Antonio Villaraigosa

Antonio Villaraigosa
Villaraigosa in 2013
41st Mayor of Los Angeles
In office
July 1, 2005 – July 1, 2013
Preceded byJames Hahn
Succeeded byEric Garcetti
69th President of the United States Conference of Mayors
In office
2011–2012
Preceded byElizabeth Kautz
Succeeded byMichael Nutter
Member of the Los Angeles City Council
from the 14th district
In office
July 1, 2003 – July 1, 2005
Preceded byNick Pacheco
Succeeded byJosé Huizar
63rd Speaker of the California State Assembly
In office
February 26, 1998 – April 13, 2000
Preceded byCruz Bustamante
Succeeded byRobert Hertzberg
Majority Leader of the California Assembly
In office
December 2, 1996 – February 26, 1998
Preceded byJim Rogan
Succeeded byKevin Shelley
Member of the California State Assembly
from the 45th district
In office
December 5, 1994 – November 30, 2000
Preceded byRichard Polanco
Succeeded byJackie Goldberg
Personal details
Born
Antonio Ramón Villar Jr.

(1953-01-23) January 23, 1953 (age 71)
Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Spouses
Corina Raigosa
​
​
(m. 1987; div. 2007)​
Patricia Govea
​
(m. 2016)​
Children4
EducationEast Los Angeles College
University of California, Los Angeles (BA)
People's College of Law (JD)
Signature
WebsiteCampaign website

Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa (/ˌviːəraɪˈɡoʊsə/; né Villar Jr. on January 23, 1953) is an American politician who served as the 41st Mayor of Los Angeles from 2005 to 2013. A member of the Democratic Party, Villaraigosa was a national co-chairman of Hillary Clinton's 2008 presidential campaign, a member of President Barack Obama's Transition Economic Advisory Board,[1] and chair of the 2012 Democratic National Convention.[2]

Before becoming mayor, he was a member of the California State Assembly (1994–2000), where he served as the Democratic Majority Leader (1996–98), and the Speaker of the California State Assembly (1998–2000). As speaker, Villaraigosa was an advocate for working families and helped to write legislation protecting the environment, expanding healthcare access, and increasing funding for public schools.

He ran for mayor in 2001 against Los Angeles City Attorney James Hahn, but lost in the second round of voting. Villaraigosa ran for and was elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 2003. In 2005, he ran for mayor again in a rematch against Hahn and won. During his tenure as mayor, he gained national attention for his work and was featured in Time's story on the country's 25 most influential Latinos. He was the first Hispanic in over 130 years to have served as mayor of Los Angeles. As mayor, Villaraigosa spearheaded policies to improve student outcomes in the Los Angeles Unified School District, reduce city and highway traffic, and enhance public safety.

Since leaving office in 2013, Villaraigosa has continued to be actively engaged in education, civic engagement, water, immigration, transportation, and economic development issues. He speaks nationally and throughout California on these issues. In November 2016, Villaraigosa announced his candidacy for the 2018 California gubernatorial election.[3][4] In June 2018, Villaraigosa came in third in the blanket primary election, losing to Gavin Newsom and John Cox.[5]

In July 2024, Villaraigosa announced his candidacy for the 2026 California gubernatorial election.[6]

  1. ^ Fletcher, Michael A. "Economic Advisers Represent Wide Range - washingtonpost.com". The Washington Post. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved December 1, 2020.
  2. ^ "Villaraigosa will chair Democratic National Convention, Los Angeles Times, February 14, 2012
  3. ^ Christopher Cadelago (November 10, 2016). "He's in: Antonio Villaraigosa formally running for California governor". Sacramento Bee. Retrieved December 22, 2016.
  4. ^ "Antonio Villaraigosa, former L.A. mayor, jumps into the California governor's race", Los Angeles Times, November 11, 2016
  5. ^ "California Primary Election Results". The New York Times. June 5, 2018. Retrieved June 10, 2018.
  6. ^ Johnson, Ted (July 23, 2024). "Antonio Villaraigosa Launches Another Bid For California Governor". Deadline Hollywood. Retrieved July 24, 2024.