Carol Jean Liu (born September 12, 1941) is an American

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, ...

who is a former member 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 ...

. A Democrat, she represented Senate District 25, which includes portions of the San Fernando and

San Gabriel Valley The San Gabriel Valley ( es, Valle de San Gabriel) is one of the principal valleys of Southern California, lying immediately to the east of the eastern city limits of the city of Los Angeles, and occupying the vast majority of the eastern part ...

s. Before being elected to the State Senate, Liu served in the

State Assembly State Assembly is the name given to various legislatures, especially lower houses or full legislatures in states in federal systems of government. Channel Islands States Assembly is the name of the legislature of the Bailiwick of Jersey. The Bail ...

representing the 44th Assembly District until 2006. In 2008, Liu was elected to succeed the termed-out Jack Scott in the State Senate.

Early life and career

Liu was born in 1941 in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland and E ...

. Her mother was a fourth generation Californian, and her father was a Chinese immigrant. Liu graduated from San Jose State College with a B.A. in 1963. Liu taught junior high and senior high school-level history in the

San Francisco Bay Area The San Francisco Bay Area, often referred to as simply the Bay Area, is a populous region surrounding the San Francisco, San Pablo, and Suisun Bay estuaries in Northern California. The Bay Area is defined by the Association of Bay Area G ...

cities of

Richmond Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, Californi ...

and

El Cerrito, California El Cerrito ( Spanish for "The Little Hill") is a city in Contra Costa County, California, United States, and forms part of the San Francisco Bay Area. It has a population of 25,962 according to the 2020 census. El Cerrito was founded by refugee ...

from 1964 until 1978. She also served as executive director of the Richmond Federation of Teachers from 1975 to 1978. In 1982, Liu completed a teaching and administrative credential at the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California) is a public land-grant research university in Berkeley, California. Established in 1868 as the University of California, it is the state's first land-grant un ...

Political career

Before serving in the Senate, Liu served in the

. Prior to the Assembly, Liu served on the city council of

La Cañada Flintridge LA most frequently refers to Los Angeles, the second largest city in the United States. La, LA, or L.A. may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * La (musical note), or A, the sixth note * "L.A.", a song by Elliott Smith on ''Figur ...

, a small city in the Cresenta Valley near Pasadena, from 1992 until 2000, including two terms as its mayor. In the 2008 primary election for the California Senate seat, she initially faced opposition from former Assembly Majority Leader

Dario Frommer Dario J. Frommer (born October 22, 1963, in Long Beach, California) is a former member of the California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature, the upper house being the Californi ...

. However, Frommer decided to drop out before the election.

Legislation

Among her major accomplishments in the Senate has been the enactment of Senate Bill 110, the Crime Victims with Disabilities Act of 2010. Passed unanimously by the Legislature and signed into law by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger, the bill assures that abuse and neglect of people with disabilities and elders are treated as crimes. Senator Liu'
SB 42 (2015) – Postsecondary Education Goals
bill coordinates California's Higher Education segments (U.C. and C.S.U.), but it was vetoed by 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 ...

. Senator Liu voted in favor of California Senate Constitutional Amendment No.5. The proposed bill would have asked California voters to consider repealing provisions of

Proposition 209 Proposition 209 (also known as the California Civil Rights Initiative or CCRI) is a California ballot proposition which, upon approval in November 1996, amended the state constitution to prohibit state governmental institutions from considering ...

, thus permitting state universities to consider an applicant's race, ethnicity or national origin in making admissions decisions. The proposed amendment resulted in controversy. In a Facebook response, Liu indicated that

California Proposition 209 Proposition 209 (also known as the California Civil Rights Initiative or CCRI) is a California ballot proposition which, upon approval in November 1996, amended the state constitution to prohibit state governmental institutions from considering ra ...

set "outdated barriers" to groups of "underrepresented students eligible for U.C. and C.S.U." and that their enrollment "has not kept pace with the proportion of the high school graduating class they now represent." Senator Liu, along with former senators

Leland Yee Leland Yin Yee (, born November 20, 1948) is an American former politician who served as a member of the California State Senate for District 8, which covered parts of San Francisco and the Peninsula. In 2015, Yee pleaded guilty to felony racket ...

and

Ted Lieu Ted W. Lieu (; born March 29, 1969) is an American politician and Air Force Reserve Command colonel who has represented California's 33rd congressional district in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2015. The district includes much of wes ...

, who had also voted for the bill, ultimately issued a joint statement calling for the bill to be withheld pending further consultations with the "affected communities."André Coleman & Kevin Uhrich, "A Giant Awakens" ''Pasadena Weekly''
Mar. 12, 2014

Personal life

Liu is married to Michael Peevey, who was appointed to the

California Public Utilities Commission The California Public Utilities Commission (CPUC or PUC) is a regulatory agency that regulates privately owned public utilities in the state of California, including electric power, telecommunications, natural gas and water companies. In addition ...

by Governor

Gray Davis Joseph Graham "Gray" Davis Jr. (born December 26, 1942) is an American attorney and former politician who served as the 37th governor of California from 1999 to 2003. In 2003, only a few months into his second term, Davis was recalled and remov ...

, and later was named president of the Commission by Governor

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July 30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, film producer, businessman, retired professional bodybuilder and politician who served as the 38th governor of California between 2003 and 2011. ''Time'' ...

, where he served until retiring in 2014. They have three children and four grandchildren.

References

External links

*
California Archive Carol LiuJoin California Carol Liu
{{DEFAULTSORT:Liu, Carol Democratic Party California state senators Politicians from Greater Los Angeles Women state legislators in California 1941 births Living people American mayors of Chinese descent California politicians of Chinese descent American school administrators Schoolteachers from California American women educators American women of Chinese descent in politics Women mayors of places in California California city council members Women city councillors in California Mayors of places in California Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly People from La Cañada Flintridge, California Politicians from Berkeley, California Politicians from Oakland, California San Jose State University alumni University of California, Berkeley alumni University of California, Berkeley faculty 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Asian-American city council members