Elected to represent the 7th Senate District in November 2024, State Senator Jesse Arreguín is a lifelong advocate for economic and social justice. He brings twenty years of local and regional government experience: as a Berkeley City Councilmember, the Mayor of Berkeley, and as President of the Association of Bay Area Governments. 

The son and grandson of migrant farm workers, Senator Arreguín was born in Fresno and grew up in San Francisco. He was raised in a working-class household, where his parents instilled the values of hard work, public service, and giving back to others. A lifelong renter, he faced housing insecurity growing up in San Francisco’s expensive and scarce housing market. 

Senator Arreguín began his activism at the age of nine years old working to name a street in his hometown after Cesar Chavez. For over thirty years he has been a passionate advocate for workers rights, immigrant rights, housing justice, the environment and democracy. 

He moved across the San Francisco Bay to get his degree at UC Berkeley, and served the Berkeley community as an elected official on the Rent Stabilization Board, City Council and as the first Latino elected Mayor of Berkeley. 

During his time as Berkeley’s Mayor, he passed a housing bond and oversaw zoning reforms that resulted in the largest housing construction boom Berkeley had seen in decades, including 1,000 units of affordable housing. His successful efforts to rehouse the homeless led to a 45% decrease in unsheltered homelessness. He led Berkeley during the first Trump Presidency, strengthening the city’s sanctuary policy and standing up to hate groups. He also authored legislation to strengthen civilian oversight of police, while advancing reforms to shift mental health calls from police to trained social workers. 

Senator Arreguín began his activism at the age of nine years old working to name a street in his hometown after Cesar Chavez.

During his first year in the Senate, he successfully passed legislation to support the needs of all Californians. He authored bills to speed up the process of building new housing and increasing accountability. He also passed legislation to protect hospitals and clinics from ICE enforcement, ban law enforcement from wearing masks to conceal identity, and establish guardrails around the use of artificial intelligence in police reports. 

Senator Arreguín is the chair of both the Senate Committee on Housing and the Committee on Public Safety. He also serves on the following committees: Business, Professions and Economic Development; Energy, Utilities and Communications; Local Government; Transportation. 

Senator Arreguín lives in Oakland with his partner, Peralta Community College District Trustee Dyana Delfín Polk.