

He served as an economist on the staff of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA),[9] then earned a J.D. degree from the New York University School of Law.[8] Prior to his election to the City Council, Peters worked as a deputy county counsel for the San Diego County District Attorney's office and as an attorney in private practice focusing on environmental law.[10] He gained notability in a lawsuit against a local shipbuilder.[11]

California government career

California Coastal Commission

In 2002, Peters was appointed to the California Coastal Commission.[12] He served one three-year term on the Commission. A coalition of environmental groups gave his votes an environmental score of 31% in 2002, 52% in 2003 and 40% in 2004.[13][14] He was "involuntarily retired" in 2005 when new State Assembly Speaker Fabian Nunez did not renew his appointment.[15]

City Council (2000–2008)

Elections

In 2000, he ran for the San Diego City Council's 1st district. In the open primary, he ranked second with 24% of the vote, qualifying for the November general election. Businesswoman Linda Davis ranked first with 32% of the vote.[16] In the November election, Peters defeated Davis 53%-47%.[17]

In the 2004 open primary, he came in first with 48% of the vote. Businessman Phil Thalheimer ranked second with 31% of the vote.[18][19] In the November election, Peters won re-election to a second term, defeating Thalheimer 55%-45%.[20]

Tenure

In 2004, San Diego city residents voted to change the structure of city government from a council-city manager form of government to a mayor-council form of government, which made the mayor the city's chief executive officer.[21] Serving as a member of the city council during this time, Peters was elected to chair the transition committee in charge of this project.[22]

In 2005, Peters was elected by his fellow council members to serve as the first President of the San Diego City Council,[23] which under the new form of government made him the chief officer of the city's newly defined legislative branch. In 2008, San Diego's mayor vetoed a 24% pay raise for the city council which Peters and four other members of the council had voted for themselves.[24][25]

Peters was a member of the San Diego City Council during the San Diego pension scandal.[26] In 2002, he voted with the majority to underfund the employee pension system.[27][28] The ensuing investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission cleared Peters and the other council members of fraud, but the Kroll Report investigation called them "negligent." The city spent $7 million defending officials involved in this case, including $631,000 defending Peters.[29][30] During the 2012 congressional election campaign, his Republican opponent, Brian Bilbray, made the scandal a major theme against Peters.[31]

In 2007, Peters was criticized for excessive water use during a drought. Peters ended the year having consumed more than 1 million gallons of water for his home, which sits on a 34,848-square-foot lot near Mount Soledad, and for an adjacent landscaped parcel.[32]

Peters cited a reduction in sewer spills and beach closure days as accomplishments during his city council tenure. He stated that the city averaged one spill per day when he was elected in 2000, but that, during his terms in office, the incidence of such spills fell by 80%.[33] He was involved in the push to ban alcohol from the city's beaches, as well as to ban smoking from public beaches and parks.[34][35]

2008 City Attorney election

Having reached the end of his eight-year term limit on the city council, Peters ran for San Diego City Attorney in the 2008 election, challenging incumbent City Attorney Mike Aguirre. In the open primary, state legislator Jan Goldsmith ranked first with 32% of the vote. The incumbent ranked second with 29% of the vote, qualifying for the runoff election. Peters ranked third with 20% of the vote and did not advance to the November runoff.[36] He later served as deputy county counsel for the County of San Diego.[10]

Port Commission (2009–2012)
Scott Peters in 2011

Peters was a port commissioner from 2009 through 2012, serving as chair of the Port Commission in 2011. He was sworn in as a commissioner in January 2009, after having been appointed by the San Diego City Council.[37][38] He represented the City of San Diego on the Port Commission, making decisions regarding the uses of San Diego Bay and its adjacent waterfront land.[39]

