Candidate for
State Senator; District 11; Democratic Party

Ted Lempert is not your ordinary politican. Ted is the CEO and co-founder of EdVoice, a statewide, grassroots organization advocating for education reform and support for public education. The group is comprised of leading California education, political and business leaders, as well as grassroots members throughout the State. Lempert also serves on the San Mateo County Board of Education.

Ted Lempert was first elected to the State Assembly in 1988 in a major upset of a Republican incumbent. Ted's grassroots campaign won Democrats an Assembly seat that Republicans had held for over 100 years. The State Republican Party was so devestated by this defeat that they announced plans to recall Ted on his first day in office. Thanks to the help of some local Republicans who knew and admired Ted, this effort was short-lived. Ted served as a State Assemblymember representing San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties from 1988 to 1992 and 1996 to 2000. He served as chair of the Assembly Higher Education Committee and the Select Committee on Coastal Protection.

They said it couldn't be done but Ted successfully authored landmark environmental, ethics and education legislation during his eight years in the Assembly, including the Lempert-Keene Oil Spill Prevention & Response Act (1990), the Political Reform Act (1990), the California Coastal Sanctuary Act (1992), the Golden State Scholarshare Trust (1997), the Ballast Water Management Program (1999) and the Local School Construction Bond Act (2000). He had 70 other bills signed into law by Governors Deukmejian, Wilson and Davis.

Ted also served on the San Mateo County Board of Supervisors, where he was President of the Board in 1995 and chaired the Task Force on Violence Against Women. His supervisorial district included the Coast, from the Santa Cruz County border to the San Francisco border. Prior to holding public office, Lempert was special counsel and an associate for the law firm of Sheppard, Mullin, Richter and Hampton.

Ted was named "Legislator of the Year" by leading education groups, including the National Association of Educational Service Agencies, the California School Boards Association, the Association for California School Administrators, the California County Superintendents Association, the Faculty Association of California Community Colleges, the UC Students Association and the CSU Students Association. The American Electronics Association recognized him five times with the "High-Tech Legislator of the Year" award. Lempert also received awards from the Planning and Conservation League, the Loma Prieta Sierra Club Chapter and the Santa Clara County Perinatal Network.

A lifelong resident of the Peninsula, Ted Lempert attended local public schools. He graduated from Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs and earned his law degree from Stanford University. Ted, his wife Nicole and their three daughters live in San Carlos.