Anthony Rendon (politician)

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This article is about the politician. For the baseball player, see Anthony Rendon.
Anthony Rendon
Anthony Rendon official photo.jpg
70th Speaker of the California State Assembly
Incumbent
Assumed office
March 7, 2016
Preceded byToni Atkins
Member of the California State Assembly
from the 63rd district
Incumbent
Assumed office
December 3, 2012
Preceded byMike Morrell
Personal details
Born (1968-03-04) March 4, 1968 (age 53)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouse(s)
Annie Lam
​
(m. 2014)​
Children1
EducationCerritos College
California State University, Fullerton (BA, MA)
University of California, Riverside (PhD)
WebsiteOfficial website

Anthony Rendon (born March 4, 1968) is an American politician serving as the 70th and current Speaker of the California State Assembly since 2016. A member of the Democratic Party, he is the fifth-longest-serving speaker in California history (and the longest-serving speaker to serve his first term after the adoption of California's term limits). He has represented the 63rd district, located in the southeastern part of Los Angeles County, since 2012.

Early life and career[]

Rendon was born on March 4, 1968[1] in Silver Lake,[2] a neighborhood in central Los Angeles. His grandparents immigrated from Mexico to the United States during the 1920s.[3] He grew up in a lower-middle-class family that frequently moved around the Los Angeles area.[2] His father, Tom Rendon,[4] worked multiple jobs, including for a mobile home company, and his mother, Gloria Rendon,[4] was a teacher's aide at a Catholic school.[5]

Rendon attended California High School, Whittier, graduating in 1986.[5] He has stated that he was a "terrible student."[6] At the age of 20, he enrolled in and attended Cerritos College, a community college in Norwalk, California, before earning a bachelor's degree and master's degree from California State University, Fullerton.[7] After receiving a National Endowment for the Humanities fellowship,[8] Rendon earned his Ph.D. in political science from the University of California, Riverside,[5] graduating in 2000.[9] He completed post-doctoral work at Boston University.[9]

Prior to becoming a member of the California State Assembly, Rendon was the executive director of Plaza de la Raza Child Development Services, an organization that provides child development and social and medical services throughout Los Angeles County.[10] He was also the interim executive director of the California League of Conservation Voters, a lobbying organization dedicated to environmental issues.[11] He worked with the Mexican American Opportunity Foundation in early childhood education efforts.[12] From 2001 to 2008, he was an adjunct professor in the Department of Political Science and Criminal Justice at California State University, Fullerton.[8]

Political career[]

During his first term in office, Rendon was chair of the Assembly Committee on Water, Parks, and Wildlife and authored Proposition 1, the $7.5 billion state water bond, which voters approved in the November 2014 election.[13]

In 2013, Rendon authored Assembly Bill 711, a statewide ban on lead hunting ammunition, that was signed into law.[14]

In 2015, Rendon was named chair of the Assembly Committee on Utilities and Commerce.[15]

On September 3, 2015, Rendon was selected to be the next Assembly Speaker.[16] The formal vote electing Rendon as Speaker occurred on January 11. The vote was unanimous, with the Republican leader seconding the motion.[17]

Rendon brought back the tradition of past California Assembly Speakers of carrying no legislation himself, but focusing on empowering the members of the chamber.[18] Despite this, he has made certain priorities of his known, including wildfire planning, and continuing to address poverty and educational deficits in California. [19]

On February 19, 2021, The Sacramento Bee reported that nonprofit organizations associated with Rendon's wife, Annie Lam, had received over $500,000 in donations and event sponsorships from over a dozen companies that had business interests at stake with the legislature.[20]

Career[]

2014 California State Assembly[]

See also: 2014 California State Assembly election
California's 63rd State Assembly district election, 2014
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Anthony Rendon (incumbent) 12,089 64.7
Republican Adam J. Miller 6,597 35.3
Total votes 18,686 100.0
General election
Democratic Anthony Rendon (incumbent) 28,544 69.1
Republican Adam J. Miller 12,781 30.9
Total votes 41,325 100.0
Democratic hold

