The management and staff of Our Weekly are strong advocates of voting. In each election, whether local, statewide or national, it is vital that the voice of our community be heard at the polling place. The following list constitutes the best selection of candidates that will serve our city, county and state honorably and effectively.
Governor
Lieutenant Governor Gavin Newsom in 1997 became the youngest member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors. Former California Speaker of the Assembly Willie Brown at the time included him as part of the “future generation of leaders” in that city.
While on the board, Newsom advocated the form of the city’s Municipal Railway and sponsored Proposition B to develop detailed customer service plans.
In 2004, Newsom was elected mayor of San Francisco and began to immediately focus on the city’s rising homeless population, the immediate rebuilding of San Francisco Hospital, and was a strong advocate for healthcare and the environment. As mayor, Newsom focused on development projects in Treasure Island and in Hunters Point, signed the 2007 Health Choices Plan, and included San Francisco in the Kyoto Protocol to reduce the effects of greenhouse gas emissions.
Newsom was among the nation’s first mayors to issue marriage licenses for same-sex couples Other notable accomplishments include Project Homeless Connect and the San Francisco Homeless Outreach Team. Newsom has received the Leadership for Healthy Communities Award.
Newsom’s tenure as lieutenant governor has seen him advocate strongly for the environment, homeless persons, same-sex marriage, civil rights protections, and has been a leading opponent of the conservative policies of President Donald Trump.
Newsom has held institutions of higher learning accountable through keeping tuition manageable and transforming debate from “how much” to “free public education for all.” As lieutenant governor, Newsom also used his position on the California State University and University of California boards to recruit and retain leaders from diverse backgrounds. He forced the state’s public higher education system to prioritize admissions and supports for California high school graduates.
Through the Care Not Cash homeless housing support system, San Francisco pioneered more effective measures to address homelessness. Newsom has studied and worked to reduce homelessness, increase affordable housing options, and decrease gentrification. San Francisco’s public health, human services and healthcare systems built integrated models for “whole person,” cost-effective and accessible care.
During the Great Recession, Newsom brought San Francisco’s budget into balance without deep layoffs or service reductions.
Law enforcement accountability is real to Newsom. He knows what is like to balance safety and transparency. Newsom is not afraid to demand answers to hard questions and press for reforms when answers are demanded.
San Francisco is a diverse jurisdiction but has been criticized for its treatment of African Americans. Displacement, discrimination and disrespect are “triple threats” that endanger Black San Francisco. Newsom made it a priority to fight the marginalization of Black San Francisco by supporting, among many other competent leaders in key positions, the political ascendance of London Breed. Her service on the Fire Commission, Board of Supervisors, in the presidency of the Board of Supervisors, and as Acting Mayor all have been encouraged and aided by Newsom.
Gavin Newsom’s background and tact are vital qualities for a leader to possess and apply to the role of governor. California has a golden opportunity to shine with balanced, tenacious and focused leadership. It is a leadership that will bring all of the state’s residents opportunity for prosperity. It is a leadership that’s one-of-a-kind in the race for governor.
Among the individuals and organizations who have endorsed Newsom for governor are Sen. Kamala Harris, Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, Los Angeles Unified School District Board Member George McKenna, Oakland City Council President Lynette Gipson-McElhaney, California Professional Firefighters, California School Employees Association, and California Teachers Association.
United States Senator
Diane Feinstein is California’s senior senator and for nearly three decades on Capitol Hill has built a reputation as an independent voice in working to find solutions to the problems facing the state and the nation.
One of Feinstein’s most notable accomplishments was leading a six-year review of the CIA’s detention and interrogation program. The effort culminated in the 2014 release of the report’s executive summary and passage of legislation banning the use or torture.
Feinstein was the first woman to chair the Senate Select Committee on Intelligence and, as chairperson, oversaw the passage of six consecutive intelligence authorization bills and the release of a key bipartisan report on the Benghazi attacks.
Feinstein is a senior member of the Senate Appropriations Committee, where she serves as ranking member on the Subcommittee on Energy and Water Development. In that role during California’s drought, Feinstein secured billions of dollars for state communities including critical transportation, water supply and federal building projects.
