In American politics, we tend to favor the rapid rise over the slow and steady rise, the loud voices that rock the boat over the quiet presence behind the scenes.
Sen. Alex Padilla has come a long way. The San Fernando Valley native and MIT grad has served in public office since being elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 1999 at age 26. Since then, he's held increasingly prominent positions as a state senator and secretary of state. And in 2020, his ally, Gov. Gavin Newsom, appointed him to the U.S. Senate, replacing Vice President-elect Kamala Harris.
Discover the changemakers shaping all things culture in Los Angeles. This week we bring you the final installment of our LA Influential People series: The Establishment Side. It's the bosses, elected officials, and A-listers who hold the reins from the seats of power.
Padilla's rise was defined by the fact that he was a consummate team player. He displayed quiet confidence and impressive discipline and rarely strayed from the script. Some might call him boring. And now, representing 40 million Americans on the biggest political stage, his demeanor hasn't changed.
But the scale and peril of the challenge he faces is certainly growing, as was made abundantly clear when, shortly before he was handily elected to a full term in 2022, three Los Angeles City Council members were recorded making crude and sometimes racist comments about their colleagues.
Padilla worked closely with the embattled city council members — he ran one of their campaigns, he was a high school classmate of another council member and his brother served as the other council member's chief of staff.
But just days after The Times broke the story, Padilla took a stance of holding himself accountable, becoming one of the first and most prominent elected officials to call for the entire council to resign.
He said being the state's first Latino senator weighed heavily in his decision.
“I know them personally and I've worked closely with them, but it's been difficult getting to know them personally and knowing what role I play and where I fit into all of this, but at the end of the day, right is right and wrong is wrong.”
Alex Padilla at the Los Angeles Times in El Segundo on October 9.
His swift response did not go unnoticed in California political circles, given his well-known close relationship with then-City Council Speaker Nury Martinez, who said that day that he was “appalled by the racist and dehumanizing comments.”
His connections to Martinez and many other Latino politicians underscore his role as one of the architects of the political machine in the San Fernando Valley and beyond. For example, Rep. Tony Cárdenas (D-Pacoima) is not seeking reelection this year after nearly 30 years in public office. Padilla was his roommate in Washington and managed his first campaign. Meanwhile, the woman running to replace Cárdenas, Rep. Luz Rivas (D-North Hollywood), was a high school and college classmate of Padilla's and quickly gained his endorsement after announcing her candidacy.
None of this is accidental, but rather reflects how trained engineers systematically support their fellow climbers.
Padilla also fills a void left by the decline and death of her colleague, Sen. Dianne Feinstein (D-Calif.), who during her term pushed for billions of dollars in climate change and infrastructure funding.
Padilla, 51, will now take over the role.
“A lot of the day-to-day work that keeps things running smoothly happens behind the scenes,” he said.
