Ahead of the June primary election, the Southern California News Group compiled a list of questions to pose to the candidates who wish to represent you. You can find the full questionnaire below. Questionnaires may have been edited for spelling, grammar, length and, in some instances, to remove hate speech and offensive language.
Name: Eric Alegria
Current job title: Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District Board Member and Chief Operating Officer, Wellness Equity Alliance
Political party affiliation: Democratic
Incumbent: No
Other political positions held: • Current: Board Member, Palos Verdes Peninsula Unified School District (Elected 2024) • Former: Mayor & City Councilmember, Rancho Palos Verdes (2017–2024)
City where you reside: Rancho Palos Verdes
Campaign website or social media: ericalegria.com
Do you believe balancing the state budget should rely more on spending cuts, new revenue streams or a combination? Tell us how you would propose tackling California’s projected budget deficit. (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
As the son of an accountant, I learned that responsible budgeting isn’t about saying no to everything. It’s about making smart choices, so you have the resources to invest in what matters most.
That’s how I governed during my seven years on the Rancho Palos Verdes City Council. Working with my colleagues, we reduced taxes, responded to a pandemic, managed a historic landslide emergency, and invested in the community’s future, all while maintaining a balanced budget every year.
California’s most important responsibilities are those that lay the foundation for opportunity, including education, health care, public safety, and infrastructure. These investments keep our economy strong, protect our quality of life, and ensure families have a fair starting line. Across-the-board cuts that weaken these areas are short-sighted and ultimately more costly.
As a Chief Operating Officer with decades of experience in health care, I know the balance needed to protect essential services while demanding accountability and efficiency. In the State Senate, I’ll closely review programs to ensure taxpayer dollars are spent effectively, reduce waste and administrative inefficiencies, and prioritize evidence-based programs that deliver real results. Protecting the social safety net is both a moral obligation and a smart economic choice.
When it comes to revenue, I am open to responsible, sustainable measures that reflect our shared values and ensure everyone pays their fair share. My goal is long-term fiscal stability rooted in fairness, opportunity, and responsibility so California can continue to thrive even in challenging economic times.
For you, what’s a non-starter when talking about budget cuts? Why? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
I’ve managed budgets in both the public and private sectors, including balancing Rancho Palos Verde’s city budget through the pandemic and leading health care organizations that stretched every dollar. When times get tough, I know that how you cut matters as much as what you cut.
The non-starter for me is cutting our way out of a deficit by removing the floor from under people who are already struggling.
Public safety, education, health care, and support for small businesses aren’t lined up items to negotiate away. They’re the foundation that makes everything else possible. When those erode, communities pay twice: once in reduced services, and again in the long-term costs that follow.
With 163,507 residents in Senate District 24 enrolled in Medi-Cal, cuts to health care lead to more emergency room visits.
Cuts to education limit opportunities and hurt our workforce. The long-term consequences are more expensive than the short-term savings.
What I do support is a genuine discipline around efficiency, accountability, and outcomes. Before cutting out services, we should ask whether we’re spending wisely and whether resources are reaching the people they’re intended to serve.
If additional revenue is needed to protect essential services, that conversation should start with those most able to contribute, not end with those least able to absorb the loss.
What are the top three most pressing issues facing the state, and what would you propose, as a state legislator, to address them? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
I learned something as a competitive runner: if we want people to succeed, they need to start from the same line. Right now, too many Californians aren’t.
First, affordability and economic opportunity. Families are working hard but falling behind. Utility and Insurance costs are rising, small businesses face unnecessary red tape, and good jobs are leaving the state. I’ll expand job training and apprenticeships that lead to good-paying careers, cut barriers for small businesses, invest in workforce housing so essential workers can afford to live where they work, and strengthen incentives to keep industries like entertainment here.
Second, healthcare. As a father of four and an 18-year leader in healthcare, I know how personal this is. I’ll protect and strengthen Medi-Cal, lower prescription drug costs by leveraging California’s purchasing power, and hold insurers accountable, while investing in preventive care, mental health services, and community clinics.
