California Senate President Kevin de Leon is embracing his Asian American roots.
It’s been widely assumed that de Leon is Hispanic, which he is, but a recently published story in the Sacramento Bee revealed that while both his parents were born in Guatemala, his father is Chinese.
As word spread about de Leon’s roots, the California Asian and Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus reached out to de Leon and formally invited him to join their group. He has accepted.
“I got numerous phone calls from members of the caucus who were very, very welcoming and really wanted me to come,” de León said to the Sacramento Bee. “I was both excited and humbled at how welcoming” the members were.
De Leon pointed out many of his key staff members are Asian American including Lisa Chin, his policy director, and political director Courtni Pugh, who is Korean American.
The Chair of the California Asian and Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus, Assembly Representative Rob Bonta, says de Leon is the first Senate leader to also be a member of the caucus.
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