This week Bonnie Lowenthal announced her intention to run for re-election to her Assembly seat. A former Long Beach City Council and School Board member, Lowenthal was first elected to the Assembly in 2008. This would be her final term. “After serious deliberation, I’ve decided I can better serve my constituents and the people of California in the State Assembly,” Lowenthal said. “I will continue my longtime commitment to creating jobs, improving our schools, and protecting the environment in this final term, and hope I can contribute in whatever way possible to getting our state back on track.” Lowenthal currently serves as the chair of the Transportation Committee, as well as chair of the Joint Committee on Emergency Management and Select Committee on Ports.
Lillian Kawasaki, Los Cerritos/ Bixby Knolls area resident, this week announced her candidacy for Long Beach City Council’s 8th District. Kawasaki currently serves as the board director of the Water Replenishment District of Southern California (WRD) and is chair of the WRD’s Committee on Workforce and Economic Development. “Now is the time for serious leaders with the knowledge and experience to tackle the challenges facing our city,” she said. “I want to bring my three decades of experience in public service to promote local economic development, improve neighborhood quality of life, and increase the efficiency, transparency, and accessibility of our local government.” In 2006, Kawasaki was elected to represent Long Beach and six surrounding cities in WRD’s Division 3, and since then has overseen the management of the area’s groundwater to ensure to a clean, safe and reliable water supply, according to her emailed announcement Wednesday. Previously, Kawasaki has served as the general manager of the Los Angeles Community Development Department, where she oversaw job training and workforce development programs dedicated to economic and community revitalization, and as the head of the Port of Los Angeles’s Environmental Management Division, supporting the Port’s green growth. Kawasaki currently serves on the Advisory Committee of the Long Beach Historical Society and as the co-chair of Friends of Manzanar. She has also served on the Long Beach Water Commission, California Bay Delta Public Advisory Committee, the Small Business Development Center Network Advisory Council, and the California Sustainability Alliance. She holds a bachelor’s of science in zoology and a master’s of science in biology from California State University, Los Angeles.