Third, public safety and emergency preparedness. People deserve to feel safe at home and in their communities. I’ll fully fund first responders, invest in wildfire prevention and early detection technology, and ensure accountability so public safety and homelessness funding actually deliver results.
My focus is straightforward: remove obstacles and give every Californian a fair shot to succeed.
What specific policy would you champion in the statehouse to improve the cost of living for residents? Would you see this having an immediate impact on Californians or would it take some time? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
Too many Californians are working hard and still falling behind, not because they aren’t trying, but because unnecessary obstacles are stacked against them. Removing those obstacles is what I’ve spent my career doing, and it’s exactly what I’ll focus on in Sacramento.
The specific policy area I’d champion is expanding access to good-paying jobs and reducing the cost of doing business in California. That means strengthening film and television tax credits to bring production and thousands of union jobs back to Los Angeles, where we’re watching an industry that built this region slowly leave it. As a former California Film Commissioner, I’ve seen firsthand how these incentives work and what’s at stake when we let them weaken.
It also means cutting unnecessary red tape for small businesses, expanding job training and apprenticeship programs that create career pathways without requiring a four-year degree, and increasing access to capital for entrepreneurs who want to grow and hire locally.
On health care costs, another major driver of financial stress, I’d push to lower prescription drug prices by leveraging California’s purchasing power and holding insurers accountable for timely payments and maintaining coverage.
Some of this, like streamlining business regulations, can have a relatively quick impact. Job training and industry incentives build momentum over time. But the direction matters: every decision should make it easier, not harder, for people to stay and succeed here.
There have been numerous efforts made in the state legislature to curtail federal immigration enforcement in California, from prohibitions on agents wearing masks to banning federal officers from future employment in a public agency. Do you see any area where the state could better protect its residents from the federal government’s widespread immigration crackdown? Would you prefer the state work more hand-in-hand with the federal government on immigration? Where does the role as a state legislator fall into your beliefs here? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
Growing up, I spent summers working alongside farmworkers in apple warehouses. Those experiences shaped how I see people: as neighbors and contributors, not as threats. That perspective guides how I approach this issue.
As a state senator, my role will be to protect public safety and ensure every resident can access essential services without fear. Those two goals are connected. When people are afraid to report a crime, call 911, or take a sick child to the doctor, our entire community is less safe. Our state’s policies for protecting immigrants are about ensuring local law enforcement can do their jobs effectively, built on community trust.
I do not believe state and local agencies should be diverted into federal immigration enforcement. That erodes the trust our public safety systems depend on.
I take a practical view of where state authority ends and federal jurisdiction begins. I’m less interested in symbolic fights and more focused on real outcomes: ensuring Medi-Cal access remains intact, supporting legal aid organizations that help people navigate an increasingly complex system, and standing with DREAMers and mixed-status families who are part of the fabric of our communities.
The state’s job is to be a steady, reliable partner to its residents, not an instrument of federal enforcement against them.
Health care costs — like in many other areas — are continuing to rise. What policies, specifically, would you support or like to champion that could lower premiums or out-of-pocket expenses? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
I’ve spent 18 years working inside health care systems, most recently as COO of Wellness Equity Alliance and as a strategic advisor helping community health centers implement state programs. I’ve seen firsthand where the money goes and where patients get left behind. That experience drives everything I’d champion in Sacramento.
I’ll focus on three key areas: reigning in prescription drug costs, holding insurers accountable, and investing in preventative and community-based care.
California has the purchasing power to negotiate lower drug prices meaningfully through multi-state buying pools. We should be using it more. Too many patients I’ve encountered in community clinics are rationing medications because the cost is simply out of reach.
Prior authorization delays, denied claims, and slow reimbursements don’t just frustrate patients; they drive up costs for everyone and push community clinics to the financial edge. I’d push for stronger oversight, faster payment requirements, and real consequences for insurers who don’t deliver on their obligations.
Preventive and community-based care. The most expensive care is the emergency care we could have avoided. Investing in community health clinics and preventive services reduces long-term costs for the system and for families. I’ve helped build these systems at the operational level. I know what it takes to make them work.
