Alisha Cordes

Economy Too many East Bay families do everything right and still get squeezed. My parents worked themselves to the bone (corporate hours and graveyard shifts), and the family still lost its footing in 2008. Steady benefits, a fair shot, and an economy that doesn't feel rigged against the hardworking aren't political abstractions. They're what working families in this district need. Housing Housing in the East Bay has become a barrier for the families and workers who built this district. I've been a renter and am now a homeowner. I know what mortgages, rent hikes, and the cost of staying in the place you've built a life actually feel like in this part of the Bay, and I'm bringing that lived understanding to Washington. Social Services Childcare is one of the largest hidden costs of raising a family in California. I've been the young mother priced out of childcare and the stay-at-home parent. I know what families are stretching to afford and what holds them back from a fair shot. Access to childcare is what lets parents work, what lets kids thrive, and what lets the East Bay keep moving.