California state Sen. Gloria Negrete McLeod (D) announced Tuesday she is running for the open 35th district seat.

The announcement came three months after the first redistricting draft map was released June 10 by the state’s independent redistricting commission. Seeing a new opportunity in the Inland Empire, east of Los Angeles, McLeod declared that day to the Los Angeles Times, “I’m in, I’m in, I’m in, I’m in, I’m in.”

Negrete McLeod has since signed on John Shallman and Derek Humphrey of Los Angeles-based Shallman Communications for direct mail and general consulting.

The district, which is majority Latino and solidly Democratic, is in San Bernardino County and includes the cities of Pomona, Montclair, Ontario, Chino, unincorporated Bloomington, and portions of Fontana and Rialto. Negrete McLeod has represented nearly the entire district at some point in her political career.

After holding a locally elected position, Negrete McLeod was elected in 2000 to the first of three terms in the state Assembly and in 2006 to the first of two terms in the state Senate.

“I have been honored to represent this district for over 16 years as a locally elected leader,” Negrete McLeod said in a statement. “I look forward to taking my brand of independent and common sense leadership to Washington, DC. Our next member of Congress needs to focus on job creation and ensure our limited resources are invested in programs that improve the lives of everyday Californians.”

The only other candidate publicly looking at the race is Assemblywoman Norma Torres (D), who announced an exploratory committee last month.