State Assembly member Anthony Rendon, D-Lakewood, is seeking re-election against fellow Democrat Maria Estrada in the race to represent the Southeast region taken by the 62nd Assembly District.
This is the third time that Estrada has challenged Rendon for the seat, who was 63rd earlier this year but was replaced due to redistribution. Rendon, first elected in 2012, has served as Speaker of the Assembly since 2016.
Rendon and Estrada will go head-to-head in the June 7 primary voting to represent the Southeast District of Bell, Cudahi, Hawaiian Gardens and parts of Long Beach, Paramount, South Gate and Willowbrook.
The pair also ran against each other in 2018 and 2020.
In the 2020 runoff, Rendon beat Estrada by 53.7% to 46.3%.
Neither candidate responded to requests for information on campaign issues.
Rendon, 54, was born in Los Angeles to parents who were Mexican immigrants. After graduating high school, he worked in warehouses and decided to pursue higher education, enrolling at Cerritos Community College. He earned his bachelor’s and master’s degrees from California State Fullerton.
They have a history of voting for environmental causes and tenant protection.
In an online biography, Rendon said he was inspired to run for office after budget cuts in early childhood education programs. During his first year in assembly, Rendon wrote Proposition 1, a $7.5 billion state water bond—which voters approved in November 2014.
On its campaign Facebook page, South Gate’s Estrada lists its main issues as environmental justice, single-payer health care and ending local government corruption.
She lists her occupation as an accountant.
Rendon had not reported any donations from the beginning of the year as of the April 28 final filing deadline. But being a longtime elected official, he still ended the reporting period with $230,191, according to campaign finance documents.
Meanwhile, Estrada has not reported any campaign finance activity since 2020, according to the website of the California Secretary of State.
