Chad Mayes

On December 6, 2019, Mayes left the Republican party and filed for re-election as an independent.

In January 2018, Mayes formed a group called “New Way California”, with the purpose of advocating for a more moderate Republican Party. The group has been publicly supported by former governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, and both Mayes and Schwarzenegger - along with Ohio governor John Kasich - headlined the group's inaugural summit in Los Angeles on March 21. The summit featured several other Republicans from the State Assembly, including Rocky Chávez, Devon Mathis, and Jordan Cunningham. The summit was criticized by some in the California Republican Party, including former chairman Ron Nehring, who described them as “elites talking down to grassroots voters.”

In July 2017, a web site called American Children First claimed that Mayes had been having an affair with Kristen Olsen, his predecessor as Assembly Republican Leader, who is also the Vice Chair of the California Republican Party and an elected member of the Stanislaus County Board of Supervisors. It was revealed that Olsen's husband had sent a letter to the office of Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon requesting a formal investigation into whether or not the pair has used taxpayer resources and staff time to carry out and/or conceal the extramarital affair.

He was appointed to the Little Hoover Commission by former Speaker of the Assembly Toni Atkins in September 2015 and reappointed by Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon in January 2018. Mayes was also appointed by Toni Atkins to serve on the California Commission on Disability Access, which works to improve accessibility by fostering dialogue between the disabled and business communities.

In 2014, Mayes ran for the California State Assembly to succeed term-limited Republican Brian Nestande, who ran unsuccessfully for Congress that year. Mayes defeated former Palm Springs Police Chief Gary Jeandron in the primary and was elected to the State Assembly in November 2014, with 57.3% of the vote. He was appointed Vice Chair of the Assembly Human Services Committee and a member of the Committees on Governmental Organization, Insurance and Rules, as well as the Special Committee on Legislative Ethics. Mayes was also appointed to the Select Committee on Renewable Energy Development and Restoration of the Salton Sea, and was named Chief Republican Whip.

In 2011, Mayes resigned as a member of the town council to focus on his responsibilities as Chief of Staff to San Bernardino County Supervisor Janice Rutherford, saying he found it "difficult to keep up with the basics of serving as a council member," and that "Yucca Valley deserves a council member who will give them 100 percent every day."

In 2004, Mayes and then-councilman Paul Cook voted against a proposed 42-percent pay increase for town elected officials. In his final budget as Mayor, Yucca Valley spent $8.7 million, a slight decrease from the previous year, and had over $5 million in reserves.

Mayes served on the Yucca Valley Town Council from 2002–2011, and was twice elected by the council to serve as mayor.

Chad Mayes (born April 23, 1977) is an American politician currently serving in the California State Assembly. He is an independent representing the 42nd district, encompassing parts of Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Prior to being elected to the State Assembly, he was a Yucca Valley City Councilman.