California Senate District 25 primary election voter guide

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The state Senate seat in northeastern Los Angeles County — which includes Pasadena, Alhambra and Glendale — is up for grabs and five candidates are vying for the seat.

The 25th District race opened up after state Sen. Anthony Portantino tossed his hat in the ring to fill Rep. Adam B. Schiff’s seat in the 30th Congressional District. Portantino has represented District 25 since 2016.

Four Democrats and one Republican are running to represent the heavily Democratic district. Regardless of their political party, the two candidates who receive the most votes in the March 5 primary will advance to the general election in November.

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Who are the candidates?

Republican Elizabeth Wong Ahlers, Crescenta Valley Town Council member

Ahlers is the only Republican in this race. She has received endorsements from the California Republican Party and several state GOP leaders. She previously taught English at UCLA, Glendale Community College and Los Angeles Valley College, according to her campaign bio, and served on several boards for humanitarian and educational work. A mother of six and grandmother to three, Ahlers told The Times she is prioritizing “parental involvement, tackling the fentanyl epidemic, and addressing homelessness.”

Democrat Sandra Armenta, Rosemead City Council member and teacher

Longtime Rosemead resident Armenta was first elected to the City Council in 2009. Armenta went on leave from her job as a district representative in state Sen. Susan Rubio’s (D-Baldwin Park) office to focus on the election, according to Armenta’s campaign. She is a former teacher, with experience in special and general education, from kindergarten through high school. “My hands-on experience in education not only deepened my commitment to community service but also served as a catalyst for my eventual election to the City Council and now state Senate,” she told The Times. She describes herself as a moderate Democrat “with a record of working together with Republicans and Democrats to get things done.” She received endorsements from Democrats for Israel Los Angeles and the San Gabriel Police Officers’ Assn.

Democrat Sasha Renée Pérez, Alhambra vice mayor

When Pérez was elected to her hometown’s City Council in 2020, she was immediately made mayor, becoming at age 28 the youngest mayor in Alhambra’s history. She told The Times that she ran for office after she “lost family members to the homelessness crisis.” Pérez has raised more than $631,000, according to state campaign finance records. Her donors include unions representing teachers, nurses and SEIU members; the Pasadena chapter of Planned Parenthood; and Smart Justice, a group that advocates for criminal justice reforms. Pérez said that as a state senator she wants to focus on “addressing rising housing costs, investing in public education, and fighting climate change.”

Democrat Yvonne Yiu, Monterey Park City Council member and finance executive

Yiu is the best-funded candidate in the race, with more than $1 million in her coffer — much of which came from her own pocket, according to California secretary of state records. Yiu previously ran an unsuccessful campaign for state controller, also self-funding her run. As a City Council member, Yiu helped lead Monterey Park through the aftermath of a mass shooting at a nightclub in January 2023. She said she escaped the shooting by sheer chance — she had planned to go to the Star Ballroom Dance Studio, where the shooting occurred, but made a last-minute change. On the City Council, Yiu said she’s enacted gun safety laws and supported climate action. “We need to elect a leader with a proven track record,” she said.

Democrat Teddy Choi, professor and insurance agent

Choi has unsuccessfully run for state office in the past, switching his voter registration from Republican to Democratic in 2015, according to JoinCalifornia, an independently run political history project. A Korean immigrant who raised his children in the San Gabriel Valley, Choi previously served on the Pasadena police advisory board.

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Where is the district?

Senate District 25 covers a broad swath of northeastern L.A. County — including Glendale, Pasadena, Altadena, La Cañada Flintridge, South Pasadena, San Marino and most of Burbank. The district also includes a chunk of Angeles National Forest, from the San Fernando Valley on the west to Rancho Cucamonga on the east.

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Homelessness

The Times asked candidates what they would do to assuage the state’s homelessness crisis — one of the top issues for California voters heading into the 2024 election season. Almost all of the candidates who responded to The Times’ questionnaires said they supported adding more affordable housing and increasing mental health services for people on the streets.

Yiu added that she would work with state legislators to invest in more job training and apprenticeship programs. Pérez advocated for protecting struggling tenants at risk of homelessness. Armenta said she would collaborate more with local nonprofits and faith groups. Ahlers said she would audit state-funded homelessness programs and reduce regulations to streamline new housing construction.

Yiu, Pérez and Choi said they support Proposition 1, a Gov. Gavin Newsom-sponsored $6.38-billion bond measure to invest in the mental health system. Proposition 1 would add at least 11,000 new beds and supportive housing units and fund mental illness and drug addiction treatment. Armenta and Ahlers said they do not support Proposition 1.

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State reparations for slavery

The California Reparations Task Force last year released its much-anticipated 1,080-page report on the history of slavery and its effects on contemporary American society. The task force recommended issuing “meaningful reparations,” with more than 100 policy suggestions including reforming the criminal justice system and capping rent in historically red-lined neighborhoods. A follow-up poll conducted by the UC Berkeley Institute of Governmental Studies and The Times found that Californians oppose a proposal for issuing cash payments to descendants of enslaved African Americans by a 2-to-1 margin. California lawmakers will decide whether the state will move ahead with any of the task force’s recommendations.

Ahlers and Armenta said they would not vote in favor of paying reparations, while Choi and Pérez said they would, and would support free tuition to state college for descendants of enslaved people.

Yiu said she was undecided on paying reparations, though she did support free tuition to state college.

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State budget

After years of budget surplus, California now faces a deficit of tens of billions of dollars, and is struggling to balance its budget for 2024 and beyond. Meanwhile, voters feel their pocketbooks pinched as the cost of living rises. We asked the candidates how they’d manage a budget as state legislator.

Ahlers said she favors reducing spending on programs and services, and Choi said he supports raising taxes. Armenta, Pérez and Yiu said they support a combination of reducing spending and raising taxes.

As for the high cost of living, Ahlers and Armenta said they support limiting regulatory hurdles for businesses. Ahlers also supports pausing or repealing the gas tax, something Republicans have been pushing for since Democrats, with the help of one Republican, raised gas taxes in 2017 to pay for road repairs.

Choi also said he supports pausing or repealing the gas tax, as well as implementing a new tax on the ultra-rich and expanding eligibility for the state’s safety net.

Pérez and Yiu both said they support a new tax for the ultra-rich, expanding Californians’ eligibility for the state’s safety net, increasing the minimum wage and limiting regulatory red tape.

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