Meet the Candidates for Governor: Antonio Villaraigosa

The race for Governor of California is only getting more and more exciting! This year will be filled with many more surprises to come, so stay up-to-date by attending Manny's series of town halls with each candidate, moderated by Politico Reporter Dustin Gardiner.

Next up is Antonio Villaraigosa, Former California State Speaker and Los Angeles Mayor!

See below for free tickets!

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Antonio Villaraigosa, Former California State Speaker and Los Angeles Mayor, has built a career as a proven problem solver. In Sacramento, he worked with Democrats and Republicans to balance state budgets, investing in schools and public safety, providing tax cuts and tax relief for Californians while creating a $13 billion budget surplus to prevent cuts to vital services. As the 41st Mayor of Los Angeles, Villaraigosa presided over a historic expansion of public transportation, building more light rail than any other city in America. He cut violent crime by 48%, turned around failing schools, and led the city’s economic recovery out of the recession. He also delivered billions in federal investment and hundreds of thousands of jobs as leader of America Fast Forward for the southland. Villaraigosa also served as California’s Infrastructure Advisor, working with local, state, and federal leaders to identify priority projects and maximize access to federal funding across all regions of the state.

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Dustin Gardiner is a reporter at Politico that has covered state and national politics from California, Arizona and D.C. for 16 years.

He previously covered state politics for the San Francisco Chronicle, including from Washington where he tracked California's congressional delegation during President Donald Trump's first impeachment. Prior to moving to California, he spent a decade with The Arizona Republic, where he covered state and city politics.

Dustin’s awards include first place honors in both the newsletter category and for daily Capitol beat coverage from the Sacramento Press Club in 2024 and 2023, and the “story of the year” award from the Arizona Newspapers Association in 2017.

Dustin lives in San Francisco and is a member of NLGJA, the association of LGBTQ journalists.

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