State Senate
Simitian was elected to the California State Senate in November 2004 and is currently serving as State Senator for District 11. He defeated former Assemblyman and San Mateo County Supervisor Ted Lempert in the Democratic primary election, also prevailing in the general election. Simitian was re-elected to a second term in 2008. His current term ends in 2012. Simitian was one of only four Democratic Senators to vote against California's ambitious High Speed Rail plan.
Azerbaijan’s Foreign Ministry has put Simitian on a list of individuals banned from entering the country. The decision was made after Simitian travelled to Nagorno-Karabakh without Baku’s permission.
Read more about this topic: Joe Simitian
Famous quotes containing the words state and/or senate:
“The State never intentionally confronts a man’s sense, intellectual or moral, but only his body, his senses. It is not armed with superior wit or honesty, but with superior physical strength.”
—Henry David Thoreau (1817–1862)
“This is a Senate of equals, of men of individual honor and personal character, and of absolute independence. We know no masters, we acknowledge no dictators. This is a hall for mutual consultation and discussion; not an arena for the exhibition of champions.”
—Daniel Webster (1782–1852)