Anthony Rendon (politician)
Anthony Rendon (born March 4, 1968) is an American politician serving as the 70th and current Speaker of the California State Assembly since 2016. A member of the Democratic Party, he has represented the 63rd district, located in the southeastern part of Los Angeles County, since 2012.
Anthony Rendon | |
---|---|
70th Speaker of the California State Assembly | |
Assumed office March 7, 2016 | |
Preceded by | Toni Atkins |
Member of the California State Assembly from the 63rd district | |
Assumed office December 3, 2012 | |
Preceded by | District established |
Personal details | |
Born | Los Angeles, California, U.S. | March 4, 1968
Political party | Democratic |
Spouse(s) | Annie Lam (m. 2014) |
Education | Cerritos College California State University, Fullerton (BA, MA) University of California, Riverside (PhD) |
Website | Official website |
Early life and career
Rendon was born on March 4, 1968[1] in Silver Lake,[2] a neighborhood in central Los Angeles. His grandparents immigrated from Mexico to the United States during the 1920s.[3] He grew up in a lower-middle-class family that frequently moved around the Los Angeles area.[2] His father, Tom Rendon,[4] worked multiple jobs, including for a mobile home company, and his mother, Gloria Rendon,[4] was a teacher's aide at a Catholic school.[5]
Rendon attended California High School, Whittier, graduating in 1986.[5] He has stated that he was a "terrible student."[6] At the age of 20, he enrolled in and attended Cerritos College, a community college in Norwalk, California, before earning a bachelor's degree and master's degree from California State University, Fullerton.[7] After receiving a National Endowment for the Humanities fellowship,[8] Rendon earned his Ph.D. in political science from the University of California, Riverside,[5] graduating in 2000.[9] He completed post-doctoral work at Boston University.[9]
Prior to becoming a member of the California State Assembly, Rendon was the executive director of Plaza de la Raza Child Development Services, an organization that provides child development and social and medical services throughout Los Angeles County.[10] He was also the interim executive director of the California League of Conservation Voters, a lobbying organization dedicated to environmental issues.[11] He worked with the Mexican American Opportunity Foundation in early childhood education efforts.[12] From 2001 to 2008, he was an adjunct professor in the Department of Political Science and Criminal Justice at California State University, Fullerton.[8]
Political career
During his first term in office, Rendon was chair of the Assembly Committee on Water, Parks, and Wildlife and authored Proposition 1, the $7.5 billion state water bond, which voters approved in the November 2014 election.[13]
In 2013, Rendon authored Assembly Bill 711, a statewide ban on lead hunting ammunition, that was signed into law.[14]
In 2015, Rendon was named chair of the Assembly Committee on Utilities and Commerce.[15]
On September 3, 2015, Rendon was selected to be the next Assembly Speaker.[16]
The formal vote electing Mr. Rendon as Speaker occurred on January 11. The vote was unanimous, with the Republican leader seconding the motion.[17]
Rendon has stated his intention to bring back the tradition of past California Assembly Speakers of carrying no legislation himself, but focusing on empowering the members of the chamber.[18]
Recall effort
On June 23, 2017, Assembly Speaker Rendon announced that he would not advance California Senate Bill 562 by state Sens. Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) and Toni Atkins (D-San Diego) to a policy hearing in his house, making it all but certain the measure would not be acted upon in 2017. Under the measure, California would have paid the healthcare costs for all residents, eliminating premiums, copays and deductibles that are common fixtures in the current healthcare system.[19]
Protesting Rendon's decision not to advance the bill, University of Southern California law professor Stephen Elzie filed a notice of intent to circulate a recall petition.[20] Per organizers, the petition was approved by the Secretary of State and signatures were verified by the County of Los Angeles the following week.[21] However, the recall campaign ultimately did not report collecting any signatures to the Secretary of State, and by February 2018 announced they would not be moving forward with the campaign.[22]
Career
2014 California State Assembly
Primary election | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
Democratic | Anthony Rendon (incumbent) | 12,089 | 64.7 | |
Republican | Adam J. Miller | 6,597 | 35.3 | |
Total votes | 18,686 | 100.0 | ||
General election | ||||
Democratic | Anthony Rendon (incumbent) | 28,544 | 69.1 | |
Republican | Adam J. Miller | 12,781 | 30.9 | |
Total votes | 41,325 | 100.0 | ||
Democratic hold |
2016 California State Assembly
