Menifee resident Shoults enters race for Assembly seat

By Doug Spoon, Editor

Menifee resident Chris Shoults has announced that he will run for the State Assembly 63rd District seat vacated by Bill Essayli earlier this week.

Shoults, a Democrat, was unsuccessful in his campaign against the Republican Essayli in 2024. Just three days after Essayli resigned to accept an appointment from the Trump administration as U.S. Attorney, Shoults on Friday announced his second bid for the Assembly seat.

Shoults, who has lived in Menifee since 2019, is a teacher in the Murrieta Unified School District. He has also taught classes at Mt. San Jacinto College. He was raised in Wyoming, learned several trades as a young man, and was the first in his family to graduate from college. He and his wife and three sons moved to Riverside County, where they also run a childcare business.

The candidate’s campaign platform is summed up on his website, which states:

“Raised on a farm in Southeastern Wyoming, I learned work ethic, grit, and how to get things done. Now, I’m running for State Assembly to take those values to Sacramento and deliver results for our community.

“No more self-serving political agendas and partisan games. It’s time for real leadership and representation that puts people first.”

Gov. Gavin Newsom has 14 days from the time of Essayli’s resignation to declare a special election – either to fill only the remainder of Essayli’s term through 2026 or for that and an additional two years. At that time, candidates can officially pull papers to run for the Assembly seat. One other candidate – Lake Elsinore council member Natasha Johnson – has also announced her intention to run.

“In 2024, I got in a year late,” Shoults said in a phone interview about his race against Essayli. “I made a solid showing before, and I decided it’s time to run again. The infrastructure of my campaign was still in place and I’m ready to take on the challenge.”

Shoults served on a city Planning Commission in Wyoming and is committed to public service as a way to make an impact on society. He believes there are ways to find solutions to problems, even in the divisive political climate of today.

“I don’t know that right now, we’re actually working to solve problems,” Shoults said. “We have to establish relationships and take action to get stuff through.

“I grew up in a Republican community. I believe we can disagree on things and change each other’s minds. What we need is to get back to thinking about building bridges and working to find solutions.”

Shoults said his top three priorities are affordability, education, and public safety. He acknowledges the concern of Menifee residents about increased housing and its lack of affordability in many cases. He understands the concern over the possibility of warehouses and distribution centers in the area.

At the same time, he believes there are two sides to to each issue, and that cities should have a fair amount of control over the laws that govern them.

“I’m a proponent of local control,” he said. “We have to be careful of overbearing regulations. I get residents’ concerns, but the question is, what do we do about it? We have to create the kinds of jobs we need, so people can afford their homes."

As a teacher, Shoults has served on the executive board of his union. He said he is committed to supporting the type of curriculum that prepares students for adult life – whichever path they choose.

“I’ve been in education for 26 years,” he said. “I’ve watched us not solve problems such as test scores and the quality of education.

“I have a tech background as well. I have three degrees, I have a Masters in English, but I can fix a car and I can build things. We need a place and a path for everybody. There are a lot of opportunities for people in trades, but you couldn’t tell that from today’s high school course catalogs.”

Once Newsom declares the special election, Riverside County officials have up to 140 days to schedule it. That’s a relatively short time period for a campaign, but Shoults said he is prepared.

On his website, Shoults has several answers to the question, “Why vote for me?” One of them is the following:

“Because I have respect for local control and want to support localities in forging a better quality of life for all by identifying and delivering state-level resources.”