Musgrove joins state Senate race
San Marcos councilman joins two others for the state Senate 40 seat as Sen. Brian Jones is termed out in 2026
SAN MARCOS — A trio of candidates are getting the jump on the open state Senate District 40 seat with San Marcos Councilman Ed Musgrove being the latest candidate to announce his candidacy.
Musgrove, a Republican who was re-elected to the council in November, joins fellow Republican Kristie Bruce-Lane and San Diego City Councilwoman and Democrat Marni von Wilpert in the race for the seat.
The seat is currently held by Sen. Brian Jones (R-Santee), who is the minority leader for the senate Republicans. He is termed out in 2026.
Musgrove announced on Thursday after weeks of preparation and planning. Musgrove said the timing lined up to see what other candidates may emerge. Many candidates, especially for state office, announce their candidacy more than one year in advance to fundraise, solicit endorsements and develop a strategy to reach voters.
“Part of that is putting together a support team and feeling out the environment,” Musgrove said. “The final decision to run wasn’t until the election was completed. You can always run unseated, but it’s a lot more difficult. My commitment right now is to give the residents of San Marcos two good years and if I’m elected, we’ll get a replacement. If not, then they got me for four years.”
Musgrove, a former San Diego Sheriff’s captain, said some of his priorities include supporting local control for municipalities, addressing affordability, supporting public safety, tackling broken roads and traffic, homelessness and reforming the state’s underperforming public education system.
He said one of the biggest problems with the legislature is a single-approach mindset to tackle issues for a state with 40 million residents. He said there is no balance, no “rational common sense” as decisions are made, and the results dictate the next action instead of considering the options and weighing the collateral impacts.
Musgrove said it’s critical to stop and change directions. He said an action will be done and when it doesn’t work out, another layer is added to try and fix a problem but ends up compounding the issue.
Musgrove said housing is a prime example. There are so many regulations that a developer cannot build an affordable unit, or project, and ends up pricing out working-class residents.
“We keep talking about affordable housing, but affordable is an ever-changing target,” he explained. “As a state government, we’ve done a poor job in making it easier for the average resident or newcomer to be able to afford a house. It’s almost impossible.”
Musgrove cited the success of San Marcos, which has the largest percentage of affordable housing in San Diego County, also supports businesses by streamlining the process and getting out of the way. He said the city operates opposite of how of the state works and it has resulted in the state working against its own interests.
Bruce-Lane
She was elected to the Olivenhain Municipal Water District Board of Directors in 2022 before running for State Assembly in 2022 and 2024, losing both those races. Before politics, Bruce-Lane worked in agriculture and healthcare.
She’s also served on the Regional Task Force on homelessness and founded the Thumbprint Project Foundation to transition homeless children suffering domestic violence.
Bruce-Lane’s platform includes reduce the cost of living, addressing homelessness, public safety, addressing public education, the environment and tackling fentanyl.
“Government is failing us,” she added. “I’m running for State Senate because, as a mom and businesswoman, I see every day how the failed policies of Sacramento are hurting our hardworking families, making it impossible to afford a life here, and causing them to flee.
“I will fight for common-sense reform to lower the cost of living, reduce crime, support businesses, fix our failing schools, and give our families a brighter future. And while some Sacramento politicians are all talk, I have a record of delivering for our community and will build on those wins in the State Senate.”
Bruce-Lane said the cost of living in California is 40% higher than the national average thanks to housing, energy, food costs and high taxes. Those components are forcing thousands of residents to move elsewhere.
She said one priority is to protect Proposition 13, which limits property tax assessments and rates. Also, Bruce-Lane said the border is another priority as current policies have allowed fentanyl to flow into the county and state creating an epidemic of addiction and overdoses.
As for education, she said the system is failing students as test scores and other evaluations have significantly decreased over the past several years.
“Fifty-nine percent of all third-grade students in San Diego County do not meet reading and writing requirements and for students of color, the percentages are higher,” she said. “This happens while California’s educational bureaucracy and Sacramento politicians focus on placing blame and not educating our children. We have an illiteracy crisis hiding in plain sight. Having worked for over a decade helping at-risk youth in our education system, I will work to bring academic success to our public schools.”
Von Wilpert
A former San Diego city prosecutor, von Wilpert was first elected in 2020 and re-election last year as she ran unopposed in District 5 of San Diego. Her district covers Rancho Bernardo, Scripps Ranch, Torrey Highlands and Rancho Peñasquitos.
According to her website, she banned the sale and possession of ghost guns in San Diego, oversaw federal COVID-19 funds, banned the sale of flavored tobacco and led the way for a new conservatorship and treatment unit for homeless residents.
Von Wilpert also sits on the city’s Public Safety Committee and has said she’s a “watchdog for taxpayers,” according to an interview with Fox 5/KUSI in September.
Von Wilper did not respond to a request for comment by deadline.
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