SACRAMENTO – The California Asian & Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus has announced its endorsement of San Francisco Board of Supervisors President David Chiu for 17th State Assembly District.
The eldest son of immigrant parents, Chiu grew up in Boston and received his undergraduate, law and master’s in public policy degrees from Harvard. In the mid-1990s, he served as Democratic counsel to the U.S. Senate Constitution Subcommittee and Illinois Sen. Paul Simon’s aide to the U.S. Senate Budget Committee.
Prior to running for office, Chiu was a hands-on leader in San Francisco. He served as a member of the Small Business Commission, president of the Greater Bay Area Asian American Bar Association, board member of Partners Enduring Domestic Abuse, and board chair of the Youth Leadership Institute, the Chinatown Community Development Center and Lower Polk Neighbors.
On his first day in office, Chiu was elected president of the Board of Supervisors, the first Asian American to hold the post. His reputation as a problem-solver led his fellow supervisors to select him as board president for an unprecedented three consecutive terms. In 2012, Chiu was overwhelmingly re-elected by the voters of District 3.
“The California API Legislative Caucus is proud to endorse David Chiu for State Assembly,” stated Assemblymember Paul Fong (D-San Jose), chair of the caucus. “David’s strong leadership has given him a solid reputation as a consensus-builder with the ability to work to find common ground to create solutions. His ability to build consensus will be a tremendous asset to the California State Assembly with a fresh perspective that will lead to great accomplishments in California.”
“I’m thrilled to receive the API Legislative Caucus endorsement and the support of California’s impressive API legislative leadership,” stated Chiu. “If I’m honored to be elected to the Assembly in November 2014, I hope to work alongside caucus members to address the needs of diverse API communities in the areas of civil rights, language access, health disparities and cultural preservation, as well as ensure that the API community is fully represented at the political table.”
The seat is currently held by Tom Ammiano, who is termed out. Supervisor David Campos has also announced his candidacy.