Hector De La Torre (born May 29, 1967) is an
American politician
The politics of the United States function within a framework of a constitutional federal republic and presidential system, with three distinct branches that share powers. These are: the U.S. Congress which forms the legislative branch, a bic ...
from
Los Angeles County, California
Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles, and sometimes abbreviated as L.A. County, is the List of the most populous counties in the United States, most populous county in the United States and in the U.S. state of California, ...
who served in the
California State Assembly
The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the California State Senate. The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
The A ...
from 2004 to 2010. A
Democrat
Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to:
Politics
*A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people.
*A member of a Democratic Party:
**Democratic Party (United States) (D)
**Democratic ...
, he represented the largely
Latino
Latino or Latinos most often refers to:
* Latino (demonym), a term used in the United States for people with cultural ties to Latin America
* Hispanic and Latino Americans in the United States
* The people or cultures of Latin America;
** Latin A ...
50th Assembly district.
Personal life and education
De La Torre's parents immigrated to the United States from Mexico in the 1960s. He grew up in South Gate and taught at Edison Junior High in
South Los Angeles
South Los Angeles, also known as South Central Los Angeles or simply South Central, is a region in southwestern Los Angeles County, lying mostly within the city limits of Los Angeles, south of downtown.
It is "defined on Los Angeles city maps as ...
.
De La Torre majored in diplomacy and world affairs at
Occidental College
Occidental College (informally Oxy) is a private liberal arts college in Los Angeles, California. Founded in 1887 as a coeducational college by clergy and members of the Presbyterian Church, it became non-sectarian in 1910. It is one of the oldes ...
in Los Angeles and attended graduate school at
George Washington University
, mottoeng = "God is Our Trust"
, established =
, type = Private federally chartered research university
, academic_affiliations =
, endowment = $2.8 billion (2022)
, preside ...
in
Washington, D.C.
)
, image_skyline =
, image_caption = Clockwise from top left: the Washington Monument and Lincoln Memorial on the National Mall, United States Capitol, Logan Circle, Jefferson Memorial, White House, Adams Morgan, ...
He and his wife, Christine, live in South Gate with their children, Elinor, Henrik, and Emilia.
Early career
Prior to his election to the Assembly, he worked as judicial administrator with the California Superior Court in Los Angeles for three years. He also served as legislative director for former California congressman
Richard H. Lehman (D-CA) and on the staff of congressman
Alan Wheat
Alan Dupree Wheat (born October 16, 1951) is an American politician from the state of Missouri.
Early life
His father was James Wheat, an officer and civil engineer in the U.S. Air Force. His mother Emogene (Jean) Wheat was a teacher. Since his ...
(D-MO). In 1995, he was appointed chief of staff to the deputy secretary of labor in the
Clinton Administration
Bill Clinton's tenure as the 42nd president of the United States began with his first inauguration on January 20, 1993, and ended on January 20, 2001. Clinton, a Democrat from Arkansas, took office following a decisive election victory over Re ...
.
South Gate city council
De La Torre was elected to the
South Gate City Council in 1997 and served until 2004, serving as mayor for two of those years. He represented the city on the Executive Board of the Gateway Cities Council of Governments, where he played a key role in developing plans to improve the
I-710 Freeway. He served on the
San Gabriel and Lower Los Angeles Mountains and Rivers Conservancy where he supported the preservation of open space throughout the district.
As Mayor, he worked to improve relations between the city, the community, and the police department. He helped build new parks, addressed budget issues, helped to improve the transportation infrastructure, and improved senior programs and education for the city's children. In order to alleviate overcrowding, De La Torre fought for new and better school facilities. He fought for honest and effective government, and led South Gate residents in a grassroots campaign to recall corrupt elected officials, stabilize the city's financial condition, and rebuild public trust.
Role in South Gate corruption scandal
De La Torre was one of only two council members not involved in the corruption scandal, which prompted a January 2003 recall of three other members of the city council, as well as the South Gate city treasurer. The recall, which he helped lead, was the culmination of a long fight to clean up the corruption in South Gate.
For years, South Gate had been unofficially controlled by
Albert T. Robles, who once boasted to being the "King of South Gate." Politicians who ran against the Robles slate often found themselves the victims of anonymous, libelous campaign mailers. For example, some were charged with child molestation, alcoholism, and not supporting children living in other states—all unfounded claims.
