Shirley_Weber
Shirley Weber
American academic and politician (born 1948)
Shirley Weber (née Nash; born September 20, 1948) is an American academic and politician serving as the secretary of state of California. She was previously a member of the California State Assembly for the 79th Assembly District,[1] which includes portions of San Diego, Chula Vista, and National City and all of Lemon Grove and La Mesa.
Shirley Weber | |
|---|---|
| 31st Secretary of State of California | |
| Assumed office January 29, 2021 | |
| Governor | Gavin Newsom |
| Preceded by | Alex Padilla |
| Member of the California State Assembly from the 79th district | |
| In office December 3, 2012 – January 28, 2021 | |
| Preceded by | Ben Hueso (redistricted) |
| Succeeded by | Akilah Weber |
| Member of the California College of Presidential Electors | |
| In office December 14, 2020 | |
| Constituency | California's 51st congressional district |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Shirley Nash (1948-09-20) September 20, 1948 (age 75) Hope, Arkansas, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse |
Daniel Weber
(m. 1973; died 2002) |
| Children | 2, including Akilah |
| Education | University of California, Los Angeles (BA, MA, PhD) |
| Website | Government website |
Prior to being elected to the Assembly in 2012, Weber served on the San Diego Board of Education, and as a Professor of African-American Studies at San Diego State University. She is the first African American to have been elected to the California State Legislature south of Los Angeles.[2]
In December 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Weber as California's secretary of state, succeeding Alex Padilla, whom he had appointed as California's junior United States senator. Weber is the first African American to serve as California's secretary of state and the fifth to serve in a statewide position.
Weber was born in Hope, Arkansas and raised in Los Angeles. Her father was a farmer and left school after sixth grade but encouraged Weber and her seven siblings to prioritize their education. At three years old, she and her family fled their farm and moved west after her father refused to back down in a dispute with a white farmer and a lynch mob threatened his life. The family relocated to the Pueblo Del Rio housing projects in South Los Angeles where Weber grew up.[3] She earned a Bachelor of Arts, Master of Arts, and PhD in communication from the University of California, Los Angeles.[2][4]
Academics
Weber is a professor emerita of Africana studies at San Diego State University. She helped to establish that department in 1972 and became its chair, teaching there for 40 years. She was president of the National Council for Black Studies from 2002 to 2006.[5]
Early political career
She served as a board member and later president of the San Diego Board of Education from 1988 to 1996. She also served as Chairwoman of the San Diego Citizens’ Equal Opportunity Commission.[2]
California State Assembly
In Fall 2011, she was recruited to run for office in the California State Assembly by Toni Atkins.[2] In November 2012, Weber won election to the state assembly with 61.7% of the vote, defeating her Republican opponent, Mary England.[6]
During her time in the assembly, Weber was a member of the California Assembly's Committee on Higher Education.[7] She promoted the development of a state university location in Chula Vista as a satellite or extension campus of the California State University system.[7] In 2020, Weber authored Assembly Bill 3121, which created a California Reparations Task Force to study how to redress slavery in California; the task force met for the first time in 2021.[8][9]
California Secretary of State
On December 22, 2020, Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Weber to the position of Secretary of State of California, effective upon confirmation by the California State Legislature, to replace Alex Padilla, whom he had just appointed to the United States Senate.[10] Weber is the first African American to serve as Secretary of State. Weber was sworn in on January 29, 2021, having been confirmed unanimously by the state senate the day before.[11][12] As secretary of state, Weber played a central role in administering the 2021 California gubernatorial recall election that targeted Newsom.[13][14] She won a full term in the 2022 election.
