Newsom nominates an Asian as state attorney general
SACRAMENTO >> California Gov. Gavin Newsom on Wednesday nominated Assemblyman Rob Bonta, a criminal justice reformer and the state’s first Filipino legislator, to be the next attorney general.
Bonta, a Democrat, would replace Xavier Becerra, who was confirmed last week as President Joe Biden’s health and human services secretary. Pending likely confirmation by the state’s Democratic Legislature, Bonta would hold the job through 2022 when he would have to run for election.
Bonta, 48, had the backing of a number of Asian American and Pacific Islander groups, as well as progressive groups and leaders on criminal and environmental justice. His appointment comes amid a time of rising violence against Asian Americans. After six women of Asian descent were killed in a Georgia shooting spree, top AAPI elected officials called on Newsom to name Bonta to the job.
“We have to continue to build bridges of trust between our API communities and law enforcement,” Democratic Assemblyman David Chiu of San Francisco said on that call.
California is home to more than 6 million people of Asian descent.
Bonta lives in Alameda and was elected to represent the east San Francisco Bay Area, including Oakland, in 2012. He is a prolific author of legislation, often with a criminal justice reform focus. State laws he’s introduced that were signed into law include a measure to automatically expunge marijuana related offenses from people’s records after California legalized recreational marijuana, to eliminate private prisons and to end cash bail.