Christopher Cabaldon
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| Christopher Cabaldon | |
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| Mayor of West Sacramento, California | |
| In office 1998 – present |
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| Personal details | |
| Born | November 12, 1965 |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Residence | West Sacramento, California |
| Website | cabaldon.org |
Christopher L. Cabaldon (born November 12, 1965) is a Filipino-American politician from California who serves as mayor of West Sacramento. He also represents the State of California on the Western Interstate Commission on Higher Education as an appointee of California Governor Jerry Brown. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He is openly gay.
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[edit] Early life
Cabaldon earned his BS in Environmental Economics at the University of California, Berkeley, where he was student body vice president. He earned a Masters in Public Policy and Administration at California State University, Sacramento in its founding class, where he later taught as an adjunct faculty member, and later received the institution's "Distinguished Alumni Service" award.
[edit] Early career
Cabaldon served as President/CEO of EdVoice, a Sacramento-based education non-profit advocacy group, Chief Consultant and Staff Director at the age of 24 to the Assembly Higher Education Committee, Chief of Staff to the State Assembly's chair of Appropriations Committee, and Legislative Director of UCSA.
He was founder and Chairman of the Board for the Asian Pacific Youth Leadership Project,[citation needed] a founding member of both the Asian Pacific Islander caucus and LGBT Local Officials caucus of the League of California Cities,[citation needed] and a founding member of the Capital Unity Council,[citation needed] a group created to eradicate hate crime violence.
Cabaldon was elected to the City Council of West Sacramento in 1996.
From 1997 to 2003, Cabaldon was vice chancellor of the California Community Colleges System.
[edit] Mayor of West Sacramento
Cabaldon was elected mayor of West Sacramento in November 2004, in West Sacramento's first direct mayoral election. He was later re-elected mayor in 2006, 2008 and 2010.
In June 2007 Cabaldon authored a resolution for the US Conference of Mayors that supported the Filipino Veterans Fairness Act, that was passed unanimously at the annual conference. In June 2009 he pushed through the most sweeping gay civil rights resolution of any national elected officials organization,[citation needed] winning support for marriage equality, hate crimes, employment nondiscrimination, and repeal of Don't Ask, Don't Tell. He is a member of the Mayors Against Illegal Guns Coalition,[1] and a signer of the US Mayors Climate Protection Agreement.
As chair of the Sacramento Area Council of Governments Cabaldon led the region's historic "Blueprint for the Future", which under his leadership won prestigious awards from the US Environmental Protection Agency, two Governors, and a diverse array of national, state, regional, civic, business, and environmental organizations for land-use planning and smart growth strategies.[citation needed]
He was a candidate for the 8th district seat in the California State Assembly in 2008. He lost the primary by three percentage points to Yolo County Supervisor Mariko Yamada.
Cabaldon is Vice Chair for Education at the United States Conference of Mayors, where he was elected to the board in June 2011.
[edit] Memberships
Cabaldon has served as President or Chair of many organizations and boards, including President of Asian Pacific Americans in Higher Education (APAHE), President of the Yolo County Health Council, President of the National Brownfields Association (California), and chair of the Yolo County Transportation District.
He serves on an array of state and regional commissions, including being appointed by the Speaker of the Assembly to the Commission on Regionalism, member of the Blue Ribbon Committee for the Governor's Initiative to Turn Around Failing Schools, appointed by Governor Gray Davis to the Central Valley Regional Water Quality Control Board, and a member of the Sacramento-San Joaquin Delta Protection Commission.
[edit] Media appearances
The Logo network featured Cabaldon in a documentary as part of their show Coming Out Stories in 2006, when he came out publicly in his annual State of the City address.
[edit] References
- ^ "Mayors Against Illegal Guns: Coalition Members". http://www.mayorsagainstillegalguns.org/html/about/members.shtml.
