Eunisses Hernandez

Eunisses Hernandez (born 1990) is an American activist and politician, currently serving as a member of the Los Angeles City Council for the 1st district since 2022.[3] A member of the Democratic Party and the Democratic Socialists of America, Hernandez defeated incumbent councilmember Gil Cedillo in an upset in the 2022 election.[4]

Eunisses Hernandez
Hernandez in 2022
Member of the Los Angeles City Council from the 1st district
Assumed office
December 12, 2022
Preceded byGil Cedillo
Personal details
Born1990 (age 32–33)[1]
Highland Park, Los Angeles, California, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
Other political
affiliations		Democratic Socialists of America
ResidenceHighland Park, Los Angeles[2]
Alma materCalifornia State University, Long Beach (BCJ)
OccupationCommunity organizer

A self-described police and prison abolitionist, Hernandez was endorsed by progressive groups and leaders like City Councilman Mike Bonin and Dolores Huerta, and the Los Angeles Times.[1][5][6] Hernandez declared victory on June 18, 2022, before the final vote tally, which was certified on July 1, 2022.[7] Cedillo conceded the same day.[8]

Early life and career

Hernandez was born in 1990 to Juan and Leticia Hernandez and grew up in Highland Park, Los Angeles.[5] Early in her life, Hernandez thought about becoming a police officer. She attended Franklin High School and later California State University, Los Angeles for one year in 2009, where she majored in civil engineering.[9] During her employment at Universal Studios Hollywood, she graduated from California State University, Long Beach with a bachelor's degree in criminal justice in 2013. It was during her time at CSU Long Beach where she "experienced [...] a revelation" after she took a class for criminology and the War on Drugs.[10]

Career
Hernandez giving testimony to the Board of Supervisors in 2020.

Hernandez started her career in 2014 as a policy coordinator for the Drug Policy Alliance where she helped with the passing of Senate Bill 180 and California Proposition 64.[11] In 2018, she moved to JustLeadershipUSA as a campaign coordinator for JusticeLA where she helped with stopping the county's $3.5 billion jail plan.[12] In 2019, she was appointed by the Los Angeles Board of Supervisors to be a community stakeholder for an Alternatives to Incarceration working group.[10]

In 2020, she co-founded La Defensa with Ivette Alé, a women-led organization that supports reducing the number of incarcerated people in Los Angeles County.[10] That same year she co-chaired Measure J, a ballot initiative that would allocate at least 10% of Los Angeles County's funding for community reinvestment and incarceration alternatives.[13] The ballot, which she co-chaired with future Assemblymember Isaac Bryan and future councilmember Hugo Soto-Martinez, passed with 57.12% of the vote.[14] In June 2021, though, the measure was blocked by Judge Mary Strobel as being unconstitutional and the implementation of the measure has been slow.[15]

Los Angeles City Council

On October 8, 2021, Hernandez announced that she would be running for Los Angeles City Council District 1 in the 2022 elections.[16] After three other candidates were disqualified, she was the only opponent against incumbent Gil Cedillo.[5] Hernandez was endorsed by multiple progressive groups and leaders, with Council-member Mike Bonin and Dolores Huerta endorsing her in the primary.[1] Hernandez ultimately unseated Cedillo with 53.9% of the vote, avoiding the need for a runoff.[7]

In 2023, she reversed an effort by her predecessor to remove housing height limits in a section of Chinatown.[17]

Electoral history
Results by precinct map
2022 Los Angeles City Council District 1 election
Primary election
Candidate Votes  %
Eunisses Hernandez 16,108 53.9
Gil Cedillo (incumbent) 13,700 45.8
Elaine Alaniz (write-in) 80 0.3
Total votes 29,888 100.00

References
  1. Zahniser, David (June 14, 2022). "Eunisses Hernandez pulls ahead of Gil Cedillo in tight L.A. Council race". The Los Angeles Times. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
  2. CASTAÑEDA, MARIAH (May 19, 2022). "O.G. HIGHLAND PARK'S EUNISSES HERNANDEZ HAS A PLAN TO STOP GENTRIFICATION IN CD 1". L.A. TACO. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
  3. Cagle, Kate [@KateCagle] (June 18, 2022). "INBOX: Progressive challenger Eunisses Hernandez declares victory over incumbent Democrat Gil Cedillo to represent Los Angeles Council District 1. Hernandez is a local community organizer who has been instrumental in pushing the County to build alternatives to incarceration" (Tweet). Retrieved June 18, 2022 – via Twitter.
  4. Sanchez, Jesús (June 14, 2022). "Incumbents Gil Cedillo and Mitch O'Farrell lose ground to challengers". The Eastsider. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
  5. Regardie, Jon (May 27, 2022). "The Incumbent v. Challenger Battle: Gil Cedillo and Eunisses Hernandez Tangle in a Tense Council Race". Los Angeles Magazine. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
  6. "Endorsement: Why the L.A. Times endorsed so many newcomers this year". The Los Angeles Times. May 29, 2022. Retrieved June 15, 2022.
  7. Chou, Elizabeth (June 24, 2022). "In June primary, LA City Councilman Gil Cedillo appears to be ousted by newcomer Eunisses Hernandez". Los Angeles Daily News.
  8. "Councilman Gil Cedillo concedes defeat to challenger Eunisses Hernandez". July 1, 2022.
  9. "EUNISSES HERNANDEZ". Cal State Los Angeles Golden Eagles.
  10. French, Piper (March 4, 2022). "Abolitionist Organizer Wants to Fill Los Angeles Power Vacuum". Bolts.
  11. Mai-Duc, Christine. "Law clinics offer 'second chance'". Los Angeles Times.
  12. "JLUSA Statement from Los Angeles Campaign Coordinator, Eunisses Hernandez, on the Historic JusticeLA Victory, as the LA County Board of Supervisors Votes to Stop Construction of a $3.5B Women's Jail". JustLeadershipUSA. February 13, 2019.
  13. Kelkar, Lyric (March 4, 2021). "What's the Latest on Measure J? A Conversation with Eunisses Hernandez". Inclusive Action for the City.
  14. Guerin, Emily (November 5, 2020). "Measure J Appears To Pass As Part Of LA County's Criminal Justice Reform Wave". LAist.
  15. Slovin, Charlotte (July 1, 2022). "Despite Voter Approval, LA County Has Slow Rolled Measure J Implementation". Knock LA.
  16. "Eunisses Hernandez Launches Campaign for LA City Council". Tamarindo Podcast. October 8, 2021.
  17. "L.A. adopts strategies for bringing 135,000 new homes to downtown and Hollywood". Los Angeles Times. 2023.
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