Saying Thanks to These Trailblazers

As we look ahead to the Motherlode of opportunity for women and celebrate historic firsts in California and beyond, we also want to take a moment to celebrate two iconic progressive women who fought epically for equity throughout their service in the State Legislature: Trailblazers who have supported our movement and led by example for decades.

Senator Hannah-Beth Jackson and Senator Holly Mitchell both exit the State Senate as 2020 draws to a close. Senator Jackson is term-limited, and Senator Mitchell won her race to join the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors resoundingly (making it an all-female governing body for the first time in its history!).

As an Assemblywoman and then State Senator and Budget Chair, Holly Mitchell passed nearly 70 bills, including:

• The #EqualityandJustice package of criminal justice reform bills and numerous reproductive justice protections.
• The CROWN Act, a ban on employer discrimination against natural hair, which made national news and led to a similar bill being introduced and passed by the U.S. House of Representatives.
• State Budgets that upheld California’s social safety net for the most vulnerable, year after year, thanks to her tireless and strategic advocacy.

Her groundbreaking work champions equality and justice and centers Black and Brown Californians in policy decisions.

First in the State Assembly and then the State Senate, Hannah-Beth Jackson authored landmark California laws aimed at eliminating gender-based barriers.

• In 2015, she authored one of our most aggressive equal pay protection laws in the California Fair Pay Act.
• In 2018, she wrote a bill requiring companies headquartered in California to add more women to their boards or risk a fine. A year later, Forbes, The Wall Street Journal, and CNN Business credited the bill when reporting that there were no longer any companies among the S&P 500 with all-male boards of directors.
• And in 2020, she proposed and passed a bill to expand family leave to more workers and provide job protection for up to 12 weeks.

These landmark laws are the basis of so many of the protections we rely on today.

We are so proud that 2016 CTGCA Recruit Senator-Elect Monique Limón will be following in Senator Jackson’s footsteps as her successor. Fun fact: Limón received a call from U.S. Senator Elizabeth Warren earlier this year, who wanted to hear more about Limon’s innovative consumer protection bill passed this legislative session.

While we can never replace the likes of Senators Jackson and Mitchell, these giants of equity in governance, we can honor their legacy and usher in the next generation of trailblazing progressive women leaders to pick up the torch.

Close the Gap California is committed to building on progressive women’s historic momentum by recruiting them statewide and achieving equality in California by 2028. Join us!

About Close the Gap California

Close the Gap California (CTGCA) is a statewide campaign launched in 2013 to close the gender gap in the California Legislature by 2028. By recruiting accomplished, progressive women in targeted districts and preparing them to launch competitive campaigns, CTGCA is changing the face of the Legislature one cycle at a time.

One in every four women in the Legislature is a CTGCA Recruit. Our Recruits are committed to reproductive justice, quality public education, and combatting poverty, and nine of 10 serving today are women of color.