After persevering in the primary, California Assembly District 54 candidates John Yi and Mark Gonzalez are turning their attention to the quickly approaching general election. One will succeed incumbent Assemblymember Miguel Santiago, who did not seek reelection.
The two Democrats are vying to represent a dense, multicultural, and multilingual district that encompasses the neighborhoods of Boyle Heights, Westlake, Koreatown, Pico-Union and Chinatown. The district’s boundaries also include Vernon, Montebello and Commerce.
Gonzalez and Yi are shaping their platforms around the key issues they believe matter most to District 54, including public transit safety, homelessness, and housing rights.
Both candidates bring a unique political approach shaped by their leadership experience in Los Angeles. If elected, here’s how they plan to navigate the state legislature with a focus on District 54.
John Yi
Born in Koreatown, John Yi likens his hometown identity to that of Boyle Heights: a dense neighborhood lacking enough affordable housing and public spaces with both communities predominately multigenerational and multilingual.
Yi first became involved with L.A. politics through his work in the Korean American Democratic Committee, an L.A. countywide political action committee. Today, he serves as the executive director of Los Angeles Walks, a nonprofit that advocates for safe and walkable communities.
The progressive candidate said he stands strong behind the same issues he ran on in the primary: “Those three issues are rent protection, public transit infrastructure and safety and the third is senior care.”
He considers AD 54 the urban center of the city and believes the model of creating a healthy, dense core could be used to influence policy affecting infrastructure and housing practices city-wide, especially in immigrant communities.
“Our communities of color and immigrant communities are hurting,” said Yi. “We need to hold local and state policies accountable for more equitable, affordable housing. This will be one of my priorities.”
At a recent District 54 forum in Little Tokyo, Yi emphasized the need to protect existing affordable housing, highlighting Kevin de León’s moratorium on the demolition of rent-controlled apartments in Boyle Heights, as well as condemning the state’s projected need to build 1.2 million affordable homes by 2030.
Yi suggested partnering with local governments and drawing on initiatives like ULA (approved in 2022) and the upcoming Measure A to address funding gaps for development.
“The budget we are spending is not matching the urgency on the ground, and so it is crucial that as a state, we create reliable funding streams for affordable housing,” Yi told the crowd. “The state must also hold its end of the bargain and provide a reliable stream of affordable housing projects.”
Yi also emphasizes the importance of people being able to graduate toward buying homes and having more power within their city.
According to his campaign website, Yi aims to modernize public transit with cleaner stops and reliable amenities like underground Wi-Fi, business vendors in stations and a universal tap card system. He also emphasizes electing LA Metro Board Members, similar to the BART system in Northern California, will make the public transit system more accountable.
Yi’s campaign also looks to highlight the importance of supporting multigenerational families in the district, as well as senior citizens. He is prioritizing affordable senior and multigenerational housing and aims to strengthen protections against fraud and abuse, particularly for non-English speakers. His plan includes expanding Medi-Cal coverage, rental subsidies, and free public transit to enhance the social safety net for seniors, many of whom face the risk of homelessness.
Yi said he is committed to being a navigator and a leader helping cities in his district apply for and secure funds to better things like infrastructure and transportation, and said he’s willing to wade through political bureaucracies for the region he has deep roots in.
“The state of affairs is not working — we need a drastic change in leadership and a different kind of leadership. Democrats, grassroots, young folks, and immigrants understand this and know this well,” he said.
The candidate’s endorsements include Jackie Goldberg (L.A. Unified School Board member), state Sen. Dave Min, Rolando Cruz (leader of Boyle Heights Bridge Runners), East Area Progressive Democrats and Boyle Heights Vota, a grassroots movement based in Boyle Heights dedicated to promoting voter engagement.
Mark Gonzalez
Yi’s opponent is Mark Gonzalez, the district director for Assembly District 54 incumbent Santiago.
Born in Edinburg, Texas, Gonzalez grew up in East Los Angeles and Eagle Rock.
Gonzalez has a track record of activity across politics on city, state, and national levels. He has focused resources in the Los Angeles region on public health, immigration, workers protections, and the economy, according to his website. He is the first and only Latino to ever be elected to Chair of the L.A. County Democratic Party.
Gonzalez said he has been committed to politics for the past 20 years – more than a decade in District 54 specifically.
“I have 13 years of working in this office, understanding this area, block by block, understanding the issues that are in this area. Folks want to run for office and get good at being a public servant, and I’ve been a lifelong public servant,” Gonzalez told Boyle Heights Beat in February. “But the hard part about this business, any business, is that you have to understand how the operations of an assembly office, in this case, work.”
The Democrat supports raising wages for working families, hopes to tackle the issues of affordable housing and homelessness, and believes in healthcare for all.
If elected, Gonzalez said he will fight to increase funding for Planned Parenthood and expand access to quality, affordable reproductive health services. He also aims to strengthen protections for abortion care providers and patients who travel to California from states where abortion is criminalized. Additionally, he played a key role in expanding Medi-Cal benefits to all Californians regardless of immigration status.
According to his campaign website, Gonzalez prioritizes creating good-paying union jobs to support working families. He played a key role in securing a $25/hour minimum wage for healthcare workers and has backed striking workers across various sectors fighting for living wages. Additionally, he passed legislation granting free community college access to full-time students, expanding opportunities for millions.
Gonzalez also places a premium on tackling homelessness by providing affordable housing, drug treatment, mental health care, and job training to support unhoused Californians, aiming to clean up encampments in communities. He has advocated for expanding the Rental Relief program to address the homelessness crisis. Additionally, he plans to invest in California’s new CARE Courts initiative, which helps individuals with severe mental health issues get into treatment facilities.
In addition to trying to alleviate parking issues stemming from the lack of parking in Boyle Heights, Gonzalez has focused his political support on the climate challenges of the Eastside community, including the environmental impact of the former Exide plant in Vernon on neighborhoods in AD 54. “Nobody understands climate change more than poor people, especially in this area, surrounded by five freeways, with the toxins in the air. I think it’s about mitigating it,” Gonzalez said.
Gonzalez took a moment to acknowledge his relationship with Santiago by pointing to his political footprint in the region.
“I jokingly say, he raised me, but in a good way, he’s the one who gave me this opportunity. I love what I do—and the reality is that I’m much better prepared than anybody in this race. I have a history, and we know how to get stuff done,” Gonzalez said.
“There’s nothing unethical about continuing in this role and going to the next step if it’s for the betterment of the community.”
Gonzalez has campaign endorsements from groups and elected officials like the Carpenters Union, Planned Parenthood, and the California Teachers Association to L.A. Mayor Karen Bass and California Gov. Gavin Newsom.
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