As well, Feinstein serves on the Senate Rules and Administration Committee—which she chaired during the 110th Congress—and in that capacity was the first woman to chair the Joint Congressional Committee on Inaugural Ceremonies and presided over the 2009 presidential inauguration of Barack Obama.
House of Representatives
Maxine Waters (CA-43) is considered by colleagues to be one of the most powerful and influential women in American politics.
Re-elected in November 2016 to her 14th congressional term, Waters has represented South Los Angeles and portions of West and Southeast Los Angeles with courage and foresight in securing needed funding for a variety of improvement projects throughout her district.
Waters, the Ranking Member of the House Committee on Financial Services, is an integral member of congressional democratic leadership and is a member of the House Steering and Policy Committee. She is also a member of the Congressional Progressive Caucus, and member and past chair of the Congressional Black Caucus.
Waters is a co-founder of Black Women’s Forum, a nonprofit organization of more than 1,200 African American women in greater Los Angeles. Waters has continued to confront the issues of poverty, economic development, equal justice under the law, and other issues of concern to persons of color, women, children, and poor people.
Rep. Karen Bass (CA-37) is completing her fourth term in Congress. Bass serves on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs where she is the Ranking Member of the Subcommittee on Africa, Global Health, Global Human Rights and International Organizations.
Bass was selected by House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi to serve on the Steering and Policy Committee, which sets the policy direction of the Democratic Caucus. As a member of the Congressional Black Caucus, Bass plays a leadership role as Second Vice Chair for the 115th Congress.
Over the past two years, Bass has solidified her leadership positions on two key issues: reforming America’s foster care system and strengthening America’s relationship with the continent of Africa.
Locally, Bass created the Congressional Council, comprised of volunteers, which provides an opportunity for her constituents to learn firsthand about the issues in Congress and how to become involved in the legislative process. Bass is a former member of the California State Assembly where she championed efforts to improve access to healthcare services statewide.
Rep. Nanette Diaz Barragan (CA-44) has worked in public service for less than 20 years and has quickly become one of Los Angeles’ most effective congressional representatives.
The first Latina to serve as mayor of Hermosa Beach, Berragan has steered outreach efforts for African Americans in the office of Public Liaison for President Bill Clinton, and has worked with the NAACP in focusing on racial health disparities and discrimination.
In the 115th Congress, Barragan has a reputation of working across the isle to bring change and opportunity to those who need it most and has consistently reported back to her constituents with the latest information about her efforts to improve educational and employment opportunities for those residing in the 44th Congressional District.
Barragan is a member of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus, the Progressive Caucus and serves on the Homeland Security Committee.
Attorney General
California Attorney General Xavier Becerra is the first Latino to hold that office in California history.
Appointed by Gov. Jerry Brown in January, Becerra brought decades of experience to defend the rights of nearly 40 million Californians. Becerra has consistently fought against the policies of President Donald Trump and has gone to court to defend the Affordable Care Act, the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) act, and has been a vocal opponent of offshore drilling along the California coast.
Becerra has announced multi-million-dollar settlements on behalf of Californians harmed by bad over-the-counter medications, wire fraud scams, and compromised credit card information. He has secured tens of millions of dollars in debt relief for students who were taken advantage of by predatory for-profit colleges. As well, Becerra has prevented “Big Oil” giant Valero from taking over a petroleum distributor which could have resulted in even higher gas prices than we are witnessing presently.
In the House of Representatives, Becerra was chair of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus and was elected chairman of House Democrats. During his tenure on Capitol Hill, Becerra was the first Latino to serve on the House Ways and Means Committee and fought for a more fair tax code, was instrumental in securing better trade laws, and worked to help protect Social Security and Medicare.
Secretary of State
California Secretary of State Alex Padilla is committed to to modernizing the office, increasing voter registration and participation, and strengthening voting rights.
A native of Pacoima, Padilla was elected to the Los Angeles City Council at age 26 in representing the San Fernando Valley. He served three terms as Council President, becoming the youngest member and the first Latino to serve in that capacity. He served as Acting Mayor during the 9/11 Terrorist Attacks and played a pivotal role in the selection of William Bratton as chief of the Los Angeles Police Department.
