Special session to ‘protect California values,’ swearing-in of 29 Legislative members happening today

California Governor Gavin Newsom and state lawmakers returned to the state capitol today for swearing-in ceremonies for new lawmakers and to begin the special session Governor Newsom following President Trump's election.

Among those being sworn in, today includes Republican Jeff Gonzalez, who defeated Democrat Joey Acuna in the race for the 36th Assembly District. News Channel 3 spoke with Jeff Gonzalez campaign who said Gonzalez would be sworn in at noon today. A majority of the happenings at the capitol today are expected to revolve around welcoming new members, which is about a third of the legislature. In total, 29 newly elected Senators and Assemblymembers will be joining the Legislature.

This special session has been described as a "Trump-Proofing" of California laws by several. The focus of the special session is listed on Governor Newsom's website as bolstering California legal resources to protect civil rights, reproductive freedom, climate action, and immigrant families.

Democratic Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel on Monday introduced legislation to set aside $25 million for legal fees to respond to potential attacks by the Trump administration. Among those include state policies regarding civil rights, climate change, immigration and abortion access, described in a statement from Assemblymember Gabriel on X.