Peters was chosen by his fellow commissioners to serve as chair of the board of commissioners for 2011.[40] In January 2011, he said one of his top priorities was to have the South Bay Power Plant in Chula Vista decommissioned to make room for better use.[40] In the year Peters served as chair, the board of commissioners reached a deal with the former operator of the plant for its demolition.[41] The Port also conducted community outreach over a period of six months to gather ideas for improving San Diego's waterfront "front porch" between the airport and Seaport Village.[42]

U.S. House of Representatives (2013-present)

2012 election
Main article: 2012 United States House of Representatives elections in California § District 52

Peters ran for the newly redrawn 52nd District in 2012. The district had previously been the 50th District, represented by Republican incumbent Brian Bilbray. In the open primary, Bilbray ranked first with 41% of the vote. Peters ranked second with 23% of the vote, qualifying for the November general election ballot. He narrowly edged out State Assemblywoman Lori Saldaña, a fellow Democrat, who earned 22% of the vote. The other candidates all received single-digit percentages.[43] During the primary, Peters received the endorsement of retiring congressman Bob Filner of the neighboring 51st District.[44] On election night the vote was too close to call, but Peters' small lead increased each day as more absentee, vote-by-mail, and provisional ballots were processed. On November 16, Bilbray conceded the race to Peters.[45] Peters officially defeated Bilbray 51%-49%, a difference of 6,956 votes.[46] He became the first Democrat to represent what is now the 52nd since 1991, when Jim Bates was unseated in what was then the 44th District (it was renumbered as the 51st in 1993 and as the 50th in 2003).

Scott Peters in the 2014 San Diego LGBT Pride Parade

2014 election
Main article: 2014 United States House of Representatives elections in California § District 52

In the June 2014 primary, Peters was opposed by three Republicans. Peters was the top vote getter in the primary with 42%. Under California's "top two" primary system, he faced the second-place finisher, former city councilman Carl DeMaio, in the November general election.[47] Peters was a member of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee's Frontline Program. The program is designed to help protect vulnerable Democratic candidates.[48] In August, Peters was endorsed for re-election by the United States Chamber of Commerce, a relatively rare action by the Chamber of Commerce, which usually endorses Republicans.[49][50]

In a poll conducted by SurveyUSA for U-T San Diego and 10News during September 11–15, 2014, DeMaio and Peters were in a virtual dead heat with Peters polling at 47% and DeMaio at 46%.[51] The same poll taken October 2–6 was again described as a dead heat, with DeMaio showing a 3-point lead over Peters - within the margin of error.[52] An earlier Survey USA poll showed Peters leading by one point.[52]

On election night the result was too close to call, with DeMaio ahead by 751 votes. Over the next few days Peters pulled into the lead. By Friday, Peters had a lead of 4,491 votes, and the Associated Press called the election for Peters.[53] The final result was Peters 51.59% and DeMaio 48.41%.[54]

2016 election
Main article: 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in California § District 52
Peters freshman portrait

Peters was re-elected in 2016 with 56.5% of the vote, handily defeating Republican Denise Gitsham.

Tenure

In April 2013, Peters voted for the Cyber Intelligence Sharing and Protection Act, a bill that would allow federal intelligence agencies to share cybersecurity intelligence and information with private entities and utilities.[55]

In May 2013, Peters voted against repeal of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act (PPACA).[56][57] In October 2013, Peters was one of nine Democratic co-sponsors of HR3425, an unsuccessful proposal which would have delayed any penalties under the PPACA until four months after the program's website is fully functional.[58]

As of October 2013, Peters had voted the same way as Republican Speaker of the House John Boehner on 9 out of the 16 times that Boehner has chosen to cast a vote.[59] The U.S. Chamber of Commerce says Peters voted with the Chamber position on key bills 69% of the time.[49]

Peters says he would prefer that Congress develop a strategy to deal with climate change, but that in lieu of congressional action, he would support President Obama's moves toward bypassing Congress and looking for an international climate change deal.[60]

