Poll finds support for Rep. Raul Ruiz for U.S. Senate

When Barbara Boxer retires from the U.S. Senate, who will fill her seat in 2016?

An independent Field Poll surveyed 1,000 voters about whom they might support for Senate. Rep. Raul Ruiz came in 12th on the list, with 27 percent saying they would be inclined to support him.

At the top of the list was former Republican Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice with 49 percent of voters saying they’d likely support her. California Attorney General Kamala Harris is the only candidate to announce her intention to run. She’s second behind Rice in the poll with 46 percent.

We asked Ruiz about his intentions and his political future.

“I’m focused on getting results for my constituents here in the district, the people I serve. I went to Congress to improve their lives and that’s what I’m focusing on now,” Ruiz said.

One issue on which Ruiz he and the rest of Congress remain focused is immigration.

Lawmakers hit a roadblock Tuesday after a federal judge in Texas put a temporary stop to President Obama’s plan to keep millions of undocumented immigrants from being deported.

“The president’s executive action was a result of a very bad symptom of Congress not being able to come together to pass comprehensive immigration reform,” said Ruiz.

The White House said it will appeal.

“We have it. The bill is there. It’s a bipartisan bill. If House Speaker John Boehner allows us the vote, these efforts wouldn’t be necessary because we’d be able to fix our immigration system once in for all,” said Ruiz.

The president’s plan would also issue work permits to as many as 5 million undocumented workers. The program’s first stages were set to launch Wednesday.

“I would advise people to be patient and wait until further notice is given and continue to advocate for us to be able to vote for the comprehensive reform bill in Congress,” Ruiz said.