James Herbert Budd (May 18, 1851 – July 30, 1908) was an American lawyer and Democratic politician. Involved in federal and state politics, Budd was a member of the U.S. House of Representatives for the 2nd California district from 1883 to 1885, and served as the 19th Governor of California from 1895 until 1899. Biography Budd was born on May 18, 1851 in Janesville, Wisconsin, to Joseph H. and Lucinda (Ash) Budd. While in Wisconsin, Joseph was a lawyer and ran Western Novelty Works, a company which put out farm machinery. When Budd was seven years old, he and his family emigrated to the West, settling in Stockton, California in 1858. Budd attended local grammar and high schools before attending the University of California, Berkeley, where he was admitted to the Zeta Psi fraternity, graduating in 1873. Following his graduation, Budd returned to Stockton to study law, being admitted to the California Bar the following year. His public career in the courts began after being appointed the San Joaquin County deputy district attorney. During the 1884 elections, the Democratic Party nominated Budd as its candidate for the 2nd California district in the U.S. House of Representatives. His campaign for the House was based on fighting railroad corruption, going as far as to refuse any travel on railroads altogether during the campaign, earning Budd the nickname "Buckboard Jim." Budd won the election, becoming the first Democrat to win the district since the Civil War. Once in the U.S. Congress, Budd was influential in gaining enough congressional support for appropriating federal money to fund the dredging of the Stockton Channel, assisting shipping into the Port of Stockton along the San Joaquin River. Budd served a single term in the U.S. House of Representatives, refusing the Democratic Party nomination for the 1886 elections. For the 1894 state general elections, Budd was nominated by the state Democratic convention as the party's nominee for the governorship. During the campaign, Budd targeted the growing influence of the Southern Pacific Railroad and rail monopolies in general, proposing that the "only solution to the railroad question was that the [state] government own a line" with slight nationalization, as well as reducing railroad fares by 25%. Budd also advocated a property assessment ceiling cap of 45 cents per $100 in order to save state expenditures with the looming Long Depression. During the often bitter campaign for the governorship, Budd