Some reforms, like insurer accountability measures, can move quickly. Others, like shifting care toward prevention, pay off over time. The goal is simple: a health system where resources reach patients, not more bureaucracy.
Would you support expanding state health care programs to ensure more residents — including those who are not citizens — are covered? How would you propose the state fund such an expansion? Or, how would you propose the people who cannot afford health care still get the necessary care they need without expanding state programs? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
As the COO of Wellness Equity Alliance, we run street medicine programs, community clinics, and Title X women’s health services for some of the most vulnerable people in Los Angeles. Many of them are undocumented. What I have learned throughout my career is that people don’t skip the doctor because they don’t care about their health. They skip it because the obstacles are too high. Cost, fear, not knowing where to turn.
By the time many of them came to us, a small problem had become a serious one. That’s harder on the patient and more expensive for everyone.
So yes, I support continuing California’s expansion of Medi-Cal regardless of immigration status. It reflects both our values and our practical interest in a healthier, more economically stable state.
The sustainability question is real, and I take it seriously. My focus would be on protecting existing funding from federal rollbacks, reducing administrative waste, and using California’s purchasing power to lower prescription drug costs across the system.
And we should invest more in community health clinics. In my experience, they are the most effective and efficient way to reach people who might otherwise go without care. When we support them, we lower costs across the entire system.
Everyone deserves the same starting line when it comes to their health.
As part of combating homelessness, elected officials often talk about the need to prevent people from losing their homes in the first place. What policies or programs should the state adopt to make housing more affordable for renters and homeowners? What do you propose the state do to incentivize housing development and expedite such projects? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
When the Portuguese Bend landslides destroyed hundreds of homes in my community, I watched families’ properties become unlivable overnight. And when the Palisades fire tore through communities just up the coast, we saw it again: families scrambling for rentals they couldn’t afford, discovering their insurance wouldn’t cover what they thought it would, and realizing how thin the margin between stability and crisis actually is for most people.
Those experiences shaped how I think about housing. Homelessness rarely starts on the street. It usually starts with a job loss, a medical bill, a rent increase, or a disaster. Prevention means catching people before they fall that far.
I’ll focus on protecting and expanding first-time homebuyer programs so teachers, nurses, and first responders can afford to live in the communities they serve. I’ll support regional approaches like the South Bay Regional Housing Trust, where cities pool resources and local voices shape solutions rather than having mandates handed down from Sacramento. I’ve seen what happens when communities have ownership over their plans. They actually get built.
We need to cut unnecessary delays on developments, but the path forward is working with local governments, not around them. On homelessness, I’ll push for accountability and invest in proven models like Redondo Beach’s care court and transitional housing program, which has successfully connected people experiencing mental illness to treatment and permanent housing. That’s the kind of result-driven approach we should be scaling.
Housing stability is the starting line for everything else.
Gov. Gavin Newsom signed a law in 2023 authorizing state energy regulators to penalize oil companies making excessive profits. But the California Energy Commission put off imposing the penalties last year after two oil refineries, which represent nearly a fifth of California’s refining capacity, said they would shut down operations. Those announcements prompted many to be concerned about soaring gas prices. What do you think of the commission’s decision? And how would you, as a state legislator, propose balancing California’s climate goals with protecting consumers from high gas prices at the pump? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
This is about balance. We have to meet our climate goals, but we also have to make sure the transition doesn’t make life more expensive for families or leave workers behind.
I understand why the Energy Commission paused penalties. When nearly a fifth of our refining capacity is at risk, we have to take the impact on gas prices seriously—because working families feel that immediately at the pump.
As a state senator, my focus would be on managing the transition responsibly. That means continuing to move toward cleaner energy, while ensuring stability in the short term, so prices don’t spike and disrupt people’s lives.
We need greater transparency and oversight, so we understand price fluctuations and prevent price gouging. We should invest in alternatives, like electric vehicles, public transit, and clean energy infrastructure, so families have real, affordable options beyond gas. We also must support workers in the energy sector with job training and pathways into good-paying clean energy jobs.
