Ramoso elected as new state chair
LOS ANGELES – For the first time ever, a majority of seats in the executive board of the California Democratic Party Filipino American Caucus are taken by Fil-Am leaders from Southern California. This is according to newly-elected state chair, Melissa Ramoso.
According to Ramoso, this is the first time in the two-decade history of the Bay Area-based group that a great number of the Caucus leadership hails from Los Angeles and Southern California.
Along with Ramoso, seven other Fil-Ams took office on Saturday, April 13 at an annual convention for the Caucus held in the Sacramento Convention Center.
Joining Ramoso are Northern California Vice Chair Meriam Reynosa, Central Valley Vice Chair Monty Martinez, LA Vice Chair Gloria Pulido, San Diego Vice Chair JoAnn Fields, Recording Secretary Mike Aguilera, Corresponding Secretary Genevieve Jopanda, and State Treasurer Ryan Carpio.
According to Ramoso, her fellow officers were people that she personally endorsed. With the exception of her, Reynosa, and Jopanda, every one else on the executive board are new officers.
Though Fields and Martinez were not officers in the previous administration, the two had already served on the board in past years, according to Ramoso.
The new state chair also noted that only Reynosa and Carpio had opposing candidates during the board elections. Everyone else ran unopposed.
“I’m just truly excited to bring the Filipino-American Caucus to the next level,” Ramoso told Asian Journal in a telephone interview.
Ramoso said that their group needs to re-assess how the Caucus will move forward, with regards to engaging the Democratic clubs in California, particularly in unreached areas.
She also emphasized that the Caucus must capitalize on the momentum generated by the re-election of Pres. Barack Obama.
This momentum, Ramoso said, can be used as leverage in further engaging Filipinos and moving the Caucus forward.
“This is the time. We have the leadership [who] knows how to do this, and [who] has pooled in their resources as well,” Ramoso added.
Ramoso’s candidacy for the Caucus elections was officially endorsed by the LA County Democratic Party, Congressmembers Mike Honda and Judy Chu, State Controller John Chiang, Senator Ted Lieu, Assemblymember Rob Bonta, and a host of other high-ranking elected officials and assemblymembers.
In Twitter and Facebook, Sen. Lieu congratulated Ramoso for her successful bid for election as the Caucus State Chair.
“Congratulations to my terrific staffmember Melissa Ramoso, who was elected this morning as State Chair of the Filipino-American Democratic Caucus,” Lieu posted on his Facebook page on Saturday morning.
Lieu was the one who nominated Ramoso on the Caucus floor.
(www.asianjournal.com)
(LA Midweek April 17-19, 2013 Sec. A pg.5)