Primary election | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
Democratic | Anthony Rendon (incumbent) | 45,391 | 78.5 | |
Republican | Adam Joshua Miller | 12,419 | 21.5 | |
Total votes | 57,810 | 100.0 | ||
General election | ||||
Democratic | Anthony Rendon (incumbent) | 89,134 | 77.6 | |
Republican | Adam Joshua Miller | 25,680 | 22.4 | |
Total votes | 114,814 | 100.0 | ||
Democratic hold |
2018 California State Assembly
Primary election | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
Democratic | Anthony Rendon (incumbent) | 18,047 | 46.6 | |
Democratic | Maria D. Estrada | 11,252 | 29.1 | |
Republican | Adam Joshua Miller | 9,419 | 24.3 | |
Total votes | 38,718 | 100.0 | ||
General election | ||||
Democratic | Anthony Rendon (incumbent) | 49,367 | 54.3 | |
Democratic | Maria D. Estrada | 41,626 | 45.7 | |
Total votes | 90,993 | 100.0 | ||
Democratic hold |
2020 California State Assembly
Primary election | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
Democratic | Anthony Rendon (incumbent) | 22,262 | 57.7% | |
Democratic | Maria D. Estrada | 16,318 | 42.3% | |
Total votes | ||||
Democratic hold |
Personal life
Rendon resides in Lakewood, California. In December 2014, Rendon married Annie Lam in a ceremony officiated by former California State Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez.[23] He lives with his wife Annie Lam along with his daughter Vienna Rendon Lam.
References
- "Anthony Rendon". JoinCalifornia. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
- Mason, Melanie (January 9, 2016). "Punk rock and Plato are touchstones for incoming Assembly speaker". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
- Berestein Rojas, Leslie (October 20, 2015). "Incoming Calif. Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon sees himself as bridge between East and Westside on environment concerns". KPCC. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
- "Rendon Sworn In as Assembly Speaker". Sacramento, CA: California State Assembly Democratic Caucus. March 7, 2016. Archived from the original on December 23, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
- Skelton, George (November 2, 2015). "As next Assembly speaker, academic late-bloomer Anthony Rendon aims to focus on education". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
- Gutierrez, Melody. "Anthony Rendon becomes new Assembly speaker". SFGate. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
- Gallegos, Sami (March 31, 2016). "From humble roots to the height of California politics". ABC10. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
- "Anthony Rendon sworn-in as Assembly speaker". The Downey Patriot. March 8, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
- Seiler, Kristin (November 16, 2015). "UCR Alumnus Named Speaker-Designee of the California State Assembly". University of California, Riverside Alumni Blog. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
- "California's New Assembly Speaker Takes Oath". KPBS. March 7, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
- Jennewein, Chris (March 7, 2016). "Toni Atkins Passing Speaker's Gavel to Anthony Rendon". Times of San Diego. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
- White, Jeremy B. (January 3, 2016). "Educating youngest kids tops next California Assembly speaker's agenda". The Sacramento Bee. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
- "California Proposition 1, Water Bond (2014) - Ballotpedia". Retrieved 2015-10-06.
- "Capitol Alert: Jerry Brown signs lead ammo ban, vetoes bill to ban semi-automatic rifles - sacbee.com". Archived from the original on 2015-09-10. Retrieved 2015-10-06.
- "California Assembly announces committee chairs". Retrieved 2015-10-06.
- "Anthony Rendon selected next Assembly speaker". Retrieved 2015-10-06.
- "Anthony Rendon selected next Assembly speaker".
- "Los Angeles Times Profile of Anthony Rendon".
- "California Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon shelves single-payer healthcare bill, calling it 'woefully incomplete'". Retrieved 2017-06-23.
- Mason, Melanie (July 28, 2017). "Single-payer healthcare supporters take first step to launch recall against California Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
- Papple, Dawn (August 6, 2017). "California Recall Group Sends Message To Democrats And Assembly Speaker Rendon Over Healthcare". Inquisitr. Retrieved August 15, 2017.
- Mason, Melanie (February 13, 2018). "Campaign to recall Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon fizzles". latimes.com. Retrieved July 13, 2019.
- Koseff, Alexei (December 15, 2016). "AM Alert: Did he do that? Urkel announces cow art exhibition". Sacramento Bee. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
External links
Political offices | ||
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Preceded by Toni Atkins |
Speaker of the California State Assembly 2016–present |
Incumbent |