Padilla is a past president of the California League of Cities. He helped negotiate the approval of the construction of LA Live and helped spearhead the modernization of LAX including the construction and naming of the Tom Bradley International Terminal.
Padilla served eight years in the California State Senate and authored a law—the first in the nation—to require California restaurants to post calorie information directly on menus. Padilla also authored the state’s first smoke-free housing law and has fought to increase enforcement and penalties for the illegal sale of tobacco to minors.
Lieutenant Governor
Elena Kounalakis is a former United States Ambassador to Hungary during the Obama Administration.
Kounalakis is perhaps best known as a leader in the California housing industry and has worked as a Democratic activist on a number of statewide progressive political campaigns. She has served on California’s First 5 Commission and the California Blue Ribbon Commission on Autism.
The late San Francisco Mayor Ed Lee appointed Kounalakis to the city’s Port Commission and she presently chairs the California Advisory Council for International Trade and Investment.
Kounalakis began her political career in 1992 as a member of the California Democratic Party in Sacramento and worked in the historic election that year which saw California send two women to the United States Senate.
Kounalakis is the author of the highly acclaimed 2015 book “Madam Ambassador: Three Years of Diplomacy, Dinner Parties and Democracy in Hungary,” and has worked closely with former United States Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
Kounalakis has earned a reputation as a tireless advocate for housing for middle-class families and is passionate about early childhood education.
Controller
Betty Yee will bring to the office of State Controller more than 30 years of experience in public service, state and local finance, and tax policy. As state treasurer, Yee has provided sound fiscal control over the receipt and distribution of California enormous yearly income (the world’s sixth largest economy) while monitoring the financial operations and condition of both state and local governments while providing the appropriate fiscal guidance.
Yee is a former member of the State Board of Equalization, representing almost 9 million Californians in the First Equalization District (Bay Area) and is a former Deputy Director for Budget with the California Department of Finance. In the latter position, Yee helped to craft the state budget, participated in negotiations with the State Legislature, and was a key player in the fiscal analysis of legislation on behalf of the Governor’s Office.
Treasurer
Fiona Ma serves on the California Board of Equalization (Bay Area and Central California) and is one of only two Certified Public Accountants to serve on that commission.
In the State Assembly, Ma authored a groundbreaking law to ban toxic chemicals (phthalates) in baby products statewide. This was the first law of its kind in the nation and would become a model for the first congressional amendment on the same subject, later authored by Sen., Diane Feinstein.
Ma is a former chair of the Assembly Select Committee on Domestic Violence, and has sponsored legislation to protect consumers, to help working families pay bills, to prevent the spread of Hepatitis B, and to increase access to quality healthcare and to provide equal rights to all Californians.
Ma is a former member of the San Francisco Board of Supervisors where she authored an ordinance to increase opportunities on behalf of women and minority business owners, and also passed legislation to tackle human trafficking.
Superintendent of Public Instruction
Tony K. Thurmond has been a member of the State Assembly for the past 10 years and is considered a respected leader of nonprofits for youth.
Thurmond was a social worker for 20 years prior to his career in public office. In the Assembly, Thurmond has helped pass millions of dollars in legislation designed to encourage teenagers to stay in school and steer away from the criminal justice system.
Thurmond helped to secure funding to ensure that all California foster care youth have an opportunity to attend college, has worked to increase funding for early education programs and, this year, has fought to provide more money for preschool and after-school programs by urging a shift of millions of dollars from the criminal justice system into vital educational programs.
Thurmond is a former member of the West Contract County Unified School Board where he once launched a program to teach entrepreneurship and life skills to disadvantaged students.
State Senate (District 30)
Holly J. Mitchell has long been considered a children’s advocate and was once called by the Los Angeles Times as the “moral conscience of the Senate.” She is a member of the Senate Health Committee; the Joint Committee on Rules, the Public Safety Committee; Labor and Industrial Relations Committee, and the Insurance, Banking and Financial Relations Committee.
