Lee R. Brand (born April 5, 1949) [1] is an American politician and businessman who is the 25th mayor of Fresno, California. He took office as the successor for Ashley Swearengin on January 3, 2017. [2] Upon inauguration, Brand became the oldest to assume the mayoralty of Fresno beating the previous holder Dr. Chester A. Rowell by 3 years and 21 days. [3]
Brand was born in The Dalles, Oregon. His father was Archie L. Brand better known as ‘Brandy,’ of English descent, and his mother was Florence G. Trosi. His parents, his brother and he lived in a small motel room with no indoor bathroom. Archie and Florence worked for his grandfather Archie M. Brand better known as A.M. as dishwashers and general labor at the café, gas station, motel and small zoo A.M. operated.
Brand's mother was from Fresno, and his maternal grandfather and grandmother, Ralph Trosi and Pierina Trosi immigrated to the U.S. from Naples. [1]
The Brand family moved to Fresno when A.M. no longer ran the roadside business and started a career as a sea lion trainer, touring the county with his ‘Sparky the Seal’ act. Brand's family arrived in Fresno in 1954 where he and his brother began Elementary school. [1]
Growing up in a poor household, Brand began committing petty theft while in elementary school. While in junior high, Brand and some friends were arrested for breaking and entering several schools and served time in the juvenile hall work program. In 1964, when Brand was only 15, his father died in a plane crash. [1]
At Theodore Roosevelt High School in Fresno, Brand was an average student who competed on the cross country and track teams and ran a 1:59 half-miler in his junior year. He became a voracious reader is senior year and his grades started improving.
After graduating in 1967, Brand briefly attended Fresno City College before enlisting in the California Air National Guard.
After less than half a year in active duty as a technician, Brand returned to Fresno and engaged in a lifestyle he described as "sex, drugs, and rock and roll" before experiencing a "calling from God" in 1971. Brand began taking heavy course loads at Fresno City College and later California State University, Fresno (Fresno State) and graduated in 1973 from Fresno State summa cum laude. [1] Brand paid for his education by working at a local Sears and doing weekend patrol for the California Air National Guard. [1] He later received an honorable discharge from the Guard. [4]
Brand completed his M.P.A. at the University of Southern California in 1974 via a project instead of thesis. [1] From 1974 to 1978, Brand was an assistant mental health administrator for Madera County. On the side, Brand flipped houses and eventually opened a real estate business, Brand-Glenn & Associates, and car stereo store named The Sound Machine. [1] Brand's real estate business became Brand & Associates in 1981, and Brand co-founded Westco Equities in 1987. [1]
In 1996, Brand managed the successful campaign of Fresno City Council candidate Ken Steitz. [1]
After an unsuccessful campaign for the city council in 2000, Brand began serving on the Fresno Planning Commission as an appointee of mayor Alan Autry. [1]
Brand won election to the City Council in 2008 for the northeast Fresno seat previously held by Jerry Duncan. [1] He was re-elected to a second four term in 2012. During his eight years on the Fresno City Council, he wrote 19 legislative acts focused on fiscal management and better government. In 2011, he served as the Council President.
In 2016, Brand ran for the Mayor of the City of Fresno. He finished second in the primary and won the November runoff. He was sworn in as the 25th Mayor of Fresno on January 3, 2017. [5]
Lee Brand concluded his term as Mayor of Fresno on January 5, 2021. After finishing his political career, he began researching his family ancestry finding surprising information about his father and grandfather.
This motivated him to write a book about family relationships through generations. His debut novel Discovering the Family I Never Knew, is a fictional book inspired by real people and events in his life. [6] [7]
2000 Fresno County Supervisor seat 2 election [8] [9] | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Candidate | First round | Runoff | ||
Votes | % | Votes | % | |
Susan B. Anderson | 22,844 | 46.12 | 44,471 | 68.50 |
Ken Steitz | 14,901 | 30.08 | 20,383 | 31.40 |
Lee Brand | 9,355 | 18.89 | ||
John Mendoza | 2,365 | 4.77 | ||
Write-ins | 68 | 0.14 | 70 | 0.11 |
Total | 49,533 | 100 | 64,924 | 100 |
2008 Fresno City Council District 6 election [10] | ||
---|---|---|
Candidate | Votes | % |
Lee Brand | 8,601 | 70.92 |
Michelle Jorgensen | 3,128 | 25.79 |
Matt White | 378 | 3.12 |
2012 Fresno City Council District 6 election [11] | |||
---|---|---|---|
Candidate | Votes | % | |
Lee Brand (incumbent) | 11,074 | 98.33 | |
Write-ins | 118 | 1.67 | |
Total | 11,273 | 100 | |
Voter turnout | 28.85% |
2016 Fresno Mayoral Primary election [12] [5] | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Candidate | First round | Runoff | ||
Votes | % | Votes | % | |
Lee Brand | 25,491 | 30.79 | 71,776 | 51.20 |
Henry Perea | 37,006 | 44.70 | 68,053 | 48.54 |
H. Spees | 15,089 | 18.23 | ||
Doug Vagim | 2,910 | 3.52 | ||
Richard B. Renteria | 2,090 | 2.52 | ||
Write-ins | 199 | 0.24 | 363 | 0.26 |
Total | 69,795 | 100 | 140,192 | 100 |
Fresno County, officially the County of Fresno, is a county located in the central portion of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 Census, the population was 1,008,654. The county seat is Fresno, the fifth-most populous city in California.
