Patrick Ahrens
American politician
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Patrick James Ahrens (born September 12, 1989) is an American politician who is a member of the California State Assembly for the 26th district since 2024. A Democrat, he served on the Foothill–De Anza Community College District Board of Trustees and as a district director for his predecessor, Evan Low.[2][3]
September 12, 1989
Patrick Ahrens | |
|---|---|
Official portrait, 2024 | |
| Member of the California State Assembly from the 26th district | |
| Assumed office December 2, 2024 | |
| Preceded by | Evan Low |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Patrick James Ahrens[1] September 12, 1989 San Jose, California, U.S. |
| Party | Democratic |
| Education | De Anza College University of California, Los Angeles San Jose State University (MPA) |
| Website | Legislative website |
Early life and education
Ahrens grew up in household that struggled with substance addiction and he experienced homelessness while attending college.[4][2] Ahrens was the first person in his family to attend college, graduating with an associate degree from De Anza College, a bachelor’s degree in political science from the University of California Los Angeles, and a Master of Public Administration from San Jose State University.[5] He was a graduate of the federal Head Start program.[6]
Career
Ahrens worked for U.S. Representative Janice Hahn in Washington, D.C., where he met Evan Low.[4] He would go on to serve as a district director for Low.[7] In 2014, he served as field director then campaign manager of Paul Fong's unsuccessful bid for the San Jose City Council.[8]
He was first elected to the Foothill-De Anza Community College District Board of Trustees in 2018 and selected as president of the board on December 13, 2021.[9]
California State Assembly
Ahrens ran for the California State Assembly in the 26th district in 2024 to succeed incumbent Evan Low, who ran for the U.S. House of Representatives.[5] He advanced to the general election with fellow Democrat Tara Sreekrishnan, a Santa Clara County School Board Trustee and legislative staffer to state Senator Dave Cortese.[10] The race attracted $3.7 million in outside spending including $2 million boosting Ahrens.[11][12] Ahrens defeated Sreekrishnan receiving 56% of votes cast (76,807) compared to her 44% of votes cast (60,392) in the general election.[3][13]
Tenure
On October 5, 2025, governor Gavin Newsom signed Ahrens' bill repealing the state's ability to charge parents of chronically truant students with a misdemeanor.[14] In a The Sacramento Bee opinion piece published on October 15, 2025, Ahrens and Republican assemblymember Heather Hadwick called on the U.S. Congress to fully fund the Head Start program.[6] In December 2025, Ahrens issued a statement condemning the California State University Board of Trustees' decision to raise the system's administrators salaries, which he stated were already too high.[15]
Personal life
Electoral history
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Patrick Ahrens | 25,057 | 34.4 | |
| Democratic | Tara Sreekrishnan | 19,617 | 26.9 | |
| Republican | Sophie Yan Song | 15,965 | 21.9 | |
| Democratic | Omar Din | 8,779 | 12.1 | |
| Libertarian | Bob Goodwyn | 2,172 | 3.0 | |
| No party preference | Ashish Garg | 1,221 | 1.7 | |
| Total votes | 72,811 | 100.0 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Patrick Ahrens | 76,807 | 56.0 | |
| Democratic | Tara Sreekrishnan | 60,392 | 44.0 | |
| Total votes | 137,199 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||