Rep. Jimmy Gomez\u2019s reelection bid, once helped by his high-profile fight against President Trump\u2019s immigration policies, is in peril as he tries to recover from allegations of sexual misconduct.<\/p>\n
The accusations, which Gomez denies, have left the 51-year-old Eagle Rock Democrat vulnerable to an upstart challenger from Highland Park who earned a reputation for antagonism while serving on the area\u2019s neighborhood council.<\/p>\n
Angela Gonzales-Torres, 31, is seizing on Gomez\u2019s issues in the race to represent California\u2019s 34th Congressional District, a Latino-majority territory spanning Koreatown, Boyle Heights, East Los Angeles, Glassell Park and adjacent neighborhoods.<\/p>\n
Gonzales-Torres, who has worked part-time jobs as an academic counselor for formerly incarcerated students and at an affordable housing development, is backed by the Democratic Socialists of America and counts support from other national progressive organizations. <\/p>\n
Over the last week, she campaigned at UC Berkeley alongside fellow progressive Rep. Ro Khanna (D-Fremont), appeared on left-wing streamer Hasan Piker\u2019s show and rallied in Los Angeles with Parkland, Fla., school shooting survivor and activist David Hogg. <\/p>\n
Gonzales-Torres has linked the accusation against Gomez to the politician\u2019s onetime ally former Rep. Eric Swalwell, a Bay Area Democrat who saw his campaign for governor derailed when several women came forward with allegations of impropriety. Swalwell has also denied wrongdoing.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe\u2019re going to take on this apparent culture in Congress in which men appear to abuse their positions of power and abuse women and younger staffers,\u201d she said on Piker\u2019s show.<\/p>\n
In August, attorneys representing a woman released a statement accusing Gomez of sexual assault. Days earlier, the House Ethics Committee had announced an inquiry into Gomez, elected in 2017, over alleged \u201cinappropriate sexual contact with a House staffer.\u201d<\/p>\n
Gomez denied wrongdoing while acknowledging mistakes outside his marriage \u2014 a sharp contrast with his image as the lawmaker who founded the Congressional Dads Caucus to champion family-friendly policies and famously carried his infant son in a baby carrier during the protracted votes for House speaker in 2023.<\/p>\n
Gomez has avoided the public eye since the accusations surfaced, declining media interviews and campaign appearances, giving further momentum to his opponent.<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re trying to fly so far under the radar to not bring attention to the [allegations] or to me,\u201d Gonzales-Torres said during a get-out-the-vote event in Eagle Rock.<\/p>\n
Gonzales-Torres\u2019 history in Highland Park<\/p>\n
Gonzales-Torres, who graduated from UCLA, has described a childhood in Highland Park, where she was raised by her mother after her father was deported to Mexico following a domestic violence charge. <\/p>\n
Reflecting the anxieties of thirtysomethings like herself, she\u2019s talked about going without health insurance, working multiple low-wage jobs and questioning whether she can afford children. <\/p>\n
In 2023, she was elected to the Historic Highland Park Neighborhood Council, on which she served two years advising City Hall on issues and policy matters. She opposed new liquor licenses and took stances against gentrification, a hot-button issue in Highland Park, where some longtime business owners and residents feel squeezed by rising rents. <\/p>\n