In June 2016, Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives staged a sit-in on the House floor to protest the lack of a vote on gun control. The Speaker pro tem, Rep. Ted Poe (R-TX), declared the House was in recess, and subsequently the House video feed to C-SPAN was shut off. However, after a brief interruption, C-SPAN was able to broadcast the sit-in because Peters streamed the activity using his Periscope account.[61]

Committee assignments

2013–2014 113th session of Congress

2015–2016 114th session of Congress

2017–2018 115th session of Congress

  • Committee on Energy and Commerce
    • Subcommittee on Energy
    • Subcommittee on Environment
    • Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
  • Committee on Veterans' Affairs
    • Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations
    • Subcommittee on Technology Modernization

Caucuses

Personal life

Peters lives with his family in La Jolla.[9] He and his wife, Lynn E. Gorguze, have a daughter and a son. Lynn is president and CEO of Cameron Holdings,[71] and his family has a net worth of $112 million.[72] As of 2014 Peters is the sixth wealthiest member of Congress.[72]

Peters' campaign website reports that he has been affiliated with the San Diego Regional Economic Development Corporation, CleanTECH San Diego, and the UCSD Chancellor's Community Advisory Board.[9]

Electoral history

2012
United States House of Representatives elections, 2012[73]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Scott Peters 151,451 51.2
Republican Brian Bilbray (incumbent) 144,495 48.8
Total votes 295,946 100.0
Democratic gain from Republican

2014
United States House of Representatives elections, 2014[74]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Scott Peters (incumbent) 98,826 51.6
Republican Carl DeMaio 92,746 48.4
Total votes 191,572 100.0
Democratic hold

2016
United States House of Representatives elections, 2016[75]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Scott Peters (incumbent) 181,253 56.5
Republican Denise Gitsham 139,403 43.5
Total votes 320,656 100.0
Democratic hold

2018
United States House of Representatives elections, 2018[76]
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Scott Peters (incumbent) 188,992 63.8
Republican Omar Qudrat 107,015 36.2
Total votes 296,007 100.0
Democratic hold
gollark: See, this is why lyric bad?
gollark: We can just force gibson to transfer ownership if he turns out worse somehow.
gollark: Use no pronouns. Do not refer to the entity.
gollark: Project OBLIGATING ATLASES, presumably.
gollark: I am a GREAT staff.

