California gubernatorial candidates Xavier Becerra and Steve Hilton addressed Latino elected officials and policymakers Wednesday during the National Association of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials’ 43rd Annual Conference in downtown Los Angeles.
Becerra, the former secretary of the U.S. Department Health and Human Services and former California attorney general, spoke during the conference’s breakfast program Wednesday morning, which focused on “Building What Comes Next: Leadership at 50.”
“America is still a work in progress, one that we are all proud and privileged to shape and to build, but NALEO, this is where it’s time for you to step up. This is where it’s time for us to deliver because what happens over the next 50 years will be shaped and built by the people who are in this room,” Becerra said. “I say that completely as a member of this organization, but someone who will need you in the future.”
Becerra, a Democrat, noted the high price of food, healthcare and other goods and services, and criticized President Donald Trump without directly naming him.
“We don’t need people who make a promise to end a war in one day, and today, we still fight… We don’t need someone who said they will lower the price of gasoline and then raise (prices) by starting a reckless, illegal war,” he said.
“We don’t need someone who attacks our families, who are simply trying to work, take care of your kids, take care of your yard, and give you your groceries,” Becerra added, referring to the federal government’s crackdown on illegal immigration.
Hilton, the Republican author and businessman, delivered remarks during the lunch program later in the day, which was titled “One the National State: Leaders Shaping the Moment.”
“You may have heard a few things about me. I’m the Republican candidate for governor. You have heard that I used to host a show on Fox News. You may have heard that I’m endorsed by President Trump. Those things are all true … but I just want to tell you a little bit more about myself,” Hilton said.
Hilton said he is an “immigrant twice over,” as his family migrated from Hungary to England, and eventually he moved to the United States.
“That is my story. I worked hard. I got to Oxford University, started a business, worked in 10 Downing Street as a senior advisor to the prime minister, and moved here with my wife and family in 2012,” Hilton said. “That’s the story of American, and California should capture that story better than anywhere else. That’s what I’m fighting for in this campaign.”
Hilton said he wants to give everybody in the state a shot at climbing that ladder of opportunity.
Conference attendees heard the candidates discuss their priorities for the state and address issues they believe will influence California in the coming years.
Sen. Ruben Gallego, D-Arizona, also addressed conference attendees Wednesday morning. He criticized the federal government’s crackdown on illegal immigration as well.
“For Puerto Ricans and Mexicans and Colombians, everybody working class, were willing to give up their lives for this country because we knew it mattered,” Gallego said, speaking about his time as a member of the U.S. Marine Corps. “So that’s why when the right wing extremists go out and say that Latinos are not Americans, they could not understand how further from the truth they are.”
The three-day conference at the InterContinental Los Angeles Downtown is billed as the nation’s largest gathering of Latino policymakers.
“California is about to choose the leader of the world’s fourth-largest economy, and our nation’s Latino elected and appointed officials deserve a seat at that table,” NALEO Chief Executive Officer Erica Bernal-Martinez said in a statement. “The participation of California’s gubernatorial candidates reflects NALEO’s longstanding commitment to ensuring Latino leadership has a direct line to the candidates who will shape our state’s future.”
Gov. Gavin Newsom appeared at the conference Tuesday, taking part in a discussion with Democratic Sen. Alex Padilla focusing on California priorities, leadership and issues affecting Latino communities.
“Something’s fundamentally broken here — wealth is creating power, locking in rules and regulations, and locking everybody else out,” Newsom said during the discussion. “As someone who’s been deeply involved in the fight for democracy, for our republic — we cannot save our democracy unless we democratize our economy.”
According to the governor’s office, Newsom used the discussion to highlight California’s expansion of paid family leave and sick leave, universal free school meals, subsidized child care and transitional kindergarten, along with increases in the minimum wage and expanded renter protections.
The governor — who is widely believed to be planning a presidential run in 2028 — also pointed to state investments in housing production, health care affordability and workforce training programs while emphasizing California’s efforts to expand voting access and protect immigrant communities and civil rights.
Padilla, who previously served as president of NALEO, used his keynote address Tuesday to reflect on the organization’s role in expanding Latino political representation over the past five decades.
“50 years ago, Congressman Ed Roybal and his allies founded NALEO because at the time, too many Latinos were shut out of participating in our democracy,” Padilla said. “But 50 years later, we’re still fighting: for representation, to be treated with dignity, for equal protection under the law, and to fully participate in our democracy.”
NALEO represents more than 8,000 Latino elected and appointed officials nationwide.