Maxine Waters (CA-43)

Maxine Waters is a Democratic U.S. Representative for California's 43rd congressional district, which includes much of southern Los Angeles and portions of Gardena, Inglewood, and Torrance. She has served since 1991 and is known for her advocacy on economic justice, civil rights, divestment from apartheid South Africa, and opposition to the Iraq War.

Born Maxine Moore Carr on August 15, 1938, in St. Louis, Missouri, as the fifth of 13 children, Waters moved to Los Angeles in 1961. She worked in a garment factory and as a telephone operator before joining the Head Start program in 1966 as an assistant teacher and volunteer coordinator. In 1973, she became chief deputy to City Councilman David S. Cunningham Jr., launching her political career. Elected to the California State Assembly in 1976, she served seven terms until 1991, rising to Democratic Caucus Chair. Key achievements include leading the largest divestment of state pension funds from South Africa, authoring the nation's first statewide Child Abuse Prevention Training Program, landmark affirmative action legislation, tenants' rights laws, prohibition of police strip searches for nonviolent misdemeanors, and California's first plant closure law. In Congress, she has been a prominent Democratic leader, serving on the Democratic National Committee since 1980 and playing key roles in presidential campaigns for Edward Kennedy, Jesse Jackson, and Bill Clinton. She co-founded the Black Women's Forum and Project Build for job training in Los Angeles housing developments. Awards include the Bruce F. Vento Award for work on homelessness, the Candace Award , and the 2025 PFLAG National Champion of Justice award. The Maxine Waters Preparation Center in Watts is named in her honor.

Education and Political Experience

• Education: Earned a B.A. in sociology from California State University, Los Angeles, in 1970.
• Political Experience:
  • Chief deputy to Los Angeles City Councilman David S. Cunningham Jr. .
  • California State Assembly , Democratic Caucus Chair; authored bold legislation on divestment, child abuse prevention, affirmative action, and more.
  • U.S. House of Representatives, California's 43rd District ; re-elected to her seventeenth term in 2022 with over 70% of the vote.
  • Democratic National Committee member ; leader in multiple presidential campaigns.