References
  1. California Bar profile
  2. "New San Diego congressional members sworn in: Juan Vargas, Scott Peters to begin terms". 10news.com. Retrieved 3 January 2013.
  3. "California State Congressional District 52" (PDF). HealthyCity, based on CRC Certified Map. Retrieved 5 January 2013.
  4. "Rep. Scott H. Peters". Congressional Bill Tracker. Real Clear Politics. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  5. "Scott Peters Thinks He Can Take Down Brian Bilbray". San Diego CityBeat. November 30, 2011.
  6. Bell, Diane (Mar 5, 2014). "Dad of Congressman gives House prayer". U-T San Diego. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  7. "Scott Peters (D)". Election 2012. Wall Street Journal. Retrieved 12 September 2014.
  8. Kaper, Stacy (Nov 16, 2012). "California, 52nd House District". National Journal. Archived from the original on 2014-09-09. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  9. Scott Peters campaign website. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
  10. Carless, Will (Mar 31, 2008). "THE RACE FOR CITY ATTORNEYScott Peters, Lawyer". Voice of San Diego. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  11. Rodgers, Terry (2000-03-04). "Five known only locally seek Mathis' seat". San Diego Union-Tribune. p. B-1.
  12. Sharma, Amita (November 10, 2009). "Peters' Coastal Commission Appointment In Jeopardy". KPBS. Retrieved November 8, 2014.
  13. http://public.surfrider.org/files/cccvote/2003CCCVoteChart.pdf
  14. http://public.surfrider.org/files/cccvote/2005CCCVoteChart.pdf
  15. Matt Potter (12 May 2005). "Clowning around". San Diego Reader. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
  16. "San Diego County Primary Election, March 7, 2000". San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Archived from the original on 2014-08-17. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  17. "San Diego County General Election, November 7, 2000". San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Archived from the original on 2014-08-17. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  18. "San Diego County Primary Election, March 2, 2004" (PDF). San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-08-09. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  19. "San Diego County". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  20. "San Diego County General Election, November 2, 2004" (PDF). San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2014-08-09. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  21. City of San Diego Official Website City Ordinance 2006-45. Archived 2012-05-07 at the Wayback Machine Retrieved February 28, 2012.
  22. Vigil, Jennifer (Apr 28, 2005). "Peters to lead council's strong-mayor transition". U-T San Diego. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  23. Vigil, Jennifer (2005-11-23). "Peters is named first president of City Council". San Diego Union-Tribune. p. B3.
  24. "SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Metro -- Sanders vetoes council's 24% pay raise". Retrieved 23 October 2014.
  25. "Lawyers, Guns and Money". Retrieved 23 October 2014.
  26. "Pension troubles: A timeline". San Diego Union Tribune. March 2006. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
  27. "SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Metro > San Diego's Pension Crisis -- Pension troubles: A timeline". Retrieved 23 October 2014.
  28. "SignOnSanDiego.com > News > Metro > San Diego's Pension Crisis -- Calculated risk runs into harsh reality". Retrieved 23 October 2014.
  29. Alison St John. "SD Spends $7 Million on Legal Fees in Pension Debacle". KPBS Public Media. Retrieved 23 October 2014.
  30. http://legacy.utsandiego.com/news/metro/pension/images/060808kroll_05partiesresponsible.pdf
  31. "TV ad wars begin in Peters-Bilbray contest". North County Times. September 11, 2012. Archived from the original on September 13, 2012. Retrieved September 21, 2012.
  32. Davis, Rob (July 22, 2008). "Peters Cuts Water Use". Voice of San Diego. Retrieved October 29, 2019.
  33. "Election 2012: Who is Scott Peters?". La Jolla Light. January 1, 2012.
  34. "Alcohol Banned for One Year at San Diego Beaches". FOX News. 2007-11-06.
  35. Watkins, Thomas (2006-06-13). "San Diego Bans Smoking at Beaches, Parks". The Washington Post.
  36. "County of San Diego Direct Primary Election, Tuesday, June 3, 2008" (PDF). San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  37. Unified Port of San Diego: Commissioner Profiles.
  38. City of San Diego, Appointment Process Retrieved February 28, 2012.
  39. Port of San Diego: About Us. Retrieved February 28, 2012.
  40. Unified Port of San Diego: New Board Chairman Scott Peters Declares 2011 the Year of Innovation. January 11, 2011.
  41. "Demolition of power plant finally OK'd". San Diego Union-Tribune. October 26, 2011.