John Herman Cox is an American businessman, housing developer, and political activist, who has run for public office several times, mostly recently for Governor of California as a Republican Party candidate.
The California Republican Party (CAGOP) is the affiliate of the United States Republican Party in the U.S. state of California. The party is based in Sacramento and is led by chair Jessica Millan Patterson.
Gilbert Salvador Iberri Garcetti is an American politician and lawyer. He served as Los Angeles County's 40th district attorney for two terms, from 1992 until November 7, 2000. He is the father of U.S. Ambassador to India and former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti.
Chester Harvey Rowell was an early leader of the progressive movement in California.
Jan Ira Goldsmith is a Republican politician from San Diego, California, United States who served as the San Diego City Attorney from 2008 to 2016.
Henry T. Perea is a Chevron lobbyist who was elected to the California State Assembly in November 2010. He is a Democrat who formerly represented the 31st district, encompassing western Fresno.
The Government of Fresno County is defined and authorized under the California Constitution, law, and the Charter of the County of Fresno. Much of the Government of California is in practice the responsibility of county governments, such as the Government of Fresno County. The County government provides countywide services such as elections and voter registration, law enforcement, jails, vital records, property records, tax collection, public health, and social services. In addition the County serves as the local government for all unincorporated areas.
Johnny Khamis is an American politician from San Jose, California and was a member of the San Jose City Council, representing District 10.
Chester A. Rowell was an American physician and politician who served as a California state senator and as mayor of Fresno. He was also a regent of the University of California.
The 2016 United States presidential election in California was held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016, as part of the 2016 United States presidential election in which all 50 states plus the District of Columbia participated. California voters chose electors to represent them in the Electoral College via a popular vote, pitting the Republican Party's nominee, businessman Donald Trump, and running mate Indiana Governor Mike Pence against Democratic Party nominee, former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and her running mate Virginia Senator Tim Kaine. California had 55 electoral votes in the Electoral College, the most of any state.
The 2018 California's 39th congressional district election was held on Tuesday, November 6, 2018, with a primary election being held on June 5, 2018.
The 2020 United States House of Representatives elections in California were held on November 3, 2020, to elect the 53 U.S. representatives from the state of California, one from each of the state's 53 congressional districts. The elections coincided with the 2020 U.S. presidential election, as well as other elections to the United States House of Representatives, elections to the United States Senate, and various state and local elections.
The 2016 Fresno mayoral election was held on June 6, 2016 and November 8, 2016 to elect the mayor of Fresno, California. It saw the election of Lee Brand.
Jerry P. Dyer is an American politician and former law enforcement officer. He is the 26th and current mayor of Fresno, California. Previously, he served as the chief of the Fresno Police Department.
The 2020 Fresno mayoral election was held on March 3, 2020, to elect the mayor of Fresno, California. Republican Jerry Dyer was elected after winning a majority in the primary.
The 2022 San Jose mayoral election was held on November 8, 2022, to elect the next mayor of San Jose for a two-year term. A top-two primary was held on June 7, 2022, and no candidate received more than 50% in this primary election. Santa Clara County Supervisor Cindy Chavez and San Jose City Councilmember Matt Mahan advanced to a November 8 runoff election. On November 16, Cindy Chavez conceded the race to Matt Mahan.
Elections are held in Riverside, California to elect the city's mayor. Currently, such elections are nonpartisan and are regularly scheduled to elect mayors to four-year terms.
The 2020 Los Angeles County elections were held on November 3, 2020, in Los Angeles County, California, with nonpartisan blanket primary elections for certain offices being held on March 3. Three of the five seats of the Board of Supervisors were up for election, as well as one of the countywide elected officials, the District Attorney. In addition, elections were held for various community college districts and water districts, as well as the Superior Court.
The Fresno Morning Republican was a newspaper serving Fresno, California from 1876 through 1932. It was founded by Dr. Chester Rowell and operated by his nephew, Chester Harvey Rowell.