Richard Anthony Alarcon (born November 24, 1953) is an American politician who served as a member of the
Los Angeles City Council
The Los Angeles City Council is the legislative body of the City of Los Angeles in California.
The council is composed of 15 members elected from single-member districts for four-year terms. The president of the council and the president pro temp ...
from 1993 to 1998 and again from 2007 to 2013. A
Democrat, he previously served in the
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature, the lower house being the California State Assembly. The State Senate convenes, along with the State Assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
D ...
and, for approximately three months, 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 ...
.
Early life and education
Alarcon was born in
Glendale, California
Glendale is a city in the San Fernando Valley and Verdugo Mountains regions of Los Angeles County, California, United States. At the 2020 U.S. Census the population was 196,543, up from 191,719 at the 2010 census, making it the fourth-larges ...
. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree from the
California State University, Northridge
California State University, Northridge (CSUN or Cal State Northridge) is a public university in the Northridge neighborhood of Los Angeles, California. With a total enrollment of 38,551 students (as of Fall 2021), it has the second largest un ...
.
Career
Prior to entering politics, Alarcon worked as a student teacher at
John H. Francis Polytechnic High School
John H. Francis Polytechnic High School is a secondary school located in the Sun Valley neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, United States. It serves grades 9 through 12 and is a part of the Los Angeles Unified School District. Despite its na ...
, San Fernando Middle School, and Mary Immaculate School in
Pacoima, Los Angeles
Pacoima (Tongva: ''Pacoinga'') is a neighborhood in Los Angeles, California. Pacoima is one of the oldest neighborhoods in the San Fernando Valley region of LA.
Geography
Location
Pacoima is bordered by the Los Angeles districts of Mission Hill ...
.
Alarcon first served as an assistant to Los Angeles Mayor
Tom Bradley before winning a seat on the
city council
A municipal council is the legislative body of a municipality or local government area. Depending on the location and classification of the municipality it may be known as a city council, town council, town board, community council, rural coun ...
to represent the
7th district in 1993. One year into his second term as a city councilman, in 1998, Alarcon resigned to become a member of the
California State Senate
The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature, the lower house being the California State Assembly. The State Senate convenes, along with the State Assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento.
D ...
, representing the
20th district. Term limits prevented him from seeking a third Senate term in December 2006. Among Alarcon's accomplishments while in the California Senate were workers' compensation reform and recovery funding for the community of
Northridge following the
1994 Northridge earthquake
The 1994 Northridge earthquake was a moment 6.7 (), blind thrust earthquake that occurred on January 17, 1994, at 4:30:55 a.m. PST in the San Fernando Valley region of the City of Los Angeles.
The quake had a duration of approximately 1 ...
. Alarcon served as majority whip during all of his eight years in the state Senate.
In 2005, Alarcon ran for mayor of Los Angeles. He finished in fifth place with less than 2% of the vote, behind
Bernard Parks
Bernard ('' Bernhard'') is a French and West Germanic masculine given name. It is also a surname.
The name is attested from at least the 9th century. West Germanic ''Bernhard'' is composed from the two elements ''bern'' "bear" and ''hard'' "brav ...
,
Bob Hertzberg, incumbent
James Hahn
James Kenneth Hahn (born July 3, 1950) is an American lawyer and politician. A Democrat, Hahn was elected the 40th mayor of Los Angeles in 2001. He served until 2005, at which time he was defeated in his bid for re-election. Prior to his term a ...
, and
Antonio Villaraigosa
Antonio Ramón Villaraigosa (; né Villar Jr.; born 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 ...
. After serving as a state senator for eight years, in 2006 Alarcon ran unopposed in
California's 39th State Assembly district
California's 39th State Assembly district is one of 80 California State Assembly districts. It is currently represented by Democrat Luz Rivas of North Hollywood.
District profile
The district encompasses the northeastern San Fernando Vall ...
representing the San Fernando Valley area.
Shortly after winning the Assembly seat, Alarcon announced his intention to try to return to the city council, replacing
Alex Padilla
Alejandro Padilla ( ; born March 22, 1973) is an American politician serving as the junior United States senator from California since 2021. A member of the Democratic Party, Padilla served as the 30th secretary of state of California from ...
, who was resigning after winning Alarcon's former state Senate seat. In the special election, held in March, Alarcon won easily (receiving 54% to 29% for his closest opponent). He resigned from the Assembly soon thereafter. His 102-day tenure in the Assembly was the shortest service in the California legislature since 1981, excluding one person elected but not sworn in.
After serving out Padilla's city council term, Alarcon was elected to one more full term in 2009. He left the council in 2013.
Personal life
Alarcon had four children. In 1987, Alarcon's three-year-old son was killed in a car accident. He is
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
* Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
* Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...
.
Residency scandal
In August 2010, Alarcon was indicted on perjury and voter fraud charges for not living in his district and lying in campaign disclosure documents about his official residence. Six members of his staff testified before a grand jury. Alarcon raised at least $9,000 from donors to cover legal fees.
The charges were dismissed by Judge Kathleen Kennedy in May 2012, but District Attorney
Steve Cooley
Stephen Lawrence Cooley (born May 1, 1947) is an American politician and prosecutor. He was the Los Angeles County District Attorney from 2000 to 2012. Cooley was re-elected in 2004 and again in 2008.
In 2010, Cooley won the Republican nominati ...
refiled them. Alarcon was charged with 18 counts involving false declaration of candidacy, fraudulent voting, and perjury. On July 23, 2014, Alarcon was convicted of three counts of voter fraud and one count of perjury. After serving his full sentence through 51 days of house arrest, his conviction was overturned by an appeals court. Charges were again refiled.
In 2019, prosecutors said they would not retry their perjury and voter fraud case against Alarcon and his wife, bringing an end to a nine-year legal battle.
References
External links
Official City Council website*
Join California - Richard Alacron*
#
{{DEFAULTSORT:Alarcon, Richard
1953 births
Living people
People from Glendale, California
Democratic Party California state senators
California politicians convicted of crimes
Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly
Los Angeles City Council members
California State University, Northridge alumni
20th-century American politicians
21st-century American politicians