An acknowledged member of the Proud Boys, a far-right, white nationalist group, has filed to run for California Assembly against Democratic incumbent Ken Cooley.
Jeffrey Erik Perrine last week filed paperwork for the newly-drawn 7th Assembly District, which encompasses much of eastern Sacramento County, including Rancho Cordova, Fair Oaks, Folsom, and Citrus Heights.
Perrine last year was expelled from an elected position on the Sacramento County Republican Party's central committee after a report from The Sacramento Bee detailed his ties to the hate group.
According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, or SPLC, rank-and-file Proud Boys and leaders regularly spout white nationalist memes and maintain affiliations with known extremists.
"They are known for anti-Muslim and misogynistic rhetoric. Proud Boys have appeared alongside other hate groups at extremist gatherings such as the 'Unite the Right' rally in Charlottesville, Virginia," according to the SPLC.
Extremism experts described Perrine as someone who has been a fixture at various militant rallies in California and across the nation. One video posted online shows Perrine at an event in Portland, Oregon, in the summer of 2018 speaking through a megaphone suggesting that "all the illegals trying to jump over our border, we should be smashing their heads into the concrete."
Perrine, 38, of Orangevale, told The Sacramento Bee last year that he was a member, but not a leader, of the group.
"I'm just a member. I'm part of a fraternity," he said at the time.
A month after The Bee report, members of the Sacramento GOP voted to remove Perrine from his elected position. During the 22-minute Zoom meeting, which Perrine recorded and posted online, he complained and threatened members for "violating my civil rights."
Perrine did not respond to a request for comment on his recent campaign filing.
The newly-drawn 7th Assembly District is made of a majority of white voters, 69.3%. Latino voters make up 13.3%, followed by Asian voters at 8.6% and Black voters at 7%.
Betsy Mahan, chair of the Sacramento County Republican Party, said it has endorsed Josh Hoover, chief of staff to Assemblyman Kevin Kiley, R-Rocklin, in the 7th Assembly District.
"Josh represents the kind of leadership needed to support parental rights, safe schools and neighborhoods, sound fiscal policy, and civil resolution to California's many challenges."
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(Sacramento Bee reporter Sam Stanton contributed to this report.)