California can lead on climate, but we have to do it in a way that’s practical, affordable, and fair.
That means protecting consumers today while building a cleaner, more sustainable future for tomorrow.
In 2024, voters approved Proposition 36 to increase penalties for certain drug and retail theft crimes and make available a drug treatment option for some who plead guilty to felony drug possession. Would you, as a legislator, demand that more funding for behavioral health treatments be included in the budget? How would you ensure that money is used properly? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
Public safety has been the center of my work as an elected official. As mayor, I brought together law enforcement, neighboring cities, and community leaders to build a Peninsula-wide public safety response plan. It took real coordination and trust-building across jurisdictions. We delivered, and Rancho Palos Verdes was named the fourth-safest city in California. Lasting public safety isn’t just about enforcement. It’s about removing the obstacles that create unsafe conditions in the first place.
Proposition 36 reflects something voters have been telling us for a long time: accountability and results matter. I agree. But a law that creates pathways to treatment only works if treatment is actually available. That gap is where the state needs to step up, and I will push hard to make sure behavioral health funding is in the budget.
I’ll insist on accountability, because I’ve seen what happens when it’s missing. Hundreds of millions of dollars in homelessness funding sitting unspent in Los Angeles while people remain on the streets is simply unacceptable. We need clear metrics, real coordination between agencies, and someone willing to ask hard questions when the money isn’t reaching people.
We already have a model worth scaling. Redondo Beach’s CARE Court and transitional housing program has connected people experiencing serious mental illness to treatment and stable housing. That’s local coordination producing real results.
The goal is a system that balances accountability with real access to care. That’s how we reduce recidivism, improve outcomes, and make communities safer.
What role should the state play in ensuring hospitals and doctors are providing gender-affirming care to LGBTQ+ residents? Similarly, what role do you believe the state could play should other states adopt policies that restrict that care? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
I think about this through the lens of every parent’s most basic hope: that their child can grow up healthy, safe, and able to get the care they need. For too many LGBTQ+ young people and their families, that’s not the reality, and the barriers they face are real and serious.
California has a responsibility to make sure every resident can access medically appropriate care, and that includes gender-affirming care. Hospitals, clinics, and insurers should follow established medical standards and ensure access without discrimination. These are decisions that belong between patients, their families, and their doctors, not politicians.
I’ve spent 18 years working in health care, and one thing I’ve seen consistently is that when people can’t access the care they need, the consequences go far beyond physical health. For LGBTQ+ youth especially, access to supportive, affirming care is directly tied to mental health outcomes. That’s not ideology. That’s what the research shows and what providers on the front lines experience every day.
When other states move to restrict this care, California should be ready to serve as a place where patients can seek treatment, and providers can practice medicine without political interference. That means protecting patient privacy, ensuring legal safeguards for providers, and maintaining coverage through Medi-Cal and private insurance.
Every child deserves to feel safe and cared for. That’s a value I hold as a parent, and it’s one I’ll carry into Sacramento.
Governments around the world are increasingly considering an age ban or other restrictions on social media use among young people, citing mental health and other concerns. Do you believe it’s the state’s responsibility to regulate social media use? Why or why not? And what specific restrictions or safeguards would you propose as a state lawmaker? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
My wife and I have four kids in school, and like every parent, we’re navigating questions about screens, apps, and social media in real time. I’ve sat in school board meetings where teachers and counselors describe what they’re seeing. Kids are coming to school exhausted, anxious, and increasingly disconnected from each other despite being constantly connected online. It’s something I think about as a parent long before I think about it as a candidate.
I believe the state has a role here. Not to replace parents’ judgment but to set guardrails that make it easier for families to protect their kids in a digital environment that is evolving much faster than our laws.
The specific safeguards I’d focus on are stronger age verification requirements, default privacy protections for minors, and real limits on the features platforms use to keep kids scrolling late into the night. I’d also push for greater transparency from companies about how their algorithms target young users, and better tools for parents, so they actually have visibility into what their kids are experiencing online.