  42. "Citizens waterfront ideas include beach, barge". San Diego Union-Tribune. October 11, 2011.
  43. "Registrar of Voters Confirms Race Results". La Jolla Patch. June 24, 2012. Retrieved July 8, 2012.
  44. Cadelago, Christopher (1 May 2012). "Saldaña endorses Filner after Peters demures". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  45. "Rep. Bilbray concedes race to Democratic challenger Scott Peters". latimes.com. Retrieved 16 November 2012.
  46. "Presidential General Election, Tuesday, November 6, 2012". San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Retrieved 18 December 2012.
  47. Walker, Mark (June 3, 2014). "Peters, DeMaio head to November". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved 7 June 2014.
  48. Livingston, Abby (Mar 5, 2013). "http://atr.rollcall.com/dccc-announces-26-members-on-frontline-incumbent-retention-program/". Roll Call. External link in |title= (help)
  49. Nichols, Chris (September 3, 2014). "Peters gains U.S. Chamber nod". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved 4 September 2014.
  50. Trageser, Claire (September 3, 2014). "U.S. Chamber Endorses Scott Peters In San Diego's 52nd Congressional Race". KPBS. Retrieved 4 September 2014.
  51. http://www.utsandiego.com/news/2014/sep/16/scottpeters-carldemaio-poll-52ndcongressionaldistr/ Poll: Scott Peters and Carl DeMaio tied, U-T San Diego, 16 September 2014. Retrieved 15 October 2014.
  52. Walker, Mark (October 7, 2014). "Poll: DeMaio has 3-point lead over Peters; GOP challenger's lead is within poll margin of error, making race a virtual tie". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved 21 October 2014.
  53. Claire Trageser; Laura Wingard (7 November 2014). "Peters Up Nearly 4,500 Votes Over DeMaio; AP Declares Peters Winner". KPBS. Retrieved 16 November 2014.
  54. "General Election, Tuesday, November 4, 2014". San Diego County Registrar of Voters. Archived from the original on 12 May 2014. Retrieved 21 November 2014.
  55. Potter, Matt (Apr 22, 2013). "Peters got $2600 from Microsoft Office president in weeks before CISPA vote". San Diego Reader. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  56. Sam Baker (11 June 2013). "NRCC hits Calif. Dems over ObamaCare rates". The Hill. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  57. "Final Vote Results for Roll Call 154". House.gov. Retrieved 4 November 2013.
  58. Kasperowicz, Pete (October 21, 2013). "Nine Dems propose mandate delay". The Hill. Retrieved 5 November 2013.
  59. Giroux, Greg (October 28, 2013). "Some Democrats Vote With Boehner Touting Independence". Bloomberg. Retrieved 5 November 2013.
  60. Joseph, Cameron (2014-08-27). "Vulnerable Dem backs Obama on climate change move". The Hill. Retrieved 11 September 2014.
  61. Kleeman, Sophie (23 June 2016). "C-SPAN Is Using Periscope to Broadcast Because the GOP Killed Its Camera Feed". Gizmodo. Retrieved 23 June 2016.
  62. "Members". New Democrat Coalition. Retrieved 2 February 2018.
  63. "Rep. Scott Peters, New Democrat Coalition Demand Comprehensive Immigration Reform by September 30". Press release, Congressman Scott Peters office. August 5, 2013. Retrieved 15 August 2013.
  64. "Problem Solvers list: House". Nolabels.org. Archived from the original on 2013-10-31. Retrieved 15 August 2013.
  65. Lewis, Scott (May 13, 2014). "A Reader's Guide to Scott Peters". Voice of San Diego. Retrieved 8 September 2014.
  66. "Membership". Congressional Arts Caucus. Retrieved 13 March 2018.
  67. "Members". Congressional Asian Pacific American Caucus. Retrieved 17 May 2018.
  68. "Our Members". U.S. House of Representatives International Conservation Caucus. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
  69. "90 Current Climate Solutions Caucus Members". Citizen´s Climate Lobby. Retrieved 18 October 2018.
  70. "Members". U.S. - Japan Caucus. Retrieved 12 January 2019.
  71. "Cameron Holdings Management Team". Cameron Holdings. Archived from the original on 2010-11-27. Retrieved December 22, 2012.
  72. Long, Katie (January 9, 2014). "Most Members of Congress are Millionaires". Slate. Retrieved 10 January 2014.
  73. 2012 general election results
  74. 2014 general election results
  75. "U.S. House of Representatives District 52 - Districtwide Results". Archived from the original on 2016-11-30. Retrieved 2016-12-10.
  76. 2018 election results
Political offices
New office President of San Diego City Council
2006–2008		 Succeeded by
Ben Hueso
U.S. House of Representatives
Preceded by
Duncan D. Hunter		 Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from California's 52nd congressional district
2013–present		 Incumbent
U.S. order of precedence (ceremonial)
Preceded by
Scott Perry		 United States Representatives by seniority
220th		 Succeeded by
Mark Pocan
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.