Over the past eight years, Mitchell has authored dozens of landmark laws, including and end to policies that drove families deeper into poverty—specifically in the aftermath of the Great Recession—and has worked to limit unfair seizures by law enforcement of personal assets.
Mitchell has advocated for decriminalization of childhood victims of prostitution and sex trafficking, and has introduced substantive reforms to the criminal justice system. To date, Mitchell has authored more than 60 bills that have been signed into law.
This year, Mitchell was elected vice chair of the Joint Committee on Rules Subcommittee on Sexual Harassment Prevention and Response. In 2017, Mitchell oversaw adoption of a $183 billion state budget that won that won wide praise for directing funds to elementary and college students, health care and programs that assist the elderly and youth.
State Assembly
Reginald Jones-Sawyer (District 59) represents the areas of South Los Angeles, Florence-Firestone, Walnut Park and a portion of Huntington Park.
During his tenure in Sacramento, Jones-Sawyer has played a key role in California’s economic recovery, has helped to invest more funding into local neighborhood schools, has advanced job creation policies and has been a staunch advocate for immigrants including healthcare for immigrant children.
Jones-Sawyer has co-authored legislation that has directly benefited all residents in the 59th District, such as Assembly Bill 672 that provides re-entry assistance (housing and job training) for for persons who have been wrongfully convicted and consequently released from state prison.
In the Legislature, Jones-Sawyer is chairperson of the Public Safety Committee, and serves on the Higher Education, Government Organization, and Agriculture committees.
Autumn Burke (District 62) shares a familiar and trusted name in local politics.
In representing the cities of Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo and Gardena, Burke has authored bills establishing Transportation Climate Communities to help disadvantaged neighborhoods heavily impacted by pollution, has worked to expand access to quality maternal health care, and has fostered greater accountability and transparency across all levels of government.
Beyond authoring legislation, Burke has secured $900 million in funding for career technical educational programs to help connect students to 21st Century careers, and has advocated for new investments in affordable housing and transportation infrastructure.
Burke is chairperson of the Assembly Select Committee on Career Technical Education and Building a 21st Century Workforce, and is a member of the Assembly committees on Accountability and Administrative Review; Banking and Finance; Health, Revenue and Taxation; Utilities and Energy, and the Joint Legislative Committee on Climate Change Policies.
Mike Gipson (District 64) is completing his fourth year in the state assembly.
The Watts native formerly served on the Carson City Council and represents the communities of Carson, Compton, Gardena, Harbor Gateway, Lynwood, North Long Beach, Rancho Dominguez, South Los Angeles, Torrance, Watts/Willowbrook and Wilmington.
Gipson is the chairperson of the Assembly Democratic Caucus, responsible for driving the legislative decision-making process for the majority caucus. Gipson has authored legislation to close a controversial loophole in the California Penal Code, has advocated for providing internet-related services for foster and incarcerated youth, and was at the forefront of the establishment of a working group to bring back Career Technical Education for secondary school students.
Gipson sits on the Aging and Long Term Care, Business and Professions, Government Organization, Insurance and Transportation committees, and is also chairperson of the Select Committee on Infectious Diseases in High-Risk Disadvantaged Communities.
Los Angeles County Sheriff
Jim McDonnell is completing his first term as Los Angeles County Sheriff.
McDonnell in 2014 took over a beleaguered department and since then has worked to help bridge a growing divide between rank-and-file members of the department and community stakeholders. McDonnell has continually stressed the importance of treating all members of the community with respect, being transparent and accountable, and creating a working environment that recognizes and rewards character, competence and compassion.
McDonnell served 29 years with the Los Angeles Police Department, rising from officer to second-in-command under former Chief William Bratton. With the LAPD, McDonnell received the Medal of Valor and helped lead the department’s implementation of significant reforms including a blueprint for improved community-based policing efforts that have since become a nation-wide model for law enforcement agencies.
In five years at Chief of the Long Beach Police Department, McDonnell implemented numerous improvements that resulted in safer communities, increased morale, and enhanced community relations.
McDonnell has been an advocate of “safe streets,” a philosophy that enables all neighborhoods within the county to not only succeed but thrive via prevention-oriented policing strategies while being proactively dedicated to addressing the root causes of crime.
