Written by Christopher Cadelago, The Sacramento Bee
Republican Sen. Sharon Runner, who returned to the Legislature last year following a life-saving double lung transplant, has died. The Lancaster Republican was 62.
Runner, who is married to Board of Equalization member George Runner, announced in March that she would not seek re-election when her term ends this year, citing “medical challenges during the cold and flu season.”
California Republican Party Chairman Jim Brulte said the people of California and the people of the Antelope Valley have lost a great friend.
“Sharon Runner’s life was one of service. Whether it was establishing a Christian day school to help educate children, serving first in the California State Assembly and then in the California State Senate, or fighting for initiatives to protect families in California – Sharon was committed to the people of her community and our great state,” Brulte said.
“As we mourn the loss of Sharon, our prayers go out to her husband George and we pray that the loving arms of God embrace him at this difficult time.”
Runner spent six years in the state Assembly before winning a 2011 special election to advance to the Senate, filling the seat of her husband, who left to serve on the state Board of Equalization. In February 2012, Sharon Runner announced that she would not seek reelection after a rare autoimmune disease required a life-saving double lung transplant procedure.
In an interview two years ago, as she planned her comeback, Runner said she was enjoying hiking, zip-lining and riding roller coasters with her grandchildren after spending considerable time in an intensive-care unit.
“What’s truly important is that we send someone to Sacramento as quickly as possible to combat the job-killing over-regulation, over-taxation and the dangerous situation created by early release of felons by Proposition 47 and realignment,” she said after deciding on the historic return.
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