Eric C. Bauman


Eric Carl Bauman is an American political operative who was most recently the Chair of the California Democratic Party. Previously the vice chair of the state party and Chair of the Los Angeles Democratic Party, he is known for being gay, and his influence in Los Angeles County Democratic politics. He announced his resignation as head of the California Democratic Party on November 29, 2018 following sexual misconduct allegations.

Early life and education

Born in The Bronx, New York, Bauman worked as a registered nurse for many years before entering politics. He obtained his bachelor's degree in nursing from Excelsior College. He also obtained graduate education in Health Care Administration from Century University, now known as American Century University, an unaccredited, for-profit university based in Albuquerque, New Mexico.

Political influence

Bauman was chair of the California Democratic Party, the largest State Democratic Party entity in the United States.
Bauman has been referred to as a "kingmaker" in Los Angeles County Democratic politics by LA Weekly. In the article he claimed, “I don't make promises or ask people to do things in a quid pro quo format. That would be against the law.”
Under his leadership, the LA Democratic Party was awarded 15 Pollie Awards and 3 Reed Awards.
Bauman is regularly quoted by the Los Angeles Times and often appears on CNN and KTTV Fox 11 News on issues relating to Los Angeles County and California Democratic politics. Bauman also makes regular monthly appearances on Charter Communications' California Edition.
He is a senior adviser to Speaker of the California State Assembly, Anthony Rendon. He has served in this role previously for Speakers John Pérez and Toni Atkins, in addition to having been Governor Gray Davis' Southern California Director, and having served as Deputy Insurance Commissioner under then-Insurance Commissioner John Garamendi.
Prior to attending the 2016 Democratic National Convention as a PLEO Delegate, Bauman was featured in a special edition of KNBCLA's News Conference with Conan Nolan.
Bauman put in a bid to be Chair of the California Democratic Party in 2017, defeating opponent Kimberly Ellis.
On May 20, 2017, he was elected Chair of the California Democratic Party at the annual state convention. He was the first openly gay person and the first Jew to serve as Chair of the Party.

Controversy

On November 29, 2018, Bauman resigned from his position as Chair of the California Democratic Party after lawsuits alleged that he committed sexual harassment, discrimination, and sexual assault. These included allegations by Bauman's assistant William Floyd that "Bauman forcibly performed oral sex on him several times and that the party failed to respond appropriately to Bauman’s behavior." In his lawsuit, "Floyd alleges Bauman threatened him, telling him “if you cross me, I will break you.”"
The lawsuits were settled in 2020 for nearly $3 million.

Personal life

He lives in North Hollywood with his husband of many years, Michael. Eric's uncle is musician Jon "Bowzer" Bauman, formerly of Sha Na Na.
In November 2018, the California Democratic Party Vice Chairman Daraka Larimore-Hall filed a complaint accusing Bauman of having sexually assaulted or harassed Larimore-Hall's staff members.

Pharmaceutical consulting

Bauman has been criticized for his ties to California's pharmaceutical industry. He has lobbied against Proposition 61 which would have prohibited the state from buying drugs that are more expensive that price the Department of Veterans Affairs pays. This criticism has re-emerged following his election to become Chair of the California Democratic Party.