CEJA Action is proud to release our 2022 Primary Election Environmental Justice Voter Guide!
2022 is a critical year for Californians to elect progressive leaders and champions for working class communities of color. With district lines shifting and many progressive lawmakers leaving the legislature this year, voters will have a historic number of new candidates to consider before the June 7th primary.
We are proud to announce our slate of 13 endorsed candidates, representing the most exciting progressive candidates to appear on the June ballot. Our Environmental Justice Crew are committed to economic, environmental, racial, gender, and housing justice. Through their lifetimes as public servants, organizers, and community leaders, these candidates have demonstrated their commitment to working for clean and healthy neighborhoods; for the transformation into a clean and renewable economy with union represented workforce and family sustaining wages; and committing to safe and affordable housing.
This guide is for YOU: a California voter who is impacted by and cares deeply about racial, economic and environmental injustice and believes that public policy should serve residents on the frontlines of poverty and pollution.
Vote with CEJA Action for representatives who will stand with communities and demand environmental solutions that achieve racial, social and economic justice for all Californians.
Download the 2020 Environmental Justice Voter Guide here in Spanish and here in English!
California Environmental Justice Action is proud to endorse the following candidates:
Dave Jones (SD-8) – As a community lawyer, former Assemblymember and California Insurance Commissioner, Jones has a long history of leading groundbreaking policies to protect working families, expand equal and quality healthcare, and safeguard the environment. Learn more and support Dave Jones’ campaign here.
Aisha Wahab (SD-10) – As a current Hayward City Councilmember, Wahab has led on wide victories for working families in Senate District 10. Councilmember Wahab spearheaded the removal of nuclear energy as an option for the East Bay Community Energy Plan, pushed for fossil fuel free development and opposed a proposal for an Amazon warehouse expansion to protect residents living along commerce routes. Learn more and support Aisha Wahab’s campaign here.
Bryan Osorio (SD-16) – As a former Councilmember and current Mayor of Delano, Osorio has championed immigrant rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and environmental justice policies to protect working class residents of Delano. During the COVID pandemic, Mayor Osorio pushed for his constituents to be protected from utility debt and evictions, supporting mutual aid food distribution and ensuring equitable vaccine access for farm workers and families to support a just recovery. Read more and support Bryan Osorio’s campaign here.
Steve Padilla (SD-18)– As a former California Coastal Commissioner, and former Mayor and current Chula Vista Councilmember, Padilla led the approval of the city’s landmark Climate Action Plan to implement community choice energy. Councilmember Padilla has spearheaded the expansion of new parks, housing and community spaces serving communities of color. Learn more and support Steve Padilla’s campaign here.
David Campos (AD-17)– As a former San Francisco Supervisor and life-long public servant, Campos has supported policy for immigrant rights, LGBTQ+ rights, and protections for working families. During Campos’ time as Supervisor he authored policy to establish Clean Power SF, the community choice program to offer residents 100% clean energy and passed a policy to make Muni buses free for low-income youth. Free Muni for low-income youth to expand access to public transit. Learn more and support David Campos’ campaign here.
Assemblymember Steve Bennett (AD-38): As a current Assemblymember and former Ventura County Supervisor, Bennett spearheaded the creation of California’s first farmworker resource center, serving Spanish and Mixteco speaking frontline agricultural workers. Asm. Bennett continued his leadership for California’s most under-resourced populations by authoring Assembly Bill 941 to expand these vital resources for farm workers across the state. As a legislative champion who partners closely with environmental justice organizations, he has worked to stop expansion of oil and gas extraction in the district. Read more and support Asm. Bennett’s campaign here.
Pilar Schiavo (AD-40)– As a labor leader for over 20 years, Schiavo has built broad coalitions between labor and community organizations to advocate for economic, social, and racial and environmental justice victories. Schiavo spearheaded and won county-wide healthcare services for uninsured residents and is a tireless advocate for working families, and communities of color. Read more and support Pilar Schiavo’s campaign here.
