From Fresno advocate to political aspirant, Sandra Celedon takes aim at Assembly race
When a local politician announces a run for public office or files the necessary paperwork, my typical reaction is a shrug.
Running for office is what politicians do. Some are so eager they don't even wait for an election to pass before launching campaigns and nabbing endorsements for the next one.
Yes, Fresno City Councilmember Nelson Esparza, that's directed at you.
But when an outspoken community organizer who has successfully advocated for Fresno's least-fortunate residents and its most-neglected neighborhoods enters the political space, my interest gets piqued.
Opinion
This explains how I found myself seated across a restaurant table from Sandra Celedon for her first interview as a candidate for state Assembly in District 31, which covers much of Fresno and a swath of the county. Joaquin Arambula, the seat's current occupant, plans to run for Fresno City Council in 2026 – potentially as a prelude to a mayoral run in 2028.
'With Joaquin Arambula terming out, I don't see a champion for the people of this district. I don't see someone who's willing to fight for them,' Celedon said during our hour-long conversation. 'Over the last two decades I don't think there's anyone who has fought as hard as I have for the people of this community, to be honest …
'Everything I've done at the local level, that's what I want to be able to bring to Sacramento on behalf of the people of Fresno and this Valley. That's why I'm running.'
As president and CEO of Fresno Building Healthy Communities, Celedon is one of the most visible faces and effective leaders of the region's burgeoning social and environmental justice movement. In 2018 her organization's youth interns did much of the legwork and collected signatures for Measure P, Fresno's parks tax, which received 52% approval despite heavy opposition from the mayor, police chief, business groups and influential developers.
Advocates again demonstrated their ballot box might in 2022 when Celedon and fellow nonprofit Leadership Counsel for Justice & Accountability co-spearheaded the No on Measure C campaign that blocked a 30-year extension of the county's transportation tax sought by civic leaders.
Besides subverting the powers-that-be, Celedon has been instrumental in several advocacy efforts that resulted in significant local investments. Foremost among these is the Transformative Climate Communities program that brought in $70 million in state cap-and-trade funds, including nearly $17 million toward construction of the Fresno City College campus in southwest Fresno.
'We were advocating for Fresno to be first to get that money,' she said. 'It didn't just happen.'
Celedon's group has also been involved in multiple lawsuits against businesses and government agencies, including one currently pending in federal court that charges Community Health System of misusing Medi-Cal funds for its Clovis hospital expansion.
It's early yet, but the only other candidate to file paperwork with the California Secretary of State for the AD 31 race is Annalisa Perea. The Fresno city council member has not made a formal announcement.
Celedon certainly appears to be Arambula's choice to succeed him in the Fresno region's most Democrat-leaning assembly district. Her fledgling campaign committee received a $5,900 contribution from Arambula's 2024 account – the maximum allowed by state law – as well as $5,900 donations from attorneys Amelia Arambula (Joaquin's mother and wife of former Fresno County Supervisor Juan Arambula), Amparo Cid and former state lawmaker Sarah Reyes.
'Dr. Arambula didn't recruit me, and neither did the Arambula family. I want to be clear on that,' Celedon said. 'I'm not part of any political dynasty. I'd like to say the reason they are supporting me is because they've seen me in action.'
Celedon grew up and until a few years ago lived in Calwa, an unincorporated community of 2,100 on Fresno's southern outskirts. She is the daughter of Mexican immigrants who began life in the U.S. as farm laborers before advancing to higher-paying jobs that allowed them to scrounge up enough money to buy a house. (Her father worked at a warehouse that manufactured shingles; her mother cleaned hotel rooms.)
Looking back, Celedon credits the stability provided by her parents as the reason she was able to attend Fresno State and set herself up for success. She believes those opportunities have since diminished due to the rising costs of housing, food, gas and electricity combined with the dearth of living-wage jobs.
'I am a working-class person from this district,' Celedon said. 'I understand what it means to have to make a hard decision over which bill to pay this month. I understand what it's like to take care of an elderly parent or handle childcare.
'It's not anecdotal. I've lived the challenges people are experiencing.'
Opinionated and outspoken, Celedon drew scrutiny from certain local news outlets and criticism from conservatives for tweeting 'Burn it down. #BlackLivesMatter. No justice, no peace. Enough is enough' in regard to a Minneapolis police precinct that was torched by rioters following the 2020 death of George Floyd.
Asked about the post, Celedon called it 'a visceral response to what was happening in this country at that time.' Her X account has since been deleted.
'Don't judge me on a tweet – judge me on my actions,' she said. 'I didn't go out and be destructive. I woke up the next day and went to work. That's when I joined the advocacy efforts that led to the Black Lives Matter march that ultimately led to the Fresno Commission on Police Reform.'
Five years later, one of Fresno's most effective community advocates is running for state Assembly. Doubt her at your own peril.
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