Akilah Weber
About the Candidate
Dr. Akilah Weber, an assistant clinical professor and ob-gyn, was born and raised in the Oak Park neighborhood of San Diego, and has lived in La Mesa since completing her medical residency and fellowship in the midwest. In addition to her medical practice, Dr. Weber was elected to the La Mesa City Council in 2018, where she currently serves as vice mayor. She is the daughter of Secretary of State Shirley Weber, who held this seat for ten years. According to campaign materials, Dr. Weber is running for this seat to continue to work to eliminate the systemic social disparities that lead to poor health and economic outcomes for district residents.
If elected, Dr. Weber’s priorities for the district would include COVID-19 vaccine access, economic recovery, climate protections, and education reform. As a medical professional, Dr. Weber views the benefits of policy through the lens of public health, and believes that improvements in each of these issue areas will lead to better long-term health outcomes from residents. Demonstrating this philosophy, she has supported the Homeless Outreach and Mobile Engagement (HOME) program as a member of the La Mesa City Council. HOME brings social work and behavioral health support to community members experiencing homelessness, and aims to connect them with housing and medical benefits. A feature of this program is a reduction in police interaction with vulnerable residents. Dr. Weber has also said that she would prioritize legislation that created a police decertification structure for abusive officers, and favors increased age limits and training periods for incoming officers. As vice mayor, Dr. Weber has also supported La Mesa’s transition to a Community Choice Aggregation (CCA) model for energy use, which offers residents clean alternatives to San Diego Gas & Electric, and reinvests revenues into the local economy.
While Dr. Weber’s platform has a progressive lean, she has been noncommittal on how she will navigate political influences in Sacramento to pass progressive policies. Similarly, she has not highlighted immigration reform or championed a path to citizenship for undocumented individuals in her platform. In a district so proximate to the southern border, providing inclusive leadership will require a clear stance on these issues and a commitment to persistent advocacy on behalf of all residents.
Dr. Weber is endorsed by a majority of the progressive groups in the district, and several progressive elected officials. Her leadership will provide consistency in values and policy for the AD-79 community. With consideration to Dr. Weber’s local government and professional experience, our analysis shows that she is a strong choice for equitable and representative leadership in office.
About Courage California’s Endorsement
After a comprehensive review of Dr. Akilah Weber’s record and consultation with local partners, we have determined that she is committed to eliminating health disparity through climate action, education reform, and economic recovery. Her experience on the La Mesa City Council combined with her understanding of holistic health and social supports make her a strong candidate for this seat, and align with the progressive future that Courage California hopes to achieve. We are confident that she will govern in the interests of AD-79 residents, and Courage California is proud to endorse Dr. Akilah Weber for Assembly District 79.
Courage California endorses both Leticia Munguia and Dr. Akilah Weber for California Assembly District 79. Munguia and Dr. Weber are running to fill Dr. Shirley Weber’s vacant seat following her historic Secretary of State appointment.
Based on Munguia and Dr. Weber’s proven records as community leaders, Courage California is confident that both candidates would co-govern in the interests of all Californians.
About the Position
Members of the State Assembly form part of the California State Legislature, and work alongside the governor to establish laws and a state budget. They hold the power to pass bills that affect public policy, set state spending levels, raise and lower taxes, and uphold or override the governor’s vetoes. The California State Assembly has 80 districts. Each represents a population of at least 465,000 Californians. Representatives are elected to the Assembly for a two-year term. Every two years, all 80 seats are subject to election. Members elected before 2012 are restricted to three two-year terms (six years) in the Assembly. Those elected in or after 2012 are allowed to serve 12 years total across both the State Senate and the Assembly. This term, Democrats currently hold a two-thirds supermajority of 59 seats in the California State Assembly, while Republicans hold 19 seats. One seat is held by an Independent, and one seat, AD-79, is currently vacant.
About the District
California's 79th Assembly District includes parts of San Diego County. Notable cities within the district include Bonita, Chula Vista, La Mesa, Lemon Grove, National City, and parts of San Diego. Democrats typically hold this district. The most recent election results available by district show that AD-79 voted for Hillary Clinton for president in 2016 and Gavin Newsom for governor in 2018.
About the Race
In the November 2020 general election, incumbent Dr. Shirley Weber retained her seat as the assemblymember representing AD-79, which she had held since 2012. After the presidential election results were certified, elevating then Senator Kamala Harris to serve as vice president, Governor Gavin Newsom appointed then Secretary of State Alex Padilla to fill Harris’s vacant U.S. Senate seat. Gov. Newsom then nominated Assemblymember Weber to serve as secretary of state, leaving her AD-79 seat vacant. A special election has been called to fill the vacancy through the end of the term in 2022.
The primary election is scheduled for April 6. If any candidate wins the majority of primary votes, they will win the seat outright. If all candidates receive less than 50% of the total votes, the top two will go on to the general election on June 8.
There are five candidates running for the AD-79 vacancy, including Dr. Akilah Weber and labor organizer Leticia Munguia. Dr. Weber has raised $258,000, and has committed to refusing real estate money in her campaign. She has received donations from Sempra Energy, which has ties to fossil fuel. Munguia has raised $35,000, and has committed to refuse real estate money in her campaign.