General Chairman Marco Gudino met with California Lieutenant Governor, and Candidate for Governor, Gavin Newsom. The meeting was a huge opportunity for General Chairman Gudino to put the issues and concerns of its nearly 5000 members in front of one of California’s most progressive and influential leaders.

Lieutenant Governor Newsom having been the Mayor of the City and County of San Francisco was very interested and very knowledgeable of the issues that Chairman Gudino raised in the meeting. Quality pay & benefits, subcontracting, operator safety and decreased transit ridership were amongst the topics in the hour-long meeting. Unprovoked Operator Assaults was an area of concern for Newsom having dealt with that same issue with Parking Enforcement Officers in San Francisco. Newsom also expressed his hope and desire for the members of General Committee 875 to stay strong, vigilant and united in the wake of the Janus v AFSCME decision, no matter what the outcome may be.

The 2018 Election season is upon us with California holding its Primary Elections on June 5th, 2018. The SMART Transportation Division Legislative Director and the California Labor Federation will meet and make endorsements for all the Statewide and State Legislature races in late April. General Chairman Marco Gudino will be making his recommendations to the Legislative Director to ensure that the 5000 members in Los Angeles have the political influence they deserve.

You can find out more information about the election, voter registration and deadline information at the California Secretary of States website http://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/upcoming-elections/statewide-direct-primary-june-5-2018/.

You can also find out more about Gavin Newsom and his campaign on his website https://gavinnewsom.com/.