With 95% of the votes counted in the June 7 primary election for California Governor, it appears that San Marino’s David Lozano has fallen short and his Republican opponent, Brian Dahle, will be facing Gavin Newsom in the general election.
“But I have to say it has been an exciting journey,” said Lozano, who began his political career three years ago when he was asked to run for Congress in 2020 to fill the vacated seat in the 25th Congressional District.
“My supporters had heard of my solution to homelessness, called ‘A New Hope,’ and were hoping to get me into office in that race so that I might implement my project to resolve our devastating homeless problem here in California at that time,” said Lozano.
“But we quickly learned that the best and only political position that homelessness and other critical problems facing California could only be solved from the office of governor. Our team, of course, was not counting on having to spend time and energy on an unexpected recall election, which although gained us some notoriety and practice took us away from our main goal, which was this 2022 election.”
Lozano also said that instead of what he considered a normal field that would include four to eight candidates, there were 26 names clogging the ballot.
“And out of these candidates, there were 13 fellow Republican candidates,” Lozano said. “Needless to say, this split the vote, and made things a little difficult.”
Lozano finished in 12th place with about 65,000 votes.
“I am extremely honored and humbled by the fact that over 65,000 people in the state of California believed that I had the experience, knowledge and expertise to lead, govern and protect this great state and their families as we move forward in these difficult times,” he said.
“What was amazing about campaigning up and down the state was that when I had the opportunity to speak with people intimately either one-on-one or in small groups, and after they heard my ideas, solutions and how they would be implemented, those people would be awestruck and say, ‘Oh my gosh! You really do need to be governor! You are exactly what California needs!’”
Lozano has been asked to assist other candidates on their campaigns and to keep seeking office in the future, but will return to his law practice in San Marino.
“But what has arisen from all this is the probability of teaching at one of our local universities in the subjects of either history, philosophy or political science, as well as a position with the United Nations in New York as a Political Affairs Officer,” Lozano said.
Lozano has been an attorney for the last 28 years, specializing in finance, civil litigation, bankruptcy law and negotiations.
Prior to attending law school, he spent six years in the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department and two years as a reserve police officer for Monterey Park.
Lozano graduated in 1976 from San Gabriel High School after attending St. Therese School in Alhambra.
He earned his bachelor’s degree in political science at California State University, Los Angeles, where he was elected to the student government board of directors. He also holds a law degree from Connecticut’s Quinnipiac University School of Law, where he received the Thurgood Marshall Award and Distinguished Academic Achievement Award and was chosen to be a student legal analyst for the Connecticut legislature. Lozano was also the first sophomore in the school’s history to be elected student body vice president.
“Finally, I just want to say ‘thank you’ to all the residents of San Marino and surrounding cities who supported me and believed in my ideas and solutions,” Lozano concluded. “I have passed on all of these various resolutions to many of these younger up-and-coming and energetic soon-to-be politicians, and hopefully they’ll be able to turn them into reality. So the journey has truly just begun.”
