Maebe Pudlo, also known as Maebe A. Girl, said they were the first drag queen elected to public office in the country when they were elected to the Silver Lake Neighborhood Council (SLNC) in 2019. Now, Pudlo is running for California State Senate to represent District 26, which includes Highland Park and Eagle Rock. If they win, they will be the first drag performer in the state legislature.
“This district deserves progressive representation, and I’m excited to be in the race,” Pudlo said.
Q: How has your experience on the SLNC prepared you for the CA State Senate?
Pudlo said their eight years of experience on the SLNC have helped them gain a greater understanding of local politics and what the community’s needs are.
“I helped co-found the LA LGBTQ Alliance of Neighborhood Councils, which is across the entire neighborhood council system,” Pudlo said. “[My involvement] in local politics has really allowed me to have an understanding of what’s important to my neighbors, why they vote, or why they don’t vote, and what they would like to see in terms of representation.”
Q: How will being on the state senate differ from your role on the neighborhood council?
According to Pudlo, neighborhood councils have limited power because they serve as advisory boards to the city council, while a position in the state senate would afford Pudlo the power to legislate.
“I’m primarily running because I want to see universal healthcare, housing for all [and] free state college,” Pudlo said. “These are policies that are beneficial to everybody, and they make sure that our most vulnerable neighbors are not left behind.”
Q: What experience outside of politics is relevant to your campaign?
Pudlo works full-time as a project manager at the SELAH Neighborhood Homeless Coalition, an organization that offers outreach programs, material aid and works to connect neighbors who experience homelessness with resources like medical services.
“I started off as a volunteer for this organization […] and I’ve been working full time for SELAH for over a year and a half now,” Pudlo said. “It’s been a real blessing for me.”
Q: Where does your platform land on the political spectrum?
Pudlo is running as a Democrat and identifies as a Democratic Socialist. Pudlo said moving away from the corporatism that has been present in the Democratic Party for the last few decades is the way forward.
“It’s always been important to me to reject corporate influence,” Pudlo said. “Someone who is taking money from pharmaceutical companies is not going to bring you universal healthcare.”
Q: What makes this race different from your past political endeavors?
This election is not Pudlo’s first experience running for higher office: Pudlo ran in three primary races for the U.S. House of Representatives.
“[As] somebody who has been openly queer for a long time, that’s given me a thick skin and has developed a resilience within me,” Pudlo said.
According to Pudlo, a major difference between their past campaigns and this one is that the Congressional districts they previously ran in were home to more conservative and centrist voters.
“What do you think of when you think of a politician? Unfortunately, the stereotype is a cisgender, heterosexual, wealthy, college-educated, white, wealthy male,” Pudlo said. “This is not what our neighborhoods are like, and yet, for some reason, these are the people that are overwhelmingly representing our communities.”
Q: How has being a drag queen influenced the conversation surrounding your campaign?
According to Pudlo, there is a tendency to sensationalize the fact that they are a drag performer and a trans person.
“I think there is something to be said about being a very openly, visibly queer person in the room and having a position of power and a seat at the table,” Pudlo said. “I’m here to show that we are entering a new era of politics where everybody is included and everybody has a voice.”
Contact Ava LaLonde at lalonde@oxy.edu.
