Longshore’s Widow Reportedly Will Run for His Assembly Seat

The widow of Assemblyman Richard E. Longshore (R-Santa Ana) intends to run for her husband’s seat, a spokesman for the late lawmaker said Friday.

Scott Taylor, who was Longshore’s chief of staff, said Linda Longshore, 33, will announce Monday that she is seeking the Republican nomination in the 72nd District. Richard Longshore, 62, who won the seat in 1986, died of pneumonia on June 8, one day after winning the GOP nomination for reelection.

Thomas A. Fuentes, chairman of the Republican Party of Orange County, confirmed Friday that Linda Longshore took out an application for the seat, becoming the ninth Republican to do so. The applications must be filed by 5 p.m. Monday at party headquarters in Orange. The 64-member Orange County Republican Central Committee is expected to select a nominee from among the applicants by July 21.

As of Friday, only Virgel L. Nickell, a longtime GOP activist from Westminster, had returned his application to party headquarters.

Longshore “is very committed that Dick’s legacy is carried on . . . and that legacy is one of a compassionate conservative,” Taylor said.

Longshore was not available for comment Friday, and Taylor said she would not comment about her plans until Monday.

Earlier this week at a GOP Central Committee meeting convened to discuss the vacancy, Longshore chided party leaders for cutting “back-room deals even before my husband was buried.” She said the behavior of some party regulars had so disgusted her that she was seriously considering running for the seat.

Fuentes said Friday that he was not surprised about her decision and acknowledged that “it will have an impact” on the selection process. But he declined to be any more specific, and said it is too early to speculate on how Longshore’s presence might affect others seeking the seat.