Col. Oliver North to Highlight Sanchez Event

Col. Oliver North will be the special guest at a dinner reception in support of Steve Sanchez

Col. Oliver North will be the featured guest at a dinner reception in support of Steve Sanchez for California State Senate in District 28.

The event will be held Nov. 20 at the home of Wendy Heckmann in Rancho Mirage. Address will be provided upon RSVP. The VIP reception is at 5 p.m. and the dinner starts at 6 p.m. To RSVP or for more information, contact Marc Troast at 760-408-4876 or troast@troastandassociates.com. Sponsorships are available.

Oliver Laurence North is an American political commentator, television host, military historian, author, and retired United States Marine Corps lieutenant colonel. A veteran of the Vietnam War, North was a National Security Council staff member during the Iran–Contra affair, a political scandal of the late 1980s.

La Quinta City Councilmember Sanchez in July formally announced his bid for the Coachella Valley’s state Senate seat.

Sanchez, a Republican, was first elected to the La Quinta City Council in 2016. He now seeks to represent California’s 28th Senate District, a seat currently held by Republican Sen. Melissa Melendez, who won’t be able to run for reelection due to term limits.  Palm Springs Mayor Pro Tem Lisa Middleton, a Democrat, is also seeking the seat.

The 28th Senate District covers the eastern and southwestern parts of Riverside County, including Temecula and Wildomar, and the Coachella Valley, where Sanchez, 44, has resided since about 2000.

Sanchez first moved to the valley when he left active duty service in the U.S. Marine Corps after four years, and transferred to the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve, where he served another four years.

A commercial real estate executive, Sanchez made his first run for La Quinta City Council in 2016 in a field of five candidates. He garnered than any of his challengers, including a longtime incumbent.

He was re-elected to his second four-year term in November 2020, when he again gathered more votes than the other two candidates, with 12,771 or 60% of the 21,233 votes cast. His current term is set to end in December 2024.

Before moving into commercial real estate, Sanchez had worked on former Assemblymember Bonnie Garcia’s staff.

This isn’t his first run for a state office. In 2010, Sanchez ran for what was then the 80th Assembly District seat, which he lost to V. Manuel Perez, a Democrat and now the supervisor for Riverside County’s Fourth District, which includes the Coachella Valley.

The state’s primary election is set for June 7, 2022.