Christy Holstege (AD-47)– As Palm Springs Mayor and community lawyer, Holstege has been a lifelong advocate representing farmworkers, domestic violence survivors, workers, people with disabilities, and tenants. While in office, Mayor Holstege spearheaded the adoption of community choice energy, enrolled all residents and businesses in fossil free power, expanded local access to renewable energy to bring energy and water rate certainty for customers, created local jobs, and reduced city emissions. Read more and support Christy Holstege’s campaign here.
Assemblymember Eloise Gómez Reyes (AD-50)– Elected to the Assembly in 2016, Majority Leader Reyes has served as a principal author of numerous environmental health policy. She has been a trusted partner with environmental justice organizations assisting in crucial victories for frontline communities. Read more and support Asm. Eloise Gómez Reyes’ campaign here.
Elizabeth Alcantar (AD-64)– As current Cudahy Mayor and long-time community organizer, Alcantar works with frontline residents to lead and implement community-rooted housing and environmental justice solutions. Mayor Alcantar has worked to protect community residents from public health impacts of Exide, freeway expansion and warehouses. Read more and support Elizabeth Alcantar’s campaign here.
Fatima Iqbal-Zubair (AD-65)– An educator, community advocate, immigration and environmental activist, Iqbal-Zubair is committed to improve air quality, create sustainable affordable housing, and bring good green jobs to residents of the South Bay of Los Angeles. If elected, Iqbal-Zubair will fight for environmental justice for working families. Read more and support Fatima Iqbal-Zubair’s campaign here.
Assemblymember Chris Ward (AD-78)– As a current Assemblymember and former San Diego City Councilmember, Ward has led alongside regional and statewide environmental justice organizations to combat climate change. Asm. Ward served as a co-author of Senate Bill 467 to establish health and safety buffer zones from oil drilling in neighborhoods. Read more and support Asm. Ward’s campaign here.
Georgette Gómez (AD-80)– Former San Diego City Council President and life-long community organizer, Gómez has advocated for California’s formative environmental justice policies and resources. She led the implementation of the city’s landmark Climate Action Plan to initiate cross-agency collaboration to reduce emissions and transition to clean renewable energy. Read more and support Georgette Gómez’s campaign here.
Advancing Environmental Justice Principles
Each of our endorsements is driven by the candidate’s commitment to our guiding principles of environmental justice. By advocating for these values, and endorsing candidates with a commitment to putting them into practice, we can build a more environmentally just California.
They are to:
- Do no harm: decisions must do no further harm to environmental justice communities.
- Prioritize and value human health and improved quality of life: human health and well-being should not be overlooked for business interests or “cost effectiveness.”
- Prioritize environmental justice communities: confront the tragic, historic legacy and ongoing disproportionate polluting sources in communities, as well as the trend of disinvestment in those neighborhoods.
- Meaningfully engage with impacted communities: decisions are informed by residents of environmental justice communities. Decision-makers must be proactive and culturally relevant in soliciting input on actions to improve health, be responsive to community concerns and be transparent in their work to ensure continued engagement and accountability for decisions.
- Be proactive: decision-makers should not wait for communities to approach them with solutions, but proactively reach out to impacted community groups for ideas and feedback.
- Take intersectional approaches: environmental justice communities are systematically disenfranchised and experience the impacts of patriarchy, racism and state violence. To be more inclusive, we must partner to advance intersectional solutions that creatively address the multiple crises Californians are facing.
- Be responsive: Decision makers need to be responsive and accountable to community concerns when addressed. Offices should make continued discussion a priority, working on an issue until it is resolved.
- Respect community expertise: frontline residents are experts in their communities, and know the solutions they want to see. However, too often community voices are ignored for lack of “verification” which prevents or delays effective harm reduction. Decision-makers should turn to community leaders for input and trust what they learn to inform more equitable policy.
Communities on the frontline of long-term pollution, systemic racism and regulatory negligence. We are the only alliance that builds the political power of environmental justice communities with strong infrastructure focused on mobilizing voters on candidate races. Our Primary Voter Guide reflects our Alliance’s deep-rooted community organizing – and we’ve endorsed candidates who will advance critical policies to improve the health and quality of life for communities of color.
Ad paid for by CEJA Action PAC, sponsored by CEJA Action a project of Tides Advocacy. Not authorized by a candidate or a committee controlled by a candidate.