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The Honorable Marguerite Archie-Hudson
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1990 to 1996.
She earned a Ph.D. in education
administration. Having focused her prior career on education,
she served on the Los Angeles Community College Board and
was director of the Educational Opportunity Program for the
California State University system. She served as Chief of
Staff for Speaker Willie Brown, Jr. and for Congresswoman
Yvonne Brathwaite-Burke.
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The Honorable Willie L.
Brown, Jr. (e-mail)
(Web
Site)
(D-San Francisco) Served from 1964 to 1996.
A prominent attorney, he
became the first African American elected Speaker of the House
in 1980, a position he held for 16 years. He was the first
and only person to be appointed Speaker Emeritus and is a
past chair of the Legislative Black Caucus.
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The Honorable Yvonne B. Burke
(e-mail)
(Web Site)
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1966 to 1972.
A noted civil rights attorney, her many accomplishments include
a master of laws degree. She was the first African American
woman to hold office in the California Legislature.
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The Honorable Julian Dixon
(D-Los Angeles) Served from
1972 to 1978.
He holds a juris doctorate degree. He served
as chair of both the Southern California Legislative Black
Caucus and the California Congress of Black Elected Officials.
He has many accomplishments in the area of juvenile justice
and penal system reform as well as the fight for equal access
for women and minorities in business and professional services.
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The Honorable Mervyn M. Dymally
(e-mail)
(Web
Site)
(D-Los Angeles)
Served in the Assembly from 1962 to 1966 when he was elected
to the California Senate. Re-elected to the Assembly in 2002.
He was the first African American Senator in California
and performed in that position until 1974. He then went on
to serve as Lieutenant Governor, the first African American
to be elected to a State Executive Office.
In 2005, he was elected Chair of the Legislative Black Caucus
and appointed to Chairman of the Assembly Health Committee.
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The Honorable F. Douglas Ferrell
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1963 to 1966.
A doctor of divinity, his political philosophy
states: "Therefore all things whatsoever ye would that
men would do to you, do ye even so to them; for this is the
law and the prophets." His vocation as a pastor and legislator
focused on youth and missionary causes.
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The Honorable Bill Greene
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1966 to 1975, succeeding
Mervyn Dymally, for whom he had been working at the time.
In 1975, he moved to a State Senate seat until 1992. Before
elected to office, he was the first African American to serve
as a Clerk of the Assembly. With roots in union advocacy,
he made major contributions through service to the fields
of education, child care, employment and civil rights.
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The Honorable Elihu M. Harris
(D-Oakland) Served from 1978 to 1990.
He holds a master's degree in public administration as well
as a juris doctorate. He is a past executive director of the
National Bar Association and chaired the powerful Assembly
Judiciary Committee.
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The Honorable Augustus Hawkins
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1934 to 1960, succeeding Frederick
M. Roberts.
He served on the important Rules Committee of
the Assembly during part of his 20-plus years in the Legislature.
His agenda continually focused on education, labor and employment
issues.
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The Honorable Nate Holden
(e-mail)
(Web
Site)
(D--Los Angeles) Served from 1974 to 1978.
He earned a master's of science degree in engineering.
He served as president of the California Democratic Council
and was described by the Los Angeles County Democratic Central
Committee as "the finest example of a man whose total
commitment is in improving life conditions for all people."
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The Honorable Frank Holoman
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1972 to 1974.
His interests in urban improvement and local
government have led him to pursue these causes in the Legislature
as well as through his position as chair of the Black Caucus
of Southern California.
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The Honorable Jerome E. Horton
(e-mail)
(Web
Site)
(D-Inglewood) Served from 2000 to 2006.
Before winning 80 percent of the vote
in his election bid, he served the people of Inglewood as
a City Councilmember. Horton served on Assembly Rules, Insurance,
Governmental Organization, Elections and Reapportionment and
Budget Committees. He also served as chairperson of both the
Assembly Select Committee on Community Colleges, and the Select
Committee on California Horseracing Industry.
