Just a year ago, Councilman David Alvarez was a relative unknown.
The soft-spoken San Diego native regularly showed up at events and press conferences without staffers, and usually left without facing a single reporter.
As a councilman, he struggled to push forward even a modest ordinance to create a foreclosure registry amid a tense relationship with former Mayor Jerry Sanders. (It ultimately prevailed.)
But the mayoral race, where he was buoyed by his own compelling personal narrative and millions of dollars from labor groups, has catapulted him to a contender getting attention from the New York Times and President Barack Obama.
Neither was enough to propel him into the mayor’s office. Republican challenger Kevin Faulconer decisively defeated Alvarez Tuesday.
But the groundswell that emerged to support his candidacy – high-profile national Democrats parachuted in for campaign appearances, and more than 600 volunteers gathered the Saturday before the election walking door to door to rally voters on his behalf – marks a sudden transformation in Alvarez’s nascent political career.
It’s a reality even Alvarez himself likely couldn’t have imagined just months ago.
San Diego Councilman David Alvarez is barred by term limits from running for re-election this year, but he’s not done with local politics. Alvarez has already raised a little more than $119,000 for a bid in 2020 to replace county Supervisor Greg Cox — more than some supervisor candidates running this year have raised.
Read MoreA plan to slash the city of San Diego’s carbon emissions in half in 20 years took another step closer to adoption Monday when the City Council’s Environment Committee voted unanimously to forward it to the full City Council. City Councilman David Alvarez, who chairs the environment committee, said the plan is legally binding, but also called for establishment of a working group to monitor the city's progress.
Read MoreCity Councilman David Alvarez called them together Wednesday afternoon to announce the city finally had all the money it needed to build a sidewalk on the hill between San Ysidro High School and San Ysidro Middle School. “This sidewalk is extremely important to the many students of San Ysidro who use it to go to and from school,” Alvarez said. “And obviously, just as important to the parents, the grandparents and those who care for those kids.”
Read MoreI create an amazing Webflow templates for creative people all around the world and help businesses grow.
