VP Kamala Harris swears in East Bay’s new U.S. Rep. Lateefah Simon

U.S. Rep. Lateefah Simon, D-Oakland, was ceremonially sworn in Jan. 7 in Washington, D.C., by her longtime mentor and friend, Vice President Kamala Harris, with whom Simon has shared a decades-long friendship and professional relationship grounded in their shared commitment to public service. Simon’s friends and family joined her in the vice president’s ceremonial U.S. Senate office for the swearing-in ceremony.

“I am so honored to have my mentor and former boss, Vice President Kamala Harris,” Simon said. “Since our time together in the district attorney’s office in San Francisco, the vice president has played an integral role in shaping my public service career, and I have learned so much from her.
“She has also paved the way for women across the nation like me who aspire to serve their country at the highest levels. It was a special moment to stand with her today, look her in the eye and begin my journey as the Congresswoman for California’s 12th District.”

Harris and Simon first met in the late 1990s, when Harris served as a San Francisco assistant district attorney and Simon worked for the Young Women’s Freedom Center. In 2005, then-District Attorney Harris recruited Simon to head the “Back on Track” program, which offered first-time, nonviolent offenders alternatives to incarceration — providing a second chance for participants.

The program became a nationally recognized initiative and the basis for multiple programs across the nation. Simon replaces former longtime U.S. Rep. Barbara Lee in representing California’s 12th Congressional District, which includes Oakland, Piedmont, Emeryville, Berkeley, Alameda, Albany and parts of San Leandro.

— U.S. Rep. Simon’s office