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Politics & Government

Cerritos, Artesia Officials Rally Behind Marquez For Assembly

Marquez faces five challengers for the new 58th State Assembly District June 5.

Cerritos and Artesia elected officials are throwing their support for Downey councilman Luis Marquez in his run for the State Assembly.

The Democratic candidate for the 58th district held a fundraiser at Hiwa Fusion restaurant in Cerritos last Wednesday that attracted about two dozen people. He faces a crowded primary on June 5 that includes four other Democrats and one Republican.

If elected, Marquez’s number one priority is looking out for the best interests of the new districting stretching from Montebello to Cerritos—especially when it comes to finding ways to bring jobs.

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“The district as a whole has a high unemployment rate and I’m making sure that we’re tackling that by protecting jobs, creating jobs and education,” he said to Patch. “I’m making sure that I’m the person advocating for our cities and our residents so we can bring resources back to the community.”

Marquez acknowledged that although the elimination of redevelopment agencies by the state last month has given cities one less tool to create jobs, he wants to find ways for Sacramento to foster job growth.

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“I want to look at everything from the type of policies we have [in place] to creating jobs,” he said. “What is out there? Is there stuff that is preventing us from creating jobs? Are we overregulated?”

He cited his experience on the Downey City Council in transforming the city from its business-unfriendly reputation to becoming a finalist for the 2009 Most Business Friendly City Award by the Los Angeles Economic Development Corporation.

As for his connection to the Cerritos and Artesia community, he can count on the support of some important leaders. Local officials that have endorsed Marquez include Congresswoman Linda Sanchez, current Assemblyman Tony Mendoza, Cerritos councilmen Joseph Cho and Mark Pulido and Artesia councilmen Miguel Canales, Tony Lima and Victor Manalo.

Sanchez rallied his supporters to encourage friends, family and colleagues to donate money for his campaign, admiring his leadership on the local level.

“We need good, humble, hard-working—not flashy—but reliable, compassionate people to do our fight in Sacramento,” she said. “If we have 50 more Luis Marquez's in the State Capitol, we would be in a better place right now.”

Pulido, who previously worked alongside Marquez during the latter’s time as an employee for State Senator Alan Lowenthal, said that he is familiar with the issues affecting Cerritos and Artesia given his experience as a field director.

“I admire him as a man who works hard to improve the community in which he’s raising his family,” he said to Patch. “I know that he will represent the entire [58th Assembly] district, not just a portion of it.”

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