Raised by a single mother, Rusty met his father when he was 11 as he sat in a Texas prison. Rusty was powerless to help him.

But, as President of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, Rusty built a program to train formerly incarcerated women and men for good union jobs.

Rusty’s door-to-door field campaigns mobilized immigrants and working people to elect more women, LGBTQ candidates, and people of color.

Rusty changed the LA Fed’s leadership. Twice as many women. Five times more young leaders. And 60% of all leaders are people of color.

Rusty led and won two local ballot measures that reached far beyond traditional labor union efforts…empowering hotel housekeepers – union and non-union – to protect themselves from sexual abuse…and putting unemployed people to work building housing that ordinary people can afford.

Rusty won the best new wage enforcement law in California and the first fight for $15 for immigrant workers and workers of color who don’t have a union.

To fight Trump’s Janus Court decision, Rusty re-energized and re-empowered workers… training 300 organizers. Today, the LA Fed’s membership is up 23%.

Rusty believes in California’s Democratic Party. Together, we’ve won marriage equality, environmental justice and healthcare for every immigrant child.

Rusty has the skills to lead our Party to win it all in 2020.