Wherever you live, there are elected officials responsible for representing your interests and working to improve your quality of life.

Some oversee duties such as infrastructure improvements, while others have a say in approving billions of dollars in budgets spent by cities across the state. 

From local, city and county representatives to those at the state and federal levels, we’ve compiled a list of the politicians whose jurisdictions include Eastside communities, what they do and how to contact them.

Neighborhood – L.A. Region 8

Boyle Heights City Hall. Photo by Andrew Lopez.

Boyle Heights Neighborhood Council President Shmuel Gonzales: Most L.A. neighborhoods have a localized council that regularly holds meetings on neighborhood-specific interests. While some seats are currently vacant, the Boyle Heights Neighborhood Council is made up of 20 board members and is led by Shmuel Gonzales. 

Councils are advisory bodies with limited power but are critical when it comes to highlighting local issues and uplifting residents’ voices to those on the city council. Boards receive annual budgets funded by taxpayer dollars, which can be used to address critical issues and support local organizations. Board members are elected by the community and positions are unpaid. See more Eastside neighborhood councils here.

  • Email: gonzales.bhnc@gmail.com  
  • Website: bhnc.net

City of Los Angeles – Council District 14

Ysabel Jurado
L.A. City Councilmember Ysabel Jurado. Photo by Andrew Lopez.

Councilmember Ysabel Jurado: Ysabel Jurado is the Council District 14 representative who oversees a district of a quarter million people stretching from Boyle Heights to Eagle Rock. She and 14 other council members serve the city of Los Angeles.

A city council member’s job is to make local laws, authorize infrastructural improvements and approve city contracts all while working hand-in-hand with the mayor. Council members can also organize events, help with constituents’ permitting processes and, generally, respond to the needs of the people they represent. They can serve up to three four-year terms. 

Los Angeles County – District 1

L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis. Courtesy of her office.

Supervisor Hilda Solis: Hilda Solis represents Supervisorial District 1, which stretches from Silver Lake to the city of Pomona and is home to nearly two million people. County supervisors like Solis act as “mayors” for unincorporated regions like East Los Angeles without an immediate government.

The board is made up of five supervisors, although voters just decided to increase that number to nine by 2032 after a redistricting process. Supervisors are tasked with providing social services programs to their constituents, supporting law enforcement and local courts, maintaining hospitals and keeping federal and state government services like voting and elections in order. 

Solis has held the office since 2014 and will term out in 2026. 

Los Angeles Unified School District Board  – District 2

Rocio Rivas at the 2024 East L.A. Classic at SoFi Stadium. Photo by Andrew Lopez.

School Board member Dr. Rocío Rivas: Voters elected Rocio Rivas into the Los Angeles Unified School District’s School Board in 2022. She oversees District 2, a section of LAUSD that encompasses Boyle Heights, East L.A., downtown, El Sereno and other L.A. neighborhoods, and collectively represents tens of thousands of public school students and their families. 

School board members hire and fire the district’s superintendent, pass the operating budget and decide how it’ll be distributed, and vote to approve or deny every charter school that hopes to open.

California Assembly – Assembly Districts 52 & 54

The State Assembly along with the State Senate essentially serves as California’s Congress. These lawmakers may work at the state Capitol in Sacramento but they’re there to represent your district’s interests. The 80-person California Assembly works to approve the state budget every year, pass bills on public policy matters, set levels for state spending and raise or lower taxes. They can serve up to three two-year terms. 

Jessica Caloza (left) and Mark Gonzalez (right). Photos courtesy of representatives.

Assemblymember Jessica Caloza: Jessica Caloza represents Assembly District 52, which spans most of unincorporated East Los Angeles and Glendale, as well as the neighborhoods of Lincoln Heights, El Sereno, Highland Park, Echo Park, Silver Lake, and and Montecito Heights.

  • Contact: (213) 483-5252
  • Email: assemblymember.caloza@assembly.ca.gov
  • Website: a52.asmdc.org/
  • See a full map to check if you live in this district.

Assemblymember Mark Gonzalez: Mark Gonzalez represents Assembly District 54 overseeing Los Angeles neighborhoods including Boyle Heights, Westlake, Koreatown, Pico-Union and Chinatown, and the cities of Commerce, Montebello and Vernon. 

U.S. Congress – Congressional District 34

Jimmy Gómez photographed at Hollenbeck Park in Boyle Heights. Photo courtesy of the representative.

Congressman Jimmy Gomez: Democrat Rep. Jimmy Gomez is a member of the U.S. House of Representatives and one of the three people representing you in Congress (the other two are U.S. Senators who represent the whole state). His jurisdiction, California’s 34th Congressional District, includes Boyle Heights, City Terrace, El Sereno, Lincoln Heights, unincorporated East L.A., Northeast L.A., Chinatown, downtown L.A., Koreatown, Pico-Union and Westlake. 

Members of the House can amend and propose bills before they become law and help field your feedback on your community to the correct federal agencies.

Representatives are elected to two-year terms without term limits. Gomez has held his seat since 2017 and will be up for reelection in 2026.

California Senate – Senatorial District 26

California Sen. Maria Elena Durazo. Photo courtesy of her office.

Senator Maria Elena Durazo: The California Senate works in tandem with the State Assembly and Gov. Gavin Newsom to draft legislation and establish a state budget. Representing California’s Senate District 26 is Sen. Maria Elena Durazo, who oversees Los Angeles neighborhoods such as Boyle Heights, Eagle Rock, Lincoln Heights, Los Feliz, parts of downtown, unincorporated East L.A. and the city of Vernon. 

State senators can serve a maximum of three four-year terms. 

In addition to the officials above, Los Angeles residents are represented by a number of other leaders at multiple levels of government including law enforcement, education and in Sacramento and Washington, D.C. 

Andrew Lopez is a Los Angeles native with roots across the Eastside. He studied at San Francisco State University and later earned a master’s degree in journalism from the University of California, Berkeley. He returned to Los Angeles from the Bay Area to report for Boyle Heights Beat from 2023 to 2025 through UC Berkeley’s California Local News Fellowship. When he is not reporting, Lopez mentors youth journalists through The LA Local’s youth journalism program. He enjoys practicing photojournalism and covering the intersections of culture, history and local government in Eastside communities.

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