Weber's husband, Judge Daniel Weber, died in 2002. She has two children and three grandchildren.[15][16] Her daughter, Akilah Weber, is a physician and was a member of the La Mesa City Council from 2018 to 2021.[17] On April 19, 2021, Akilah was sworn in by her mother to succeed her in the California State Assembly after winning in a special election.[18]
2012
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Shirley Weber | 20,293 | 30.5 | |
| Republican | Mary England | 19,313 | 29.1 | |
| Republican | Matt Mendoza | 8,857 | 13.3 | |
| Democratic | Rudy Ramirez | 7,533 | 11.3 | |
| Democratic | Patricia Ann Washington | 5,404 | 8.1 | |
| Democratic | Sid Voorakkara | 5,060 | 7.6 | |
| Total votes | 66,460 | 100.0 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Shirley Weber | 94,170 | 61.7 | |
| Republican | Mary England | 58,424 | 38.3 | |
| Total votes | 152,594 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
2014
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Shirley Weber (incumbent) | 35,886 | 99.7 | |
| American Independent | George R. Williams (write-in) | 115 | 0.3 | |
| Total votes | 36,001 | 100.0 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Shirley Weber (incumbent) | 49,264 | 61.9 | |
| American Independent | George R. Williams | 30,266 | 38.1 | |
| Total votes | 79,530 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
2016
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Shirley Weber (incumbent) | 64,395 | 67.7 | |
| Republican | John Moore | 30,711 | 32.3 | |
| Total votes | 95,106 | 100.0 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Shirley Weber (incumbent) | 92,285 | 64.56 | |
| Republican | John Moore | 50,687 | 35.4 | |
| Total votes | 142,972 | 100.0 | ||
2018
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Shirley Weber (incumbent) | 51,395 | 63.7 | |
| Republican | John Moore | 29,324 | 36.3 | |
| Total votes | 80,719 | 100.0 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Shirley Weber (incumbent) | 103,533 | 66.8 | |
| Republican | John Moore | 51,548 | 33.2 | |
| Total votes | 155,081 | 100.0 | ||
| Democratic hold | ||||
2020
| Primary election | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | |
| Democratic | Shirley Weber (incumbent) | 74,121 | 65.7 | |
| Republican | John Moore | 19,619 | 17.4 | |
| Republican | Carmelita "C.L." Larrabaster | 19,080 | 16.9 | |
| Total votes | 112,820 | 100.0 | ||
| General election | ||||
| Democratic | Shirley Weber (incumbent) | 147,994 | 65.4 | |
| Republican | John Moore | 78,367 | 34.6 | |
| Total votes | 226,361 | 100 | ||
2022
| Primary election | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ||
| Democratic | Shirley Weber (incumbent) | 4,016,798 | 58.92% | ||
| Republican | Rob Bernosky | 1,281,587 | 18.80% | ||
| Republican | Rachel Hamm | 822,978 | 12.07% | ||
| Republican | James "JW" Paine | 254,222 | 3.73% | ||
| Green | Gary N. Blenner | 205,630 | 3.02% | ||
| Republican | Raul Rodriguez Jr. | 176,059 | 2.58% | ||
| No party preference | Matthew D. Cinquanta | 59,481 | 0.87% | ||
| No party preference | Desmond A. Silveira (write-in) | 235 | 0.0% | ||
| Total votes | 6,816,990 | 100.0 | |||
| General election | |||||
| Democratic | Shirley Weber (incumbent) | 6,462,159 | 60.05% | ||
| Republican | Rob Bernosky | 4,298,526 | 39.95% | ||
| Total votes | 10,760,685 | 100.0% | |||
| Democratic hold | |||||
- "Democrats Win Supermajority in California Assembly". NBC San Diego. November 15, 2012. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
- Walker, Mark (November 18, 2012). "Shirley Weber forges path with historic win". San Diego Union Tribune. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
- Calefati, Jessica (August 31, 2017). "Chased out of Arkansas as a child, Shirley Weber won't back down in California Capitol". CalMatters.
- "Department of Africana Studies: Faculty". San Diego State University. Archived from the original on January 20, 2013. Retrieved November 19, 2012.
- "State Assemblymember" (PDF). November 6, 2102 General Election. Secretary of State, State of California. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 22, 2012. Retrieved December 27, 2012.
- Bowler, Matthew (August 4, 2014). "Assemblywoman Shirley Weber Wants To Make Chula Vista University A Reality". KPBS. Retrieved September 5, 2014.
- Botts, Jackie (June 9, 2021). "California reparations committee confronts harms of slavery, debates direct payments". Calmatters.
- "Gov. Newsom nominates Shirley Weber as California's first Black secretary of state". KCRA. December 23, 2020. Retrieved December 23, 2020.
- "Calif Senate Confirms Asm. Shirley Weber as Secretary of State, 1st Black Person to Hold Title". NBC 7 San Diego. January 28, 2021. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
- "Shirley Weber Sworn in as California's First Black Secretary of State". Times of San Diego. January 30, 2021. Retrieved June 1, 2021.
- Hoeven, Emily (September 2021). "Recall puts elections chief in political pickle". Calmatters.
- Calefati, Jessica (August 31, 2017). "Chased out of Arkansas as a child, Shirley Weber won't back down in California Capitol". CALmatters. Retrieved February 3, 2019.
- "Biography". Office of California State Assemblymember Shirley Weber. Retrieved January 17, 2021.
- "La Mesa, CA - Official Website". www.cityoflamesa.us. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
- "Daughter succeeds California elections chief in Legislature". San Diego Union-Tribune. April 19, 2021. Retrieved April 25, 2021.
- "Primary Election - June 7, 2022". Archived from the original on March 26, 2022. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
- "California June 7, 2022 Primary Statement of Vote" (PDF). Retrieved July 16, 2022.
- Government website
- Campaign website
- Appearances on C-SPAN
- Profile at Vote Smart
- Join California Shirley Weber
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by James Schwab Acting |
Secretary of State of California 2021–present |
Incumbent |