The congresswoman from the 34th District is Lucille Roybal-Allard, first elected in 1992. She is the first Mexican-American woman to be elected to Congress, and, in 1999, became the first woman to chair the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Roybal-Allard grew up in the Los Angeles area, the daughter of longtime U.S. Rep. Edward Roybal, who was the first Latino to serve on the Los Angeles City Council. She dreamed of a show business career as a teenager and later worked as a department store clerk and for nonprofit organizations. After raising a family—two of her children are lawyers—she followed her father into politics when she was 45 years old. She was elected to the California Assembly in 1986. Six years later, she ran for a newly created House district that took in much of the Los Angeles area that her father had represented for 30 years. Her father retired in 1992, the year she ran for the House. Roybal-Allard won easily with 75% of the vote in the primary and 63% in the general election. Read More

The congresswoman from the 34th District is Lucille Roybal-Allard, first elected in 1992. She is the first Mexican-American woman to be elected to Congress, and, in 1999, became the first woman to chair the Congressional Hispanic Caucus. Roybal-Allard grew up in the Los Angeles area, the daughter of longtime U.S. Rep. Edward Roybal, who was the first Latino to serve on the Los Angeles City Council. She dreamed of a show business career as a teenager and later worked as a department store clerk and for nonprofit organizations. After raising a family—two of her children are lawyers—she followed her father into politics when she was 45 years old. She was elected to the California Assembly in 1986. Six years later, she ran for a newly created House district that took in much of the Los Angeles area that her father had represented for 30 years. Her father retired in 1992, the year she ran for the House. Roybal-Allard won easily with 75% of the vote in the primary and 63% in the general election.

Roybal-Allard has compiled a solidly liberal voting record. On the Appropriations Committee, she has focused on immigration issues, and she has pushed aggressively for a bill that would include a path to citizenship for illegal immigrants currently in the country. The bill has not passed despite repeated attempts in recent years. When Senate Finance Committee Democrats proposed restrictions on illegal immigrants participating in health care programs as part of the 2009-2010 health care overhaul, she joined a group of Hispanics who succeeded in modifying the provision. With Reps. Howard Berman, D-Calif., and Lincoln Diaz-Balart, R-Fla., she is the sponsor of the Dream Act, which would provide a path to legal immigration for college-bound students. In the past, she also has pushed for in-state college tuition rates for illegal immigrants. In 2009, Roybal-Allard introduced a measure aimed at raising labor standards and protections for children of migrant farm workers to the same level set for children in occupations outside of agriculture. Conservatives attacked the measure as an effort to give labor unions more power.

Roybal-Allard worked with officials in Maywood and Bell in 2010 to explore the idea of combining police departments as a way to cut costs. She also got a bill signed into law to coordinate federal programs and research on underage drinking as well as to fund a media campaign on its dangers. Another of her recent successes was a bill enacted in 2008 that authorizes federal grants for newborn health screening for congenital, genetic, and metabolic disorders. She introduced a separate bill in 2010 aimed at expanding federal research of maternity practices. “The future of our country depends on the health and well-being of our mothers and their children,” she said.

Unlike several other Democratic women in the California delegation, Roybal-Allard isn’t as close to House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and her powerful inner circle, which sometimes limits her leverage in the House. In 2006, Roybal-Allard seconded the nomination of Democrat Steny Hoyer of Maryland for majority leader, indicating her support for Hoyer over Pelosi’s preferred candidate, Democrat John Murtha of Pennsylvania. However, Hoyer won the contest, so Roybal-Allard still has a friend or two in high places.