Abel Maldonado (born August 21, 1967 in Santa Maria, California) is a Republican U.S. politician who is currently a California State Senator. He ran unsuccessfully for California State Controller in 2006. Maldonado was the first Republican in the State Senate to vote for the budget during the budget deadlock in 2007. He represents a swing district and is considered a moderate. Prior to serving in the State Senate, Maldonado was a member of the Ca...
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Abel Maldonado (born August 21, 1967 in Santa Maria, California) is a Republican U.S. politician who is currently a California State Senator. He ran unsuccessfully for California State Controller in 2006. Maldonado was the first Republican in the State Senate to vote for the budget during the budget deadlock in 2007. He represents a swing district and is considered a moderate. Prior to serving in the State Senate, Maldonado was a member of the California State Assembly and Mayor of Santa Maria. He achieved financial success as a strawberry farmer.
Maldonado is the eldest son of immigrant Mexican-American farm workers. His family eventually acquired a small family farm, where they raised strawberries. After Maldonado graduated from Santa Maria High School, his family used their earnings from the farm to send him to California Polytechnic State University in San Luis Obispo, where he majored in Crop Science. Maldonado brought his college experience back to his family's farm and helped...
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