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The Honorable Teresa P. Hughes
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1975 to 1992, succeeding Bill
Greene.
She was elected to the State
Senate in 1992 and is a past chair of the Legislative Black
Caucus. She holds a Ph.D. in education administration. A long-time
educator, Hughes has sponsored legislation to broaden learning
through museums, bring peace to schools, and provide equal
opportunity for homeowner loans.
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The Honorable
Barbara Lee (e-mail)
(Web Site)
(D-Oakland) Served from 1990 to 1996.
In 1996, she was elected
to the State Senate. She holds a master's degree in social
welfare and served as a senior adviser to Congressman Ron
Dellums. She has held many board memberships which have put
her at the forefront of issues concerning African American
economic and social status as well as the safety of women
and children.
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The Honorable Juanita McDonald
(e-mail)
(Web
Site)
(D-Compton) Served from 1992 to 1996.
She earned a master's degree in education. With
a previous career in education and local government, she focused
on these areas as well as housing and community development
and transportation issues.
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The Honorable John J. Miller
(D-Berkeley) Served from 1966 to 1975.
A successful attorney, he earned an L.L.B. and
advanced to candidacy for a master of laws degree. As successor
to Byron Rumford, he fought to retain the Rumford Fair Housing
Act. In 1970, he was named the Assembly Democratic Leader.
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The Honorable Gwen Moore
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1978 to 1994.
She earned a master's degree in public administration
as well as a teaching credential. Known in the Legislature
as an authority on utilities and telecommunications issues,
she authored legislation which opened the utility rate-setting
process to more public scrutiny. She served as a Democratic
Whip and is a past Chair of the Legislative Black Caucus.
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The Honorable Kevin Murray
(Web
Site)
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1994 to 2006.
An entertainment attorney, he also earned a
Masters of Business Administration degree. In his first term
of office, he was elected Assistant Democratic Floor Leader
and in his second term, chair of the Legislative Black Caucus.
He served on the Assembly alongside his father, Assemblyman
Willard H. Murray, Jr. (52nd District-ret.). The father-son
pairing marked a first in California political history. In
1998 he was elected to the State Senate. Senator Murray served
as the chair of, both, the Senate Transportation Committee
and the Select Committee on the Entertainment Industry.
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The Honorable Willard H. Murray, Jr.
(D-Compton) Served from 1988 to 1996.
As an engineer he became politically involved
during the civil rights movement. He served on the staffs
of Los Angeles City Councilmen Robert Farrell and Billy Mills.
Prior to his election to office, he served on the staffs of
Lt. Governor Mervyn Dymally and as an advisor to the Senate
Democratic Caucus. He focused on education, crime control,
economic development, family values, homeless veterans, pediatric
and prenatal care for the poor.
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The Honorable Leon Ralph
(D-Los Angeles) Served in the Assembly from 1966 to 1975.
Active in California Democratic leadership and
a force during his tenure in the Assembly, he chaired the
powerful Rules Committee during the restoration of the Historic
State Capitol. He fought to eliminate discrimination in hiring
practices and government contracting.
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The Honorable Mark Ridley-Thomas
(e-mail)
(Web
Site)
(D-Los Angeles) Began his service in the Legislature in 2002.
He served in the California Assembly until his
election to the State Senate in 2006. Senator Ridley-Thomas
has a baccalaureate degree in Social Relations and a master's
degree in Religious Studies from Immaculate Heart College.
He earned his Ph.D. in Social Ethics from the University of
Southern California.
He formerly served on the Los Angeles City
Council and has addressed issues in the legislature on economic
and workforce development, health, public safety, education,
budget accountability and civic participation. He serves as
Chairman of the Senate Business, Professions and Economic
Development.
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The Honorable Frederick M. Roberts
(R-Los Angeles) Served from 1918 to 1933.
