Nathan Fletcher

Fletcher got his start in San Diego politics serving for two years as the District Director for Congressman Randy "Duke" Cunningham. "But for most of that time, Fletcher didn’t work there. Fletcher was on active duty in the Marines," according to an investigative report by the Voice of San Diego published in 2012 on Fletcher's relationship with the jailed former Congressman.

On January 7, 2019 Fletcher was sworn in as a member of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors. On January 28, during Fletcher's first Board meeting, Fletcher, along with Supervisor Greg Cox, put forth a policy to provide a facility for asylum-seeking families in San Diego. It passed with a 4–1 vote. On February 26 Fletcher partnered with Supervisor Dianne Jacob to present a community choice energy program for the County of San Diego. The proposal passed with a 5–0 vote.

Fletcher was appointed to the California Air Resources Board by Governor Newsom on January 28, 2019.

In 2018 Fletcher ran for an open seat representing District 4 on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors. There were five candidates in the June primary, with the top two advancing to the November general election. Fletcher was the first-place finisher and former District Attorney Bonnie Dumanis placed second. He was the Democratic candidate for the seat and Dumanis was the Republican, though the election was officially nonpartisan. During the campaign Fletcher touted various endorsements including former Vice President Joe Biden, former Governor Jerry Brown, then-Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom, the Sierra Club, labor unions, and the San Diego Democratic Party. Fletcher was also endorsed by the San Diego Union-Tribune, stating "We think the county needs a wake-up call, and Fletcher is far more likely to jolt it out of complacency." Fletcher won the general election, defeating Dumanis 67.37% to 32.63%.

In December 2018, Fletcher publicly acknowledged a 19-year-old son he fathered with Crystal Costa of Arkansas. Fletcher told the Voice of San Diego news site, "My 19-year-old son just came into our life and it is wonderful."

Fletcher is an Ironman Triathlete, marathon runner, alpine mountaineer, and mountain biker. In 2003, he married Mindy Tucker, who had served as campaign manager and deputy chief of staff for Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger. The couple has two adopted children. They separated on December 1, 2014, and filed for divorce in January 2015. In an NBC story they issued a joint statement, "We have made the best decision for our family. It is an amicable divorce and we remain good friends. Our first priority is our children and we hope that everyone will respect our privacy as we make this transition." In September 2015, Fletcher began dating Lorena Gonzalez, who currently serves in the California State Assembly representing California's 80th District. They were married January 1, 2017.

On August 20, 2013, Fletcher, now a Democrat, officially filed his intention to be a mayoral candidate with the City Clerk's Office—a day before a tentative agreement was reached for Mayor Bob Filner's resignation. Fletcher was endorsed by California Governor Jerry Brown and Attorney General Kamala Harris. However, in the election held November 19, 2013, he came in third with 24.3 percent of the vote and thus did not advance to the runoff election in February 2014. On November 20, he conceded and endorsed fellow Democrat David Alvarez.

Fletcher has repeatedly said that his departure from the Republican Party midway through his first mayoral campaign was due to extreme partisan politics and to the party's shift away from his core values, and not because the local Republican Party endorsed his opponent. On May 4, 2013, Fletcher announced on his Facebook page that he was joining the Democratic Party. Fletcher was widely embraced by Democratic leaders, many of whom had been courting him for years to join the party.

In January 2013, Fletcher was appointed as the first Professor of Practice (officially an Adjunct Professor) at the University of California, San Diego. He teaches classes in the department of political science, as well as mentoring and advising students and helping to develop public policy projects. Professor of Practice was a new, privately funded position at the University intended to "provid(e) students with a deeper understanding of the practical application of a particular field of study, and help promote the integration of academic scholarship with practical experience from applications professionals."

In 2013, an investigative report by the San Diego Union Tribune noted that, unlike the other candidates for mayor, Fletcher did not make his college transcripts public, nor provide them to UCSD before his hiring. The university said it did not ask for his transcript and did not need it for the appointment as a professor of practice.

On March 13, 2013, Fletcher brought together law enforcement, community, business, labor, and faith-based leaders to form San Diegans United for Common Sense Immigration Reform. The coalition came to an agreement to advocate for a pathway to citizenship, reform to the immigrant visa system, smart border security, and basic human rights.

In 2012, Fletcher helped prevent a janitor's strike in San Diego by calling CEOs on behalf of workers to advocate for expanding health care coverage.

Following the end of his legislative term in December 2, 2012, Fletcher became the senior director of corporate development at Qualcomm. He said in a statement that his position would include developing global strategies for wireless health initiatives, mobile education, and the protection of intellectual property, but will not involve lobbying or government relations. His title was later changed to Global Strategic Initiatives, and in 2017, he announced he was leaving Qualcomm to dedicate more time to UCSD and community issues.

