Candidate for
State Senator; District 35

Born to a Hispanic father and Italian war bride mother, Louis Dominguez came to the harbor area of Los Angeles/Long Beach at one year of age.

Mr. Dominguez is a graduate of St. Anthony's High School in Long Beach and attended Gonzaga University in Spokane Washington before enlisting in the United States Army. He served as a forward observer in Vietnam where he was twice decorated for valor, receiving a Bronze Star with V and the Army Commendation Medal with V. He was also decorated with the Vietnamese Cross of Gallantry and a Purple Heart. Having been seriously wounded by machine gun fire, he spent nine months in Army hospitals. Today he remains active in the 31st Infantry Regimental Association and maintains affiliations with numerous veterans' groups.

After military service he returned to school at Cal State Dominguez Hills where he earned a BA and later a Master of Science in Administration.

Upon graduation Dominguez was hired as the field Deputy to Assemblyman Vincent Thomas in San Pedro where he also created and served as the first State Legislative Ombudsman. This was followed by a similar position with State Senator Jim Wedworth. He served as the Assistant Committee Consultant to the Public Employee and Retirement Committee of the State Senate in Sacramento where he arranged a series of State Senate hearings on Public Employee Retirement Systems at every level of government in the state.

Following his tenure with the State Legislature, he served in the City of Los Angeles administrations of Mayors Tom Bradley and Richard Riordan, first as an administrator in the Mayor's Office for the Disabled and later as the Director of Computer Operations.

Active in politics since the Kennedy campaign, he served as a delegate to three Democratic Party National Conventions. A member of the State Central Committee for twenty plus years he spent ten years on the Executive Board. During this period he chaired both the Disability Caucus and the Affirmative Action Committee and held membership in the Chicano/Hispanic Caucus.

Following his years of service in government, Mr. Dominguez served as the President and CEO of the Harbor Free Clinic in San Pedro where he raised funds that enabled the clinic to purchase a new building tripling its size expanding both capabilities and services. He was also successful in obtaining an additional site from the County of Los Angeles, through the help of Supervisor Don Knabe, as a pediatric clinic.

Mr. Dominguez also spent considerable time working in the private sector, often consulting with companies seeking to improve marketing and/or sales.

Recently Mr. Dominguez spent 15 years as an educator at the Harbor Community Adult School, specializing in computer technology.

He has been active in many community projects and organizations including as a Coordinator of the San Pedro Volunteer Summit in 1998, Commissioner of Girls Soccer for AYSO Region 6, Nation Chief for the YMCA Indian Princesses, the Cetacean Society, and innumerable volunteer organizations. He served on the Board of Directors of the San Pedro Chamber of Commerce for six years and as the Government Affairs chair. He is a past president of the Palisades Resident Association. He has belonged to the San Pedro Elks Club, the Lions Club, and other local charitable and service organizations. He served as the Assistant Commodore for the Sea Explorers of the Los Angeles Boy Scout Council. He is the recipient of both the Boy Scout Eagle Award and the Sea Explorer Quartermaster Award, the first scout ever to receive both honors on the same night. He enjoys using his knowledge of naval history as a volunteer tour guide on the Battleship Iowa.

He currently serves as an elected member of the San Pedro Coastal Neighborhood Council where he acts as the chair of the Port and Environment Committee.

For seventeen years he chaired the Vincent Thomas Bridge Lighting Committee, a citizens group, which raised the funds to beautify the most recognizable architectural feature in the LA harbor, the one feature that has come to symbolize San Pedro and is the official welcoming monument to the City of Los Angeles.

Mr. Dominguez is married to the Suzanne and has three daughters: Jacqueline, a high school counselor, who lives in Santa Cruz with her husband and three children; Christiana, a Sacramento attorney specializing in Labor Relations, married with one child; and Mallory, a credentialed middle school teacher.