WALKAWAY: San Diego Republican Assemblyman Brian Maienschein switches parties and joins Democrats

San Diego Assemblyman Brian Maienschein, who has served in the Legislature for six years, announced on Thursday that he has left the California Republican Party and re-registered as a Democrat in a move that further shrinks GOP influence in Sacramento.

“Donald Trump has led the Republican Party to the extreme on issues that divide our country,” Maienschein said. “But his leadership is not the only reason for my change in party affiliation. I, too, have changed.”
The unexpected decision, announced at a brief Capitol news conference just after the Assembly floor session, boosts the membership of the chamber’s Democratic caucus to 61. Republicans now hold just 19 seats.

Assemblyman Chad Mayes (R-Yucca Valley), a former GOP leader in the chamber who last year launched a political action committee to elect more centrist Republicans, wrote on Twitter that he was not surprised by the decision.
“He’s a great legislator that represents his district well,” Mayes wrote. “I’m sure this decision did not come easy for him. He didn’t leave the Republican Party, the party left him.”

[link to www.latimes.com (secure)]