Joel Anderson (born February 11, 1960) is an American politician serving as a member of the San Diego County Board of Supervisors.

During his time in the Legislature, Anderson served on the board of the American Legislative Exchange Council (ALEC) as California state chair.

In November 2002, he was elected to the Division 5 seat on the Padre Dam Board—representing Blossom Valley, Flinn Springs, Alpine, Crest and Harbison Canyon—with 44 percent of the vote while campaigning on the issues of fiscal responsibility and decreasing spending.

[12] His campaign issues included border security, combating illegal immigration, decreasing taxes and fighting government waste, and promoting Jessica's Law in order to prevent sex offenders residing nearby educational facilities and local parks.

[3] He received endorsements in his 2006 campaign, from Republican politicians in San Diego County including Ray Haynes, State Senator Bill Morrow, and Assemblyman Mark Wyland.

[13] Helped by those endorsements, he narrowly won a five-candidate primary over Santee City Councilman Jack Dale by 858 votes, which was tantamount to victory in the general election.

[14] In 2007, Anderson wrote legislation in the California Assembly which mandated that the two main pension funds in the state must divest from businesses that conduct defense or energy affairs in Iran.

"[17] James Hawley, co-director of the Elfenworks Center for the Study of Fiduciary Capitalism at St. Mary's College in Moraga, California, predicted that Anderson's legislation would affect other state governments, "There is political pressure out there.

Vietnam War veteran and Dana Point, California resident Bill Manes noted, "It's just a nice gesture, particularly for those men and women coming back now.

[21] He brought forward a resolution, ACR 79, which called upon the university to divest its funding and investments relating to any corporations that conduct business operations with Iran.

[4] In February 2009, Anderson proposed legislation, AB-255, that would mandate blurring detail on Google Earth images of areas deemed sensitive locations including schools, places of worship, government buildings and medical facilities.

[27] Democratic leadership member in the Assembly, John Perez, commented favorably on Anderson's proposed legislation, "It is the recipients of these IOUs who are being punished for the actions of the governor and others who have gotten us into this situation.

Dr. Stuart A. Cohen, president of the San Diego County Medical Society, wrote to Anderson in support of the legislation, acknowledging, "This bill would save many businesses and individuals from severe financial hardship.

[30] In December 2009, Anderson was fined US$20,000 by the Fair Political Practices Commission in California, relating to solicitations of contributions towards a campaign higher than the legally allowed amount.

[12] Other candidates in the Republican primary election included Judge Advocate General's Corps, U.S. Air Force retired Lieutenant Colonel and Murrieta, California School Board member Kenneth Dickson, and Riverside County Supervisor Jeff Stone.

The Press-Enterprise noted, "Assemblyman Joel Anderson, R-Alpine, was on pace to top a four-person field in the GOP primary for the 36th Senate District".

[40] The North County Times reported that Anderson led the candidates in the Republican primary, with his closest opponent receiving 24 percent of the vote.

[41] The San Diego Union-Tribune reported that Anderson had a "strong lead over his Republican competitors in the East County 36th State Senate District primary race".

[42] East County Magazine,[43] and The San Diego Union-Tribune declared Anderson the winner of the Republican primary in the State Senate election.

[44] In an error compared to "Dewey Defeats Truman", the publication Valley News of Riverside County, California, erroneously reported that Anderson had lost the primary.

[46] The State Senate district is considered a "Republican stronghold"; the Democratic candidate in the general election was Paul Clay, who ran uncontested in the primary.

[citation needed] In August 2018, Anderson was accused of physically and verbally harassing Stephanie Roberson at a fund raising event for the California Nurses Association.

Roberson, the association's Government Relations Director, complained to the Senate Rules Committee that an intoxicated Joel Anderson repeatedly threatened to "bitch slap" her.

Anderson received an endorsement from the San Diego Gun Owners PAC, the same organization that successfully sued to overturn the assault rifle ban (currently under appeal).