Key Facts
Background
| Bonta earned his Bachelor’s and Law degrees from Yale University. He also studied at Oxford University for one year. He has served as Attorney General since 2021 when he was appointed by Governor Newsom to replace former Attorney General Xavier Becerra. Prior to serving as Attorney General, Bonta was a member of the State Assembly, representing the East Bay since 2012. He also served as San Francisco Deputy City Attorney and sat on the Alameda City Council. He worked at the San Francisco law firm Keker & Van Nest. Bonta was born in the Philippines but moved to California when he was two months old and grew up in the Central Valley. |
Key Issues
Guns
Bonta supports expanding programs that bring communities and law enforcement together, as well as programs that take guns away from people with a history of domestic abuse. Bonta successfully defended California’s ban on large-capacity magazines in court. As Attorney General, he has also joined a lawsuit targeting three online sellers of “ghost guns,” the untraceable firearms made from build-it-yourself kits. Bonta helped sponsor Assembly Bill 1594, which requires gun manufacturers and distributors to make reasonable efforts to prevent their products from being used unlawfully.
Hate Crimes
Bonta supports working with law enforcement and engaging in outreach to fight growing hate crimes in California, and especially in Sacramento. He previously issued special reports on hate crime data and solutions in California.
Human Trafficking and Sexual Predation
Bonta supports working with law enforcement to expand programs that support victims of crime. He wants to clear the rape kit backlog. As Attorney General, Bonta filed a motion to dismiss 10 sex crime charges against surgeon Grant Robicheaux. As an Assembly Member, Bonta co-authored AB 1517, which would give resources to reduce the backlog of untested rape kits. As Attorney General, he also launched a new Regional Human Trafficking and Sexual Predator Apprehension Team.
Healthcare and Abortion
Bonta wants to defend mental health benefits, support opioid victims, and improve abortion access. He previously called for healthcare facilities and providers to fully comply with state data privacy laws and report when there have been breaches in data. He approved the expansion of healthcare services in Riverside County and is suing the Aliera Companies for offering sham health insurance plans to Californians. Bonta worked with 24 state attorneys general to file a brief urging the Supreme Court to maintain Roe v. Wade.
Criminal Justice
Bonta supports reducing bias and increasing transparency. He previously fought to end cash bail and stop elected prosecutors from receiving financial and political support from law enforcement unions. He has sought to phase out private prisons and immigration detention centers, clear old marijuana-related convictions, and create just cause requirements for evicting tenants. Bonta helped pass a law establishing a state Justice Department division to investigate police killings of unarmed civilians.
Economy and Environment
Bonta supports prosecuting polluters, increasing worker protections, and taking legal actions against multinational corporations. For example, Bonta sued Walmart for environmental violations, including illegal dumping of hazardous waste products at local landfills. He wants to reduce the power of big tech and introduce consumer choice and competition. As Attorney General, Bonta announced that Amazon had to pay California $500,000 for ‘concealing’ COVID cases among workers. He previously expanded the California Bureau of Environmental Justice. Bonta worked with three other state attorneys general to call on the Bureau of Land Management to take climate change and environmental justice into full account when making decisions about coal leasing on federal lands.
Immigration
Bonta supports increasing immigrant protections. He previously pushed for more transparency from law enforcement agencies about their cooperation with federal immigration authorities, and has sought better data collection on AAPI communities. He has also worked to require law enforcement to obtain consent from someone in custody before allowing ICE agents to interview them and to expedite the review of pardon requests for immigrants facing deportation. Bonta also sued to block policies that would strong-arm local law enforcement to cooperate with immigration authorities, insert a question about immigration status into the US census, or end the DACA program.