I’ve watched other places, including Australia, take meaningful steps in this space. California should be having that same conversation seriously and acting on what the research is showing us about mental health impacts on adolescents.We can protect kids without banning technology. It just takes the will to actually do it.
Artificial intelligence has become a ubiquitous part of our lives. Yet public concerns remain that there aren’t enough regulations governing when or how AI should be used, and that the technology would replace jobs and leave too many Californians unemployed. How specifically would you balance such concerns with the desire to foster innovation and have California remain a leader in this space? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
Artificial intelligence presents both an opportunity and a responsibility. California should lead in innovation, but we also have to make sure that progress doesn’t leave people behind.
I believe the balance starts with clear, thoughtful guardrails. We need transparency around how AI is being used, especially in areas like hiring, health care, and public services, so people aren’t being unfairly impacted by decisions they don’t understand or can’t challenge. We should also establish basic standards to prevent misuse and protect privacy.
At the same time, we can’t regulate in a way that stifles innovation. California is the global leader in technology, and we should continue to foster that by supporting responsible AI development and partnering with industry, universities, and workers to shape smart policy.
A big part of this is protecting workers and preparing for the future of work. That means investing in job training, reskilling, and apprenticeship programs so workers can transition into new roles as technology evolves. We should also work with industries most impacted, especially the entertainment and creative sectors, to ensure AI is used to support workers, not replace them unfairly.
Ultimately, this is about making sure innovation works for people. We can lead the world in AI while still ensuring every Californian has a fair shot to succeed in a changing economy.
Statistically, violent crime rates in California is on the decline, but still, residents are not feeling safe or at ease in their communities. How do you see your role in the state legislature in addressing the underlying issues that make Californians feel unsafe in their own neighborhoods? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
I hear this everywhere I go, and I understand it personally. My own home was broken into. I know what it feels like to have that sense of security shattered, to look at your kids and wonder whether you’re doing enough to keep them safe. That experience never leaves you, and it’s part of why public safety has always been at the center of my work as an elected official.
When I served on the Rancho Palos Verdes City Council, I didn’t just talk about making our community safer; I built the infrastructure for it. We formed the Peninsula Public Safety Committee, bringing together council members from all four Peninsula cities to create the region’s first coordinated public safety strategy across law enforcement, fire, and emergency leaders. We expanded AI camera technology for wildfire detection, grew our automated license plate recognition program, helped neighborhoods install security cameras, placed school resource officers at our high schools, and created PVPready.gov so residents always knew where to turn in a crisis. Our work resulted in Rancho Palos Verdes being named the fourth-safest city in California.
People feel safe when they trust that someone is paying attention and that help will actually show up. That trust is built through coordination, consistency, and accountability, not just enforcement.
In Sacramento, I’ll fully fund our first responders, get more people through our fire and police academies, strengthen coordination between agencies, and demand accountability for every public safety dollar spent.
Public safety is about removing every obstacle between families and the security they deserve.
What’s a hidden talent you have? (Please answer in 250 words or less.)
CrossFit is how I stay grounded. People are sometimes surprised by that, but it connects back to who I’ve always been. I ran track and cross country at Gonzaga University, and that competitive mindset never really left me. These days, I channel it into coaching youth sports on weekends and pushing myself in the gym. What I love about CrossFit is that it’s not about being the best in the room. It’s about consistency, showing up, and bringing the people around you along with you.
That philosophy is what led me to co-own a gym in West LA. I had met a lot of independent trainers who were getting quietly pushed out of the bigger gyms. These incredibly skilled coaches were being sidelined in favor of in-house trainers and suddenly had no place to go. My business partner and I saw an opening: build a gym that actually worked for them. We created a system where trainers kept 100% of their training revenue, and we earned the membership fees. At our peak, we had over 100 independent trainers and nearly 1,500 members.
COVID nearly took it all. We negotiated our way through, survived, and we’re still running today. For years, I did the bookkeeping myself on top of my full-time job. You learn quickly what it means to run a small business when there’s no safety net.
But honestly, the gym, the coaching, the running — it all comes from the same place. Get in the work, support the people around you, and trust the process.