“Although many MIT graduates have gone onto great success in fields of technology, Alex Padilla is one seeking success in the non-technological world of politics. In the five years following his graduation from MIT, recently-elected Los Angeles City Councilman Padilla has been busy.”
This is what The Tech, the student newspaper at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, wrote about Alex Padilla in an article on Aug. 4, 1999. The headline read, “Recent MIT Graduate Elected to Los Angeles City Council.”
I dug out the MIT newspaper article from ’99 after Gov. Gavin Newsom on Tuesday announced that he picked CA’s Secretary of State Padilla — with a longtime political career — to be a U.S. Senator, filling out the rest of U.S. Vice President-elect Kamala Harris’ term. Harris plans to step down in January ahead of Inauguration Day.
Padilla will need to run for a full six-year term in 2022. “Through his tenacity, integrity, smarts and grit, California is gaining a tested fighter in their corner who will be a fierce ally in D.C., lifting up our state’s values and making sure we secure the critical resources to emerge stronger from this pandemic,” Newsom said.
A video from the AP is here:
Jeff Pelline's Sierra Foothills Report 
BTW, Alex has had a good relationship with our County Clerk Recorder/Elections Officer Greg Diaz. Kudos to Greg for building bridges with Sacramento! More here: https://www.mynevadacounty.com/DocumentCenter/View/22184/Jan-2018-Mr-Diaz-Welcomes-California-Secretary-of-State-Alex-Padilla?bidId=
And Padilla’s visit to the Rood Center was not the finest hour for some of our Supervisors. Details here: https://yubanet.com/regional/commentary-not-all-elected-officials-are-equal-for-the-nevada-county-bos/
Retired Superintendent at Nevada Joint Union High School District, Louise Bennicoff Johnson, also posted this on my Facebook page:
“Alex Padilla came to NU, and we bussed in all of the seniors from all over the district. He encouraged them as voters and had a table for their registration right then and there! That would have been the Class of 2018!”