The Hill’s 2012 New Members Guide

Rep.-elect Alan Lowenthal (D-Calif.-47)

DATE OF BIRTH: March 8, 1941

BIRTHPLACE: New York City

RESIDENCE: Long Beach, Calif.

OCCUPATION: Professor 

EDUCATION: B.A., Hobart College; Ph.D., Ohio State University

PREVIOUS OFFICE HELD: California State Senate (2005-present); California State Assembly (1998-2004)

FAMILY: Wife, Deborah; two children

Alan Lowenthal, a former California state senator, partly credits himself for the creation of the body that drew his newly minted district. 

Along with job creation and environmental stewardship, Lowenthal says his top accomplishments are in government reform. On his website, he credits himself as the first legislator to fight for an independent commission that headed redistricting after the 2010 Census, which led to an increase in the number of competitive races in California. 

He is a seven-year member of the state Senate, where he sat as vice chairman of the Legislative Ethics Committee and chaired the Education Committee and Transportation Committee. Before that, he served six years in the state Assembly and sat on the Long Beach City Council. 

Lowenthal holds a Ph.D. in psychology and is a professor at California State University, Long Beach. 

The 47th district encompasses Long Beach and Orange County, holding about a 10-point Democratic registration advantage.