Brian Burley offers a youthful conservative approach to 42nd District race
As in sports, every political party needs a farm team. A top prospect for Republicans is Brian Burley, 33, running for the U.S. House of Representatives against incumbent Democrat Robert Garcia, 48, in the 42nd District. He finished second to Garcia in the June 2 top-two primary, with third place going to Republican Newport Beach Mayor Pro Tem Noah Von Blom.
I talked to Burley as he was driving to the USC Suzanne Dworak-Peck School of Social Work, where he’s been employed as a systems administrator since 2020. From USC, he earned his bachelor’s degree in political economy and three master’s degrees. Like me, he grew up in Michigan but fell in love with Huntington Beach. He’s now a trustee for the Huntington Beach City School District.
“My name’s been out there more, through a bigger part of the district,” Burley said of his showing.
This is Burley’s third try, after losing primary attempts for Congress in 2020 and 2022. “The higher turnout really helped this time,” he said. Primary tur…