For California, the coming year will be politically intense. We will have to elect a governor and replace Gavin Newsom, who is due to leave office in January 2027 to run for president of the United States. The big question is whether a Latino will manage to make it onto the general election list and become governor of California. Four Latino Democrats are trying to make history and meet the challenge: Antonio Villaraigosa, former mayor of Los Angeles; Xavier Becerra, former secretary of health and human services under the Biden Administration; Tony Thurmond, superintendent of education; and former assemblyman Ian Calderon. Of these, the first two have the best chances, most likely because they have more experience and are the best known. While Villaraigosa is fighting hard to stay in the race and is becoming increasingly active, taking advantage of any opportunity to gain attention, Becerra's performance has declined over time. That has left us wondering if he won't throw in the towel at any moment.

So it remains to be seen whether Villaraigosa and Becerra will manage to pass the first test, the June primary election, from which the two candidates with the most votes will emerge to compete in the November general election; and we're not sure they'll make it, because despite her missteps, former Congresswoman Kathy Porter remains strong in the polls; not to mention the new Democrat who has joined the list, Congressman Eric Swalwell. The deciding factor could be Governor Newsom when it becomes known who he will endorse.

The Latino candidates have two factors working against them; The first is that there are four candidates, and that dilutes the Latino vote and the chances of us having a Latino governor for the first time in modern California history. The second factor is a trend that doesn't help us at all and is being driven by farmworker leader Dolores Huerta and the Democratic Socialists, in that anyone can represent Latinos regardless of race; this undermines decades of struggle to increase Latino representation in the political sphere. With that narrative,Our candidates could be sidelined in an instant, regardless of the fact that 40% of the state's population is Latino, and that just over 25% of voters are Latino.

Socialite Consuls

The coming year is anticipated to be extremely difficult for the immigrant population, with a federal government that seeks increasingly harsh methods to strangle and expel them from the country.

Given this chilling reality, we need consuls who, instead of dedicating themselves to organizing social events and taking photos with the usual leaders or artists who visit Los Angeles, as the Mexican consul in Los Angeles, Carlos Gonzalez, almost always does, are more creative and break the mold they have adhered to because it is outdated.

Enough with having socialite consuls and pretending that nothing is wrong.

These times demand a pause on elitist diplomacy. This is not the time for parties and galas at the house that all Mexicans pay for with their taxes in Los Angeles, where Consul Gonzalez lives. It is time for innovative diplomats who give their all to defend immigrants. Saying that they can't address a particular advocacy issue because it's not within their purview is a mockery.

Ugarte's Challenges

Let's keep an eye on Jose Ugarte this year, who could become Curren Price's successor and the first Latino to be elected to the City Council for District 9, traditionally represented by African American politicians, but whose population has shifted from Black to Latino.

Ugarte, who has worked alongside Price for years, has several rivals, including activist Jorge Nuno; community leader Martha Sanchez; and organizer Adriana Carrera; The director of a non-profit organization related to schools, Elmer Roldan, the organizer Estuardo Mazariegos, and the human rights lawyer Chris Martin.

The biggest challenge for Ugarte is that he does not have the support of the dominant political group in the Los Angeles City Council.