By: Vivien Hao, Sep 10, 2007

Assemblymember Ted Lieu (D-Torrance) has been elected the 2008 chair of the Asian Pacific Islander Legislative Caucus by his fellow caucus members.

He takes over leadership of the nine-member group from current Chair Alberto Torrico in January.
Lieu, who recently made headlines with his outspoken criticism of Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger’s dismal record of appointing minorities and women to judgeships, vowed to continue advocating for the interests of APIs and other underrepresented communities.

“I am honored to lead the API Caucus and look forward to working with the Black, Latino and Women’s Caucuses, to provide a greater voice for the diverse groups that we represent,” said Lieu. “We have some huge challenges ahead, and we need to keep focused on the issues that affect all Californians, such as health care and the environment. We also need to work toward ensuring that our elected and appointed officials look more like the people of California.”

Democrats have been pressuring the Republican governor since last year to make the judiciary better reflect the state’s diverse population; the round of appointments he made in June prompted the Legislature’s minority caucuses to balk. Of the 26 appointments made by Schwarzenegger, three were African Americans, one was Latino and none were of Asian or Pacific Islander descent.

“The governor’s record is disgraceful and getting worse,” said Lieu. “We need to keep the pressure on because he can no longer continue to ignore qualified minority candidates, while appointing his political cronies.

To bring more attention and services to underserved groups, Lieu introduced AB 295, which would ensure that state-collected data is separated into additional Asian Pacific Islander ethnic groups.

Under current law, California collects data for 11 API ethnic groups. AB 295 would add Hmong, Tongan, Thai, Pakistani, Bangladeshi, Sri Lankan, Malaysian, Indonesian, Taiwanese and Fijian, to the current API ethnic group categories and align the categories with API Census data.

“It’s shameful that the federal government collects data for more API groups than California does,” Lieu said. “AB 295 will put California back out in front of this issue.”

API political representation in California reached a historic high in 2006.

Nine APIs serve in the Legislature, including the Caucus’ three newest members — Assemblymembers Mike Eng, Mary Hayashi and Fiona Ma.

John Chiang was elected as the first API state controller in state history, while Judy Chu, Betty Yee and Michelle Park-Steel, form a majority of the State Board of Equalization.

Lieu won election as the state Assembly’s representative from the 53rd Assembly District in a special election in September 2005.

He represents the communities of El Segundo, Hermosa Beach, Lomita, Manhattan Beach, Mar Vista, Marina Del Rey, Playa Del Rey, Redondo Beach, Torrance, Venice, Westchester and parts of West Los Angeles.