During his reelection campaign for city council, Hector De La Torre was challenged by a political unknown who was also named Hector De La Torre. The incumbent charged that this was an attempt to confuse voters and remove him from the city council. Despite the challenge, City Councilmember De La Torre came in first in the election.
Robles's critics faced personal as well as political danger. Many received death threats. Joseph Ruiz, a political activist who campaigned against Robles's allies, fell victim to arson when his business was hit with four Molotov cocktails. And Henry Gonzalez, then mayor of South Gate, was shot in the head by an unknown assailant.
The January 2003 recall ousted Robles from his position as City Treasurer, along with three of his allies on the City Council. The recall effort passed by a resounding 8-1 ratio. By the time the new councilmembers were sworn in, the Robles majority on the City Council had completely depleted the eight million dollars in the city's reserve.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Albert Robles was indicted "on 39 counts of money laundering, bribery, wire fraud and public corruption." Prosecutors argued that "he used his elected office and political influence to funnel money from city projects to family and friends between 1998 and 2003." De La Torre testified in the trial against the former city treasurer. Robles was sentenced to 10 years in federal prison.
Member of the California State Assembly
De La Torre served as Chair of the Accountability and Administrative Review Committee, responsible for overseeing the implementation of state programs and identifying potential savings. In addition, he served on the following standing committees: Budget, Health, Housing and Community Development, Budget Subcommittee #1 on Health and Human Services and Budget Subcommittee #4 on State Administration.
Run for Congress
In 2002, De La Torre ran for the House of Representatives to represent California's 39th Congressional District. He came in second in a six-person Democratic primary, losing to
Linda Sánchez
Linda Teresa Sánchez (born January 28, 1969) is an American politician and former labor lawyer serving as the U.S. representative for . A member of the Democratic Party, Sánchez was first elected to Congress in 2002. She serves on the Ways an ...
by a 29-33 margin.
Campaign for State Insurance Commissioner
In 2010, De La Torre ran for
California Insurance Commissioner
The California insurance commissioner has been an elected executive office position in California since 1991. Prior to that time, the insurance commissioner was appointed by the governor. The officeholder is in charge of the California Departm ...
, a position vacated by Republican
Steve Poizner
Stephen Leo Poizner (born January 4, 1957) is an American businessman, technology entrepreneur, and former Republican California Insurance Commissioner and Gubernatorial candidate. Poizner also was an independent candidate in the 2018 Californ ...
, who ran unsuccessfully for
governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
. He ran on a platform of increasing access to health care and ensuring that patients get the best care from insurance companies. He was endorsed by the
California Nurses Association
The California Nurses Association/National Nurses Organizing Committee (CNA/NNOC), an affiliate of National Nurses United, is a trade union labor union and professional association of registered nurses in the United States. Since 2018, CNA/NNOC ha ...
, the CA Professional Firefighters, the
California Medical Association
The California Medical Association (CMA) is a professional organization based in California that advocates on behalf of nearly 50,000 physicians in legislative, legal, regulatory, economic, and social issues. The organization was founded in 1856 ...
, and the
California League of Conservation Voters
California Environmental Voters (also called EnviroVoters), formerly the California League of Conservation Voters (CLCV), is a lobbying and educational organization which focuses on environmental issues affecting California. It is affiliated with ...
. De La Torre lost in the Democratic primaries on June 8, 2010 to
Dave Jones.
California Air Resources Board
In October, 2011, California governor
Jerry Brown
Edmund Gerald Brown Jr. (born April 7, 1938) is an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 34th and 39th governor of California from 1975 to 1983 and 2011 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected Secretary of S ...
appointed De La Torre to the
California Air Resources Board
The California Air Resources Board (CARB or ARB) is the "clean air agency" of the government of California. Established in 1967 when then-governor Ronald Reagan signed the Mulford-Carrell Act, combining the Bureau of Air Sanitation and the Motor ...
, filling the position vacated by Lydia Kennard.
References
External links
Join California Hector De La Torre
{{DEFAULTSORT:De La Torre, Hector
Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly
Mayors of places in California
Living people
21st-century American politicians
20th-century American politicians
Hispanic and Latino American mayors in California
Hispanic and Latino American state legislators in California
American politicians of Mexican descent
1967 births