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 previously served on the Los Angeles City Council representing the 7th district. First elected in 1999, he was the president of the Los Angeles City Council from 2001 to 2006. He then served in the California State Senate for the 20th district from 2006 to 2014. After that, he served as the 30th secretary of state of California from 2015 to 2021.

Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Padilla to the United States Senate after then-Senator Kamala Harris was elected Vice President of the United States; Harris, as the newly elected vice president and president of the Senate, swore Padilla in on January 20, 2021. In dual November 2022 elections, Padilla won a special election to complete Harris's term as well as election to a full Senate term, defeating Republican nominee Mark Meuser. (Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0)

Sources

• "Alex Padilla." Wikipedia, revision of 23 June 2023. < link > Accessed 15 July 2023.