This panel puts journalists and political leaders in conversation as
they address California’s new, earlier primary position and how the
Latino vote might shape the 2020 presidential election results. This
year, Latinos could for the first time make up the nation’s largest
racial or ethnic minority in a U.S. presidential election, with 32
million Latinos eligible to vote in the November presidential contest,
or 13.3% of all eligible voters. California, a Democratic stronghold,
is home to roughly a quarter of the nation’s Latino electorate, with
7.9 million Latino eligible voters. This on-the-record event will
feature a 30-minute discussion among panelists and the moderator,
followed by a 30-minute audience Q&A. Participants are then invited to
stay for a 30-minute meet-and-greet and mixer event featuring
complimentary beverages and light snacks provided by the University of
Southern California.
WHEN: Monday, Feb. 24, 2020, 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
WHERE: Judge Judy Scheindlin Debate Forum, Wallis Annenberg Hall,
Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, University of
Southern California, 3502 Watt Way, Los Angeles, 90089. Campus parking
costs $14.
MEET THE PANELISTS AND MODERATOR
MODERATOR
MINDY ROMERO is the founder and director of the California Civic
Engagement Project (CCEP) at the University of Southern California’s
Sol Price School of Public Policy, in Sacramento. Romero is a
political sociologist and holds a Ph.D. in Sociology from the
University of California, Davis. Her research focuses on political
behavior and race/ethnicity and seeks to explain patterns of voting
and political underrepresentation, particularly among youth and
communities of color in California and the U.S. Her research has been
cited in major news outlets, including The New York Times, Washington
Post, Los Angeles Times, Sacramento Bee, Politico, and the Huffington
Post. She has also been a frequent guest on National Public Radio,
Capital Public Radio, and several other NPR-affiliated stations in
California. She is a regular op-ed contributor to the Sacramento Bee.
PANELISTS
MARIEL GARZA has been writing editorials and columns about state and
L.A. politics for more than a decade. Before joining The Los Angeles
Times’ editorial board in March 2015, she was deputy editorial page
editor of the Sacramento Bee and is a former editor of the editorial
pages of the L.A. Daily News and Los Angeles News Group. She’s a
graduate of San Francisco State University.
JENNIFER MEDINA is a National Political Correspondent for The New York
Times, covering the 2020 presidential campaign, with a focus on the
West. Her reporting focuses on the way race, immigration and gender is
shaping politics and discourse in our country. A Southern California
native, she previously spent several years reporting on the region for
the National desk. During her time in California, Ms. Medina's
reporting focused on immigration, education, and poverty. She traveled
all over the region examining how public policy impacts people's
lives. She wrote about Disneyland employees living in their cars,
immigration raids, and the state's chronic public education problems.
She has covered breaking news extensively, including several mass
shootings, and is often called upon to find humanity amid tragedy.
Since joining the Times in 2002, she has also covered politics in New
York and Connecticut and spent several years writing about New York
City public schools. She graduated from the University of Southern
California with a degree in print journalism and political science.
She speaks Spanish and Hebrew.
AGUSTIN DURAN is a Metro Editor of La Opinion newspaper. He previously
was a Metro Editor for Hoy Los Angeles and has been working in
different news outlets such as Univision and weekly newspapers in Los
Angeles since 1996. In 2018, he received his master’s degree in Mass
Communication from Cal State University of Northridge and he still has
the hope to leave this world better than he found it. He is an
immigrant from Mexico City, a husband, a father and skeptical to the
bone.
LUIS ALVARADO’S political career began dialing for dollars for the
Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush re-election campaign. After a long
stint in Private industry re-entered political work as deputy press
secretary for the California Republican Party, senior advisor to Meg
Whitman for Governor, Mike Villines for Insurance Commissioner, and
eventually managing campaigns as a senior strategist for Del Beccaro
for US Senate and Judge Bailey for CA Attorney General. Luis also has
experience in candidate election campaigns, public affairs campaign
and issues advocacy. With a higher degree of specialty when it comes
to communicating with diverse communities, as is the Latino community;
or on issues relevant to them. He promotes or dissuades public opinion
utilizing all the most advanced media tools available. Luis is a
political expert and frequently seen on CNN, Univision, Telemundo,
Politico, NPR and various national, international and Spanish-language
media. Luis has held senior positions in risk management for companies
in the hospitality, manufacturing, distribution and insurance
industries.
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