2016 California State Assembly[]

See also: 2016 California State Assembly election
California's 63rd State Assembly district election, 2016
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Anthony Rendon (incumbent) 45,391 78.5
Republican Adam Joshua Miller 12,419 21.5
Total votes 57,810 100.0
General election
Democratic Anthony Rendon (incumbent) 89,134 77.6
Republican Adam Joshua Miller 25,680 22.4
Total votes 114,814 100.0
Democratic hold

2018 California State Assembly[]

See also: 2018 California State Assembly election
California's 63rd State Assembly district election, 2018
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Anthony Rendon (incumbent) 18,047 46.6
Democratic Maria D. Estrada 11,252 29.1
Republican Adam Joshua Miller 9,419 24.3
Total votes 38,718 100.0
General election
Democratic Anthony Rendon (incumbent) 49,367 54.3
Democratic Maria D. Estrada 41,626 45.7
Total votes 90,993 100.0
Democratic hold

2020 California State Assembly[]

2020 California's 63rd State Assembly district election
Primary election
Party Candidate Votes %
Democratic Anthony Rendon (incumbent) 22,262 57.7%
Democratic Maria D. Estrada 16,318 42.3%
Total votes
Democratic hold

Personal life[]

Rendon resides in Lakewood, California. In December 2014, Rendon married Annie Lam in a ceremony officiated by former California State Assembly Speaker John A. Pérez.[21] He lives with his wife Annie Lam along with his daughter Vienna Rendon Lam.

References[]

  1. ^ "Anthony Rendon". JoinCalifornia. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  2. ^ a b Mason, Melanie (January 9, 2016). "Punk rock and Plato are touchstones for incoming Assembly speaker". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  3. ^ Berestein Rojas, Leslie (October 20, 2015). "Incoming Calif. Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon sees himself as bridge between East and Westside on environment concerns". KPCC. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  4. ^ a b "Rendon Sworn In as Assembly Speaker". Sacramento, CA: California State Assembly Democratic Caucus. March 7, 2016. Archived from the original on December 23, 2016. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  5. ^ a b c Skelton, George (November 2, 2015). "As next Assembly speaker, academic late-bloomer Anthony Rendon aims to focus on education". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved December 8, 2016.
  6. ^ Gutierrez, Melody. "Anthony Rendon becomes new Assembly speaker". SFGate. Retrieved December 12, 2016.
  7. ^ Gallegos, Sami (March 31, 2016). "From humble roots to the height of California politics". ABC10. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  8. ^ a b "Anthony Rendon sworn-in as Assembly speaker". The Downey Patriot. March 8, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  9. ^ a b Seiler, Kristin (November 16, 2015). "UCR Alumnus Named Speaker-Designee of the California State Assembly". University of California, Riverside Alumni Blog. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  10. ^ "California's New Assembly Speaker Takes Oath". KPBS. March 7, 2016. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  11. ^ Jennewein, Chris (March 7, 2016). "Toni Atkins Passing Speaker's Gavel to Anthony Rendon". Times of San Diego. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  12. ^ White, Jeremy B. (January 3, 2016). "Educating youngest kids tops next California Assembly speaker's agenda". The Sacramento Bee. Retrieved January 13, 2017.
  13. ^ "California Proposition 1, Water Bond (2014) - Ballotpedia". Retrieved 2015-10-06.
  14. ^ "Capitol Alert: Jerry Brown signs lead ammo ban, vetoes bill to ban semi-automatic rifles - sacbee.com". Archived from the original on 2015-09-10. Retrieved 2015-10-06.
  15. ^ "California Assembly announces committee chairs". Retrieved 2015-10-06.
  16. ^ "Anthony Rendon selected next Assembly speaker". Retrieved 2015-10-06.
  17. ^ "Anthony Rendon selected next Assembly speaker".
  18. ^ "Los Angeles Times Profile of Anthony Rendon".
  19. ^ "Priorities o Anthony Rendon".
  20. ^ https://amp.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/capitol-alert/article249343790.html
  21. ^ Koseff, Alexei (December 15, 2016). "AM Alert: Did he do that? Urkel announces cow art exhibition". Sacramento Bee. Retrieved December 8, 2016.

External links[]

Political offices
Preceded by
Toni Atkins
 Speaker of the California State Assembly
2016–present 		Incumbent
Retrieved from ""