He was the first African American State legislator,
authoring early California civil rights legislation.
Roberts opposed new laws that restricted African
Americans from exercising their social, economic and political
rights. He led policy agendas on such equal rights issues
as opening access to public facilities, like restaurants,
restrooms and entertainment venues.
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The Honorable W. Byron Rumford
(D-Berkeley) Served from 1948 to 1966.
He earned a master's degree in public administration
and applied his knowledge diligently, particularly in the
areas of housing, health, and narcotics legislation, and authored
the Rumford Fair Housing Act. Just after World War II, he
was asked by the U.S. State Department to visit Germany as
a citizen ambassador.
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The Honorable Curtis R. Tucker, Sr.
(D-Inglewood) Served from 1974 to 1988.
A former soldier in the Army, he taught at West
Point Academy. He and his son, Curtis R. Tucker, Jr., were
the first father and son to both win election to the California
Legislature, though the two did not serve at the same time.
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The Honorable Curtis R. Tucker, Jr.
(D-Inglewood) Served from 1989 to 1996.
His primary concerns were education, health
care and fighting crime. He and his father, Curtis R. Tucker,
Sr. were the first father and son both to be elected to the
California Legislature, though they did not serve at the same
time.
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The Honorable Edward Vincent
(e-mail)
(Web
Site)
(D-Inglewood) Began his service in the Legislature in 1996.
Senator Edward Vincent was elected to the California
State Senate in 2000, serving District 25. Prior to being
elected to the State Senate, Vincent served as a member of
the California State Assembly from 1996. He is a former Mayor
of the City of Inglewood. Vincent serves as a member of the
Senate Committees on Agriculture, Governmental Organization
and Health. He also chairs the Select Committee on the Horseracing
Industry.
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The Honorable Carl Washington
(D-Compton) Served from 1996 to 2002.
Called to the ministry in 1983, he has
been active in devising alternatives to gangs in Los Angeles
as well as educating others in public safety professions.
Prior to his legislative service, he served on the staff of
Los Angeles County Supervisor Yvonne B. Burke. Washington
served as Chair of the Public Safety Committee, and was a
member of the Education, Rules, Banking and Finance, Environmental
Safety and Toxic Materials Committees, as well as Vice Chair
of the Joint Committee on Prison Construction and Operations.
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The Honorable Maxine Waters (Web
Site)
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1976 to 1990.
She holds two honorary doctoral degrees. During
her distinguished tenure, she served as chair of the Assembly
Democratic Caucus and was a member of the powerful Ways and
Means Committee.
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The Honorable Diane E. Watson
(Web
Site)
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1978 to 1998.
She was the second woman and the first African
American woman to serve in the State Senate. She earned a
Ph.D. in education administration. She has been a paragon
of leadership as Chair of the Health and Human Services Committee.
She also served as chair of the Legislative Black Caucus and
was the founder of the National Organization of Black Elected
Legislators/Women (NOBEL/Women).
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The Honorable Herb J. Wesson, Jr.
(e-mail)
(Web
Site)
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1998 to 2004.
He was elected to the Legislature in his first
bid for office. In 2000, he was unanimously elected as the
65th Speaker of the California State Assembly, becoming the
second African American Speaker in California history.
Wesson represented the Cities of Los Angeles
and Culver City, as well as the communities of Ladera Heights,
Baldwin Hills, View Park and Windsor Hills. Wesson is the
current Chair of the Governmental Organization Committee and
serves on the Appropriations Committee; Consumer Protection,
Governmental Efficiency and Economic Development Committee;
and the Utilities and Commerce Committee.
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The Honorable Roderick Wright
(D-Los Angeles) Served from 1996 to 2002.
Involved in politics for many years, he served as district
administrator for Congresswoman Maxine Waters and became a
driving force within the African American Caucus of the California
Democratic Party. Wright is a past Chairman of the California
Legislative Black Caucus.
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