Endorsements
Governor Gavin Newsom
Lt. Governor Eleni Kounalakis
Secretary of State Shirley Weber
Controller Betty Yee
Treasurer Fiona Ma
Insurance Commissioner Ricardo Lara
Superintendent of Public Instruction Tony Thurmond
U.S. Senator Alex Padilla
Congressman Mike Thompson
Congressman Mark DeSaulnier
Congressman Eric Swalwell
Congressman Jim Costa
Congressman Anna Eshoo
Congressman Salud Carbajal
Congresswoman Julia Brownley
Congresswoman Judy Chu
Congresswoman Grace Napolitano
Congressman Ted Lieu
Congressman Jimmy Gomez
Congresswoman Karen Bass
Congressman Mark Takano
Congresswoman Nanette Barragán
Congressman Lou Correa
Congressman Alan Lowenthal
Congressman Mike Levin
Congressman Juan Vargas
Congressman Scott Peters
American Federation of State, County, and Municipal Employees
Asian American Action Fund
Brady PAC
Building and Construction Trades Council of Alameda County
California Association of Psychiatric Technicians
California Faculty Association
California Federation of Teachers
California Nurses Association
California Professional Firefighters
California Teachers Association
Courage California
Equality California
NARAL Pro-Choice CA
National Asian Pacific Islander Prosecutors Association
SEIU California
Stonewall Democratic Club
Teamsters Joint Council 7
Teamsters Joint Council 42
State Senator Ben Allen
State Senator Bob Archuleta
State Senator Josh Becker
State Senator Steve Bradford
State Senator Anna Caballero
State Senator Dave Cortese
State Senator Bill Dodd
State Senator Maria Elena Durazo
State Senator Susan Eggman
State Senator Lena Gonzalez
State Senator Ben Hueso
State Senator John Laird
State Senator Connie Leyva
State Senator Monique Limon
State Senator Sydney Kamlager
State Senator Mike McGuire
State Senator Dave Min
State Senator Josh Newman
State Senator Richard Pan
State Senator Anthony Portantino
State Senator Richard Roth
State Senator Nancy Skinner
State Senator Henry Stern
State Senator Tom Umberg
State Senator Bob Wieckowski
State Senator Scott Wiener
Speaker Anthony Rendon
Assemblymember Cecilia Aguiar-Curry
Assemblymember Joaquin Arambula
Assemblymember Rebecca Bauer-Kahan
Assemblymember Steve Bennett
Assemblymember Marc Berman
Assemblymember Richard Bloom
Assemblymember Tasha Boerner-Horvath
Assemblymember Mia Bonta
Assemblymember Isaac Bryan
Assemblymember Lisa Calderon
Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo
Assemblymember Ed Chau
Assemblymember David Chiu (ret.)
Assemblymember Tom Daly
Assemblymember Chris Holden
Assemblymember Laura Friedman
Assemblymember Jesse Gabriel
Assemblymember Eduardo Garcia
Assemblymember Mike Gipson
Assemblymember Eloise Gomez Reyes
Assemblymember Lorena Gonzalez
Assemblymember Tim Grayson
Assemblymember Reggie Jones-Sawyer
Assemblymember Ash Kalra
Assemblymember Evan Low
Assemblymember Brian Maienschein
Assemblymember Kevin McCarty
Assemblymember Jose Medina
Assemblymember Kevin Mullin
Assemblymember Al Muratsuchi
Assemblymember Adrin Nazarian
Assemblymember Patrick O’Donnell
Assemblymember Bill Quirk
Assemblymember Sharon Quirk-Silva
Assemblymember James Ramos
Assemblymember Freddie Rodriguez
Assemblymember Luz Rivas
Assemblymember Robert Rivas
Assemblymember Rudy Salas
Assemblymember Miguel Santiago
Assemblymember Mark Stone
Assemblymember Phil Ting
Assemblymember Chris Ward
Assemblymember Jim Wood
Assemblymember Akilah Weber
Mayor London Breed (San Francisco)
Mayor Eric Garcetti (Los Angeles)
Mayor Robert Garcia (Long Beach)
Mayor Todd Gloria (San Diego)
Mayor Sam Liccardo (San Jose)
Mayor Farrah Khan (Irvine)
Former Mayor Mark Pulido (Cerritos)
Mayor Vicente Sarmiento (Santa Ana)
Mayor Libby Schaaf (Oakland)
Mayor Darrell Steinberg (Sacramento)
Supervisor Luis Alejo (Monterey County)
Supervisor Nathan Fletcher (San Diego)
Councilmember Marni von Wilper (San Diego)
Councilmember Raul Campillo (San Diego)
City Attorney Mara Elliott (San Diego)
Sources
Office of the CA Attorney General