Lola Smallwood-Cuevas

Senator Lola Smallwood-Cuevas is a Democrat representing California's 28th Senate District, encompassing South Los Angeles, West LA, Century City, and surrounding communities ^[1,2]. A former journalist and longtime labor organizer who co-founded the LA Black Worker Center, she assumed office in December 2022 after winning a special election to succeed Sydney Kamlager-Dove ^[2,3]. She identifies as a 'Working Families Democrat,' and while her progressive policy orientation diverges significantly from CFC priorities on many social issues, her legislative record includes noteworthy work supporting pregnant and parenting students and addressing maternal mental health -- areas where family-strengthening values intersect ^[4,5]. With a 15% CFC Biblical Values Scorecard rating, Smallwood-Cuevas's voting record has consistently placed her at considerable distance from the California Family Council's worldview framework on the sanctity of life (Chapter 6), parental authority in education (Chapter 8), and religious liberty (Chapter 9).

Lola Smallwood-Cuevas was raised by a single mother who served as a U.S. military veteran and worked as a home care worker, certified nursing assistant, and registered nurse. Growing up watching her mother navigate the tension between earning a livelihood and raising children, Smallwood-Cuevas developed an early awareness of the economic pressures facing working families. Her family relocated to California in pursuit of better education, union employment, and economic self-sufficiency.

Her 14.3% Biblical Values Scorecard rating across 70 scored floor votes reflects consistent divergence from CFC's worldview framework. Her voting record has supported abortion access expansion over the sanctity of human life, government-directed education over parental authority and school choice, and progressive social mandates over religious liberty protections.

From a CFC perspective, while Senator Smallwood-Cuevas's progressive orientation places her at odds with the organization on many social policy questions, there are genuine areas of worth acknowledging.