Fletcher remains politically active; supporting Democratic candidates and progressive causes. He is a member of the national advisory board of Organizing for Action, the successor organization of President Barack Obama's 2012 re-election campaign. He is a member of the Statewide Leadership Council of the Public Policy Institute of California, and a member of the Aspen Institute Global Alliances Program Advisory Board. He is also a member of the National Advisory Board of the Truman National Security Project. He is a delegate of the California Democratic Party, member of San Diego Democratic Central Committee, was a 2016 delegate to the Democratic National Committee, and has been active in supporting Democratic candidates and causes such as efforts to raise the minimum wage. He also remains involved in efforts to ensure implementation of Chelsea's Law. He is a member of the World Economic Forum Global Agenda Council on Human Rights,. He is a Kauffman Fellow and Tribeca Innovative Disruptive Fellow.

Fletcher was a large proponent of implementing a Mandatory Single Sales Tax on out-of-state corporations that conduct business in California, but operate outside the state. The legislation, supported by Gov. Jerry Brown, would have closed a loophole in the tax code and used the savings to offer tax incentives to local industries in order to spawn in-State job creation. Fletcher's vote was instrumental in obtaining a two-thirds majority vote to guarantee the bill's passage in the Assembly during the final meeting of the 2011 legislative session. The bill, however, failed in the California State Senate.

In June 2011, Fletcher announced his candidacy for the mayorship of San Diego. Fletcher started the race as a registered Republican. However, a few weeks after the local Republican Party endorsed his opponent Carl DeMaio, Fletcher announced he was leaving the Republican Party to become an independent. Fletcher ultimately came in third in the June 2012 primary and did not advance to the general election.

In his first term, Fletcher had a number of pieces of legislation signed into law, including legislation relating to veterans, job creation, water infrastructure, and health care. He was chosen as one of two Republican Party whips in 2010.

Fletcher is best known for his sponsorship of Chelsea's Law, which toughened penalties and restrictions on violent sexual predators. On February 25, 2010, 17-year-old Chelsea King was murdered by John Albert Gardner when jogging at a local community park in Rancho Bernardo. Garner was a registered sex offender at the time of the murder and later admitted to killing 14-year-old Amber DuBois in 2009. In response to the public outrage, Fletcher sponsored Chelsea's Law to prevent future tragedies by offering life without parole sentencing to criminal charged with violent sex offenses. The bill was signed into law by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger on September 10, 2010

In May 2010, Fletcher gave an Assembly floor speech in support of California Senate Joint Resolution 9, which called upon Congress and the President to repeal the U. S. Armed Forces policy known as "Don't ask, don't tell" (DADT). Fletcher, a Marine Corps veteran who served in Iraq and other locations, was the first California Republican legislator to endorse ending this policy. His speech was described as "one of the most eloquent on the floor for some time."

In 2008 he was elected to the Assembly representing the 75th Assembly District, which includes the City of Poway, portions of Escondido, La Jolla, University City, Mira Mesa, Scripps Ranch, Rancho Bernardo, Rancho Peñasquitos, and Carmel Valley, and the communities of Fairbanks Ranch, and Rancho Santa Fe. He won with 52.2% of the vote. He was re-elected in 2010 with 60.5% of the vote.

In 2004, he served eight months in the Sunni Triangle region of Iraq. Among his awards from this tour are the Navy–Marine Corps Achievement Medal with Combat "V" a combat distinguishing device, Combat Action Ribbon, and Iraqi Campaign Medal. He worked in the Horn of Africa on his final deployment, and earning the Joint Service Commendation Medal and Global War on Terrorism Expeditionary Medal.

During his time in Iraq, Fletcher worked to build community relationships with the native population, leading supervisors to describe him as "compassionate and focused." On April 9, 2004, Fletcher and three other Marines fended off an enemy ambush when participating in a Quick Reaction Force to aid a VIP convoy. He was responsible for authorizing 150 intelligence reports, which amounted to 31 percent of the reports generated by the team of six Counter Intelligence Marines.

Fletcher joined the United States Marine Corps as a reservist in 1997 and became an active duty Marine in 2002. He served as a counterintelligence/human intelligence specialist. In 2007, he was honorably discharged as a staff sergeant. He is a graduate of the U.S. Army Airborne Course and Marine Corps Mountain Warfare Training Center.

Nathan Gonzalez-Fletcher (born December 31, 1976) is an American politician, Marine Corps Combat Veteran, and educator who served two terms in the California State Assembly. He serves as a professor of practice in Political Science at the University of California, San Diego. He is also Supervisor for the 4th District and the only Democrat on the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.