Assemblywoman Autumn Burke Resigns, Citing 'Unprecedented Challenges' From Pandemic
INGLEWOOD (CBSLA) — In a letter co-signed by her daughter Isabella, state Assemblywoman Autumn R. Burke has resigned, effective immediately.
Burke, 48, announced her resignation Monday to her constituents in a series of tweets. She said she had hoped to finish out her term, which was set to end in December of this year, but her circumstances had recently changed.
"The COVID-19 pandemic has affected the lives and consciousness of everyone, and I am no exception," she said on Twitter. "Over the last two years, we've faced unprecedented challenges as a state and a people."
The assemblywoman represented the 62nd District, which includes Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, El Segundo, and Gardena, the Los Angeles neighborhoods of Westchester, Playa del Rey, Playa Vista, Venice, and Del Rey, and the unincorporated communities of Del Aire, West Athens, Lennox, Westmont and Marina del Rey.
"After taking some personal inventory, I feel it is of the utmost importance that I have the flexibility and ability to spend more time with my family," Burke said.
Burke's presence in the halls of politics started with her own birth – her mother, Yvonne Braithwaite Burke, was the first member of Congress to give birth while in office. When she was first elected in 2014, Burke and her mother – who later served as a former Los Angeles County supervisor and California assemblywoman -- became the first mother and daughter to serve in the Assembly. Her father is William Burke, a former chairman of the South Coast Air Quality Management District Governing Board.
Among Burke's legislative achievements were the creation of the California's Lifting Children and Families Out of Poverty Act, which aimed to reduce deep child poverty by 50%; expanding the Earned Income Tax Credit, the Fact Act requiring all clinics provide clear and accurate information for pregnant women, and efforts to help underprivileged children in her district by providing tablets, computers, eye exams, and eyeglasses. She said she would continue to work on the issues most pressing to the state.
"At the forefront of my work, I will continue to focus on lifting African Americans by helping grow the black voice throughout the entire political process," Burke said.
