Alejandra Campoverdi said she is running in Tuesday’s special election to protect 34th Congressional District residents “who, like me, have struggled and overcome too much to be trampled and ignored and misrepresented.
“Growing up, I experienced firsthand the struggles many families in our district still face today,” Campoverdi said in response to a set of questions from City News Service.
“As one of the first in my family to graduate from college, I’ve navigated the harsh realities of what it takes to obtain a quality education. As the daughter of a single mother who immigrated to the U.S. from Mexico, I understand firsthand just how much our immigration system is in desperate need of repair.”
Campoverdi was the second candidate of the 23 on the ballot to respond to questions following journalist/community advocate Wendy Carrillo. Campoverdi is among 19 Democrats on the ballot in the overwhelmingly Democratic district.
Campoverdi is a resident of downtown Los Angeles who will be listed on the ballot as a “multicultural community advocate.”
Campoverdi was director of multicultural content for the Los Angeles Times from 2014-16; senior Advisor for Innovation and Communications Strategy for Noticias Univision, the news division of the Spanish-language television network Univision, from 2012-14; the White House’s deputy director of Hispanic media from 2012-12; and special assistant to White House Deputy Chief of Staff for Policy Mona Sutphen from 2009-11.
“Throughout my career, I have been committed to advocating for the advancement of the communities represented in the 34th District, and I will use that experience and deep connection to our community’s needs to serve as a champion for those typically overlooked in Washington,” Campoverdi said.
“I’ll never forget who I serve. With that philosophy as the cornerstone of my work, I’ll be a conduit for the community while upholding transparency and ensuring constant open lines of communication.”
Campoverdi was born at Cedars-Sinai Medical Center “not because it had the best maternity ward, but because they accepted Medi-Cal,” she said, and raised in Santa Monica.
“My earliest memories are from the three-bedroom apartment that eight members of my family shared for most of my childhood, where my grandmother rolled flour tortillas on the table, my aunts prayed novenas in the living room, and my grandmother and I swept the front sidewalk,” Campoverdi said.
“It was also in this apartment that my grandfather, a car mechanic, spent his evenings covered in oil from back-breaking work that never seemed to cover the bills.”
Campoverdi graduated from St. Monica Catholic Elementary School and St. Monica Catholic High School.
“My mother and grandmother knew that accessing a quality education was the most direct path to a better life, so they sacrificed to ensure I had this opportunity,” Campoverdi said. “My grandmother took a job at St. Monica so we could afford my tuition and I received other forms of financial aid as well.”
Campoverdi received a bachelor’s degree in communications from USC’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism and a master’s degree from Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.
“As a former White House aide to President (Barack) Obama and media strategist, I know Washington and I know how to draw attention to critical issues from day one,” Campoverdi said.
“In Congress, I will channel the spirit, fight and energy we are seeing in our district and across the nation to be a relentless champion and public voice for affordable health care, quality education and comprehensive immigration reform.”
The field also includes Eagle Rock Assemblyman Jimmy Gomez and former Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education member Yolie Flores, both Democrats.
There is one Republican on the ballot, business owner William “Rodriguez” Morrison and one candidate each from the Green and Libertarian parties, certified public accountant Kenneth Mejia and tenants’ rights paralegal Angela E. McArdle.
Immigration law administrator Mark Edward Padilla did not state a party preference.
The special election was necessitated when Xavier Becerra was appointed as California’s attorney general, succeeding Democrat Kamala Harris after she was elected to the U.S. Senate.
The district approximately stretches from Koreatown in the west to the Long Beach (710) Freeway in the east and from the Santa Monica (10) Freeway in the south to the Ventura (134) Freeway in the north. It includes downtown Los Angeles, the Westlake district, Highland Park, Eagle Rock, Boyle Heights and Lincoln Heights.
If no candidate receives a majority Tuesday, a runoff between the top two finishers will be held June 6. Because of the large field, no candidate is expected to receive a majority.
–City News Service