WASHINGTON - Filipino-American Kris Valderrama, a young mother and labor advocate, has won a seat in Maryland’s General Assembly in the midterm elections on Nov. 7. It is the same post that her father, David Valderrama, held before he retired a few years ago.
She now becomes the second Filipino American to be elected to a state assembly seat in the East Coast of the United States. The first was her father, David Valderrama, who held the seat for several terms.
In the election, Valderrama got more
votes than she garnered during the Sept. 12 Democratic party primary in Prince
George’s. Valderrama placed second out of the three seats available for the
26th legislative district (Prince George’s County). She obtained a total of
8,129 votes, second only to the first placer with 8,910. The third placer
obtained a vote of 8,078.
At the Sept. 12 primary which was
participated in by four Democratic candidates, she obtained a total of 6,176
votes (13.9 percent), just six votes ahead of the fourth placer.
Because Democrats in Prince George’s County outnumber Republicans
by almost 7 to 1, all three Democratic primary winners were assured of victory
in Nov. 7. The election was a mere formality.
Valderrama also made history by winning
the seat held for four terms by her father.
Kris won the support of almost all
Democratic party leaders in the state of Maryland,
including Prince George’s
County Executive Jack Johnson, who also won reelection handily.
Valderrama said her father “was and still
is a big influence and mentor.”
“I feel honored and privileged, but with
that also comes a bit of pressure. What will people expect of me, how will they
relate to me, compared with my father? All of these things are expected, I
suppose,” she said. “As I’ve said before, and continue to say, I’m only one
person in a field of 141 total delegates in the house. I plan to perform to the
best of my ability in serving my constituents,” she added.
Valderrama ran on the ABC platform
(Advocating the Best for Children) and on working family issues. She currently
works in the public relations department of the American Federation of State,
County and Municipal Employees, which has over a million members and is part of
the top AFL-CIO national labor union. She is also anchor and reporter of
“Valderrama’s America,” a
multi-cultural television newsmagazine covering local, regional community and
political issues on Comcast’s Channel 80 in Maryland and Channel 77 in this capital.
Valderrama is married to Abraham Lobo of Seattle,
Washington and they have two
daughters, Jordan, 4 and Evan, 2.
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