California politicians weigh in on Trump’s conviction, but Garvey remains notably mum

Former President Donald Trump’s conviction Thursday spurred an avalanche of reactions from some of California’s leading political figures in the hours following the jury’s historic announcement.

As the most populous state in the nation and a Democratic stronghold, the Golden State has brandished itself a cradle of Democrat-led MAGA opposition ever since the 2016 election. Though the state has a Democratic super-majority, a handful of Republican-held districts are expected to be among the tightest and most consequential races in the bid for House control. Any impacts of Trump’s conviction in these districts are unclear at this point, but a steady trickle of comments from Republican and Democratic party leaders may offer a glimpse into how the verdict will play into in campaign messaging aimed at undecided and moderate voters.

More: Trump guilty, now what? Why the verdict isn’t the most shocking part of the trial

California GOP, Democratic party leaders weigh in on Trump verdict

California Republican Party Chairwoman Jessica Millan Patterson called the decision a “dark day,” alleging a “politically-motivated case brought by a far-left district attorney” in a statement released a few hours after Trump’s 32-count guilty verdict was read.

“Despite Democrat-led efforts to interfere with the presidential election, Americans will have the final say this November when they re-elect President Trump and send him back to the White House to fix the many failures of the Biden administration and put our nation on a pathway to success,” Patterson said.

Claims popularized by Trump and his allies in the Republican Party of election interference, rigging and other types of fraud have been repeatedly disproven by independent experts and election officials.

More: Don’t be fooled: 5 types of misinformation we expect this election season

The state’s Democratic party chair Rusty Hicks released his own statement on the verdict as well, striking a jubilant tone in stark contrast to Patterson’s “dark day.”

“Today, the People of New York have returned a guilty verdict and rendered Donald Trump a convicted felon,” Hicks said in a statement on X. “In November, the American People will render him a two-time loser for President. And California Democrats are going to do our part to make it so.”

Candidates for California’s U.S. Senate seat Schiff and Garvey

In California’s race to fill the late-Dianne Feinstein’s Senate seat, Trump’s shadow looms large over Republican candidate Steve Garvey, who has repeatedly refused to clarify his level of support for the former president. While Trump is a potential poison pill for the Republican candidate in deep-blue California, it’s long been a political rallying cry for his opponent.

Congressman Adam Schiff, D-Burbank, catapulted onto the national stage for leading the prosecution in Trump’s first impeachment trial. In debates before the March 5 primary, he often brought up Trump’s name, echoing many other leading Democrats in positioning himself as a bulwark against Trump an MAGA Republicanism.

More: Trump found guilty in hush money trial ahead of convention, November election. What’s next?

More: How will Donald Trump’s guilty verdict hit his reelection bid? Is his political fallout here?

Schiff celebrated the Manhattan jury’s decision in a Thursday post on X, formerly Twitter, minutes after the verdict.

“Today, twelve ordinary American citizens found a former president guilty of dozens of felonies,” Schiff said in the Thursday post. “Despite his efforts to distract, delay, and deny — justice arrived for Donald Trump all the same. And the rule of law prevailed.”

As of Thursday afternoon, Garvey has not released public comment on the verdict.

California’s House members take to social media

Republican Tom McClintock, representing the 5th Congressional District in the Central Valley and Sierra Nevada Foothills, said the verdict “perverts the rule of law.” In his post on X, he calls the prosecutor “poisonously partisan” and the jury pool “contaminated.”

Republican Doug LaMalfa called it a “miscarriage of justice,” mirroring McClintock and Patterson in claiming the prosecution was partisan. He went one step further, claiming the judge “purposely rigged the entire process” to ensure a guilty verdict.

Democrat Eric Swallwell said on the social media platform Thursday that Trump’s conviction is a win for the rule of law and for “the idea that we all follow the same rules.”

One of California’s two ranking House Democrats, Rep. Ted Lieu, said on X: “In America, no one is above the law: not the rich, not the powerful, and certainly not any former President of the United States.”

Kathryn Palmer is an elections fellow for USA TODAY. Reach her at kapalmer@gannett.com and follow her on X @KathrynPlmr.