Gonzalez is the district director for Santiago and received endorsements from major labor unions, including those representing teachers and construction workers. The California Democratic Party and Gov. Gavin Newsom also endorsed him. The support has helped Gonzalez raise nearly 10 times as much campaign money as his opponent. A resident of Chinatown, Gonzalez said his goals as a lawmaker would be to focus on “affordable housing, criminal justice reform, climate justice, and a just economy.”
As district director, he worked on housing with Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass and on economic justice issues, including advocating for a $25 minimum wage for healthcare workers in California.
Yi has had a career leading nonprofit advocacy groups including the American Lung Assn. in California and Parent Revolution, an education reform organization. Support for his campaign comes largely from the left wing of the Democratic Party, including the L.A. chapter of Our Revolution, the organization founded by U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). He is also endorsed by the Korean American Democratic Committee and the East Area Progressive Democrats.
Born in Los Angeles’ Koreatown, Yi said the district needs a representative in Sacramento who will focus on the region’s biggest problems: “Skyrocketing rent and displacement, lack of dignified public spaces, and … the worst air in the nation. We deserve public servants who feel the urgency-of-now our region demands.”
One of his biggest priorities is to fix public transportation, notably by making Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority an elected body, similar to how the Board of Directors of Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) is elected, a change that would require state approval. He also wants to get rid of single-family home zoning to create more equitable access to housing.