Fil-Am mayor to be honored by the Latino Leaders Network

San Diego Mayor Todd Gloria (right) with U.S. Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg. FACEBOOK

Mayor Todd Gloria, the Filipino American mayor of San Diego, California, will receive the Antonio Villaraigosa Leadership Award at the 37th Tribute to Mayors Signature Event on Jan. 18.

The Tribute to Mayors is an annual event hosted by the Latino Leaders Network, founded by former Clinton administration Assistant to the President and Director of Intergovernmental Affairs at the White House Mickey Ibarra, as a platform for prominent Latino leaders to share personal stories of overcoming obstacles to success, according to the Los Angeles Blade. 

The Antonio Villaraigosa Leadership Award is presented to a mayor from a city with a significant Latino population, who has shown an outstanding commitment to uniting diverse communities.

Antonio Ramуn Villaraigosa served as the 41st Mayor of Los Angeles from 2005 to 2013. Before becoming mayor, he was a member of the California State Assembly (1994–2000), where he served as the Democratic Majority Leader (1996–98), and the Speaker of the California State Assembly (1998–2000).

Gloria began his career at San Diego County’s Health and Human Services Agency. He then went on to serve as District Director for United States Congresswoman Susan A. Davis. In 2008, Gloria was elected to the San Diego City Council. In 2016, he ran and was elected to the California State Assembly to represent the 78th Assembly District.

While serving in the Assembly Gloria went on to become the Assistant Majority Whip and eventually Majority Whip. Then in 2020 he was elected Mayor of San Diego, making history across a spectrum of significant firsts as in addition to being the first openly gay person to lead the city, Gloria, “the son of a hotel maid and a gardener”  became the first person of color to occupy the Mayor’s chair. He is a third-generation San Diegan of Filipino, Native American, Puerto Rican, and Dutch descent.