Trio face off in Assembly District 54 with incumbent going for L.A. seat
Race became an open battlefield after Miguel Santiago opts to run for spot on the City Council
State Assemblymember Miquel Santiago, D-Los Angeles, who has long represented Assembly District 54, is not seeking reelection in Sacramento so he can challenge incumbent Los Angeles City Councilmember Kevin de LeÓn in the March 5 primary for de Leon's City Council District 14 seat.
That leaves the Assembly District 54 seat open, attracting candidates Mark Gonzalez and John K. Yi, both Democrats, and Republican Elaine Alaniz, in a district that was dramatically redrawn in 2022 during statewide redistricting. In 2022 before redistricting, Alaniz ran against Santiago in the heavily Democratic district and Santiago easily won.
Assembly District 54 was moved inland in 2022, far from its more upscale and middle-class West Los Angeles, Santa Monica and Culver City. It is still heavily Democratic and is now made up of highly diverse Koreatown, downtown Los Angeles, Chinatown, Little Tokyo, Boyle Heights, Vernon and Montebello, and has a population of about 495,000.
Alaniz, who hails from Texas, is a 38-year-old health care recruiter responsible for finding qualified people and educating communities about services and career opportunities. She is the president of the Westlake North Neighborhood Council and decided to run for the Assembly seat because she sees a lack of leadership in Sacramento. Alaniz hopes for a chance in this heavily Democratic-leaning district.
“I believe that all communities want to excel and strive for the best for their future and their families,” Alaniz said. “The redistricting and addition (of new neighborhoods) in AD 54 is positive because more voices that care for our community have been added” to the district map. Voters are “able to observe the current condition and leadership of AD 54 and vote to continue to follow it, or change the path.”
She said public safety is her top priority.
“If our first responders are not safe, then our communities follow suit,” she said. “All people should feel safe where they call home.”
But as she sees things now, “parts of the district are facing homelessness, and the growth of adding more homeless from other areas into the district (and) rampant public opioid drug use on the streets, and skyrocketing crime.”
Her campaign website says her platform includes supporting law enforcement, protecting parental rights to make education and medical decisions for their children; fixing the mental health system by increasing and reopening mental health care facilities — and utilizing vacant hospitals and hiring qualified staff to provide support 24/7.
The first bill she would author or pass in Sacramento, she said, would create workforce opportunities by focusing on education and bringing vocational training back to secondary schools and high schools. Protecting the constitutional freedoms and civil liberties of constituents in all communities is one of her key goals, along with small business development, protection of the unborn, youth development, tourism, citizenship and naturalization.
Alaniz's endorsements include the California Republican Party and the Republican Party of Los Angeles
County.
Both of the Democratic candidates, Gonzalez and Yi, see the redistricting as advantageous to them.
Mark Gonzalez (D) is assembly district director for legislator Miguel Santiago and is also chair of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party. Gonzalez has endorsements from powerful labor and teachers' unions and support from the California Democratic Party. Challenging him for the Democratic vote is John Yi, executive director of Los Angeles Walks, a pedestrian advocacy nonprofit.
Gonzalez, 38, has raised more than $800,000 compared to Yi's $80,000.
A renter in Chinatown, Gonzalez says one of his top priorities is to expand access to affordable quality healthcare for all.
He said he would fight for legislation that addresses the inequality of the education system and ensures that students have access to the best instructors and resources, tackle the lack of affordable housing and rising rents, and find ways to place the homeless in stable housing.
“I am proud of the work I did with Assemblymember (Miguel) Santiago to expand the California College Promise program and make two years of community college tuition-free for thousands of students,” he said.
In 2023, he worked in Sacramento to pass a law ensuring that all healthcare workers receive a minimum wage of $25 per hour and he has endorsements from the California Labor Federation and Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, AFL-CIO.
“The 54th Assembly District, as one of the more working-class communities in the state, has been confronting many of the broader problems facing our state for years, including rising homelessness, housing insecurity and skyrocketing cost of living,” Gonzalez said. Noting that the homeless crisis has been “particularly acute” in his district, he says help is underway but “far more needs to be done to get unhoused people into permanent housing — as well as providing the supportive services they need to stay off the streets.”
Gonzalez says what sets him apart from his opponents is his forward-thinking vision and depth of experience as an organizer and public servant.
“As chair of the largest local Democratic Party in the country, and senior staff for both the current and former assembly members representing District 54, I have spent well over a decade leading the charge on some of the most impactful, forward-thinking policies in Los Angeles,” he said.
He added that he is committed to “fighting for increased affordable housing, criminal justice reform, fully funded public schools, climate justice and an economy that works for everyone. We've made some significant progress on these fronts — including the passing of California's groundbreaking free community college laws and securing justice for communities poisoned by the toxic contamination at Exide Technologies.”
John Yi (D), is a 38-yearold community organizer born in Koreatown who has fought for policies impacting families, immigrants, public health and the environment. He was also instrumental in helping passw Proposition 56.
Yi promises to tackle the homeless crisis and create more affordable housing by giving communities more ownership of their land. “We do this through policies like social housing, community land trusts and fixing our state's first-time home buyers' program,” Yi said.
Yi says he differs from Gonzalez in other ways and took a shot at his better known opponent.
“Our campaign reflects the urgency of … our community's (needs) when it comes to issues like displacement and urban climate change,” Yi said. “And unlike our opponent and the political establishment, we do not take money from the very deep-pocketed interest groups that continue to worsen conditions in our district and then claim to fight those very interest groups.”
Yi went on, “They include groups like oil and gas companies, real estate money, anti-union corporate PAC money and insurance money. We practice what we preach and that's the kind of Democrat we need.”
Yi has been endorsed by Los Angeles City Controller Kenneth Mejia, LAUSD Board President Jackie Goldberg and state Senator Dave Min, District 37.
His platform includes pushing for significantly improved public transit and bus services; welllit sidewalks; and shaded, clean and safe bus and subway stops. Seniors are also a priority for him, along with city planning; civil rights and LGBTQ and immigrant rights; public health and tobacco control.
“We deserve world-class buses and trains and dignified public infrastructure” such as better sidewalks, parks and transit stops, he said. “(And) we need to protect our seniors, some of the most vulnerable in our communities. We need to give them safe neighborhoods and resources to age in place and with dignity.”
Yi agrees with Gonzalez over growing concerns about skyrocketing rents and the consequential displacement of residents, and Yi also wants to take a step further to address unsafe streets and broken infrastructure.
“Nearly half of our sidewalks in L.A. are considered failing,” Yi said. “Three quarters of all of our bus stops have no shade even though our city is sunny. Our sidewalks are notorious for the lack of street trees and shade … and our subway and bus service continues to be unreliable and inconsistent.”
“I believe that all communities want to excel and strive for the best for their future and their families. The redistricting and addition (of new neighborhoods) in AD 54 is positive because more voices that care for our community have been added.”
“The 54th Assembly District, as one of the more working-class communities in the state, has been confronting many of the broader problems facing our state for years, including rising homelessness, housing insecurity and skyrocketing cost of living.
— Mark Gonzalez
“We deserve world-class buses and trains and dignified public infrastructure” such as better sidewalks, parks and transit stops. (And) we need to protect our seniors, some of the most vulnerable in our communities. We need to give them safe neighborhoods and resources to age in place and with dignity.”