Rep. Judy Chu Sworn In for Ninth Term, Warns of Political Challenges Ahead

Rep. Judy Chu was sworn into the 119th Congress on Friday to begin her ninth term representing California’s 28th Congressional District, warning of challenges ahead under what she described as a second Trump presidency and unified Republican control of Washington.

Chu, who made history in 2009 as the first Chinese American woman elected to Congress, represents a District encompassing Pasadena and the West San Gabriel Valley. She serves on the House Ways and Means Committee overseeing legislation related to taxes, Social Security, and Medicare, as well as the House Small Business Committee and House Budget Committee.

“It’s the honor of a lifetime to continue serving the San Gabriel Valley in Congress,” Chu said. “I am humbled that the people of California’s 28th Congressional District have entrusted me again with the responsibility of representing them.”

Chu said she is “clear-eyed” about immense challenges ahead. “A dangerous path lies ahead, but we’ve faced Donald Trump and a MAGA Congress before. We’ve organized, and we’ve defeated their agenda,” she said. “I will do my part in Congress to stand up against any Republican efforts to tear communities apart by deporting millions, depriving women of reproductive rights, firing federal workers who make this country run, and cutting Social Security and Medicare so billionaires and wealthy corporations can get a tax cut.”

Throughout her tenure, Chu has championed civil rights, successfully passing legislation including a resolution of regret for the Chinese Exclusion Act of 1882. She has been a vocal opponent of the overturning of Roe v. Wade and recently voted against the 2023 Fiscal Responsibility Act.

On foreign policy, Chu initially supported aid to Israel following the 2023 Hamas attack but later voted against additional offensive military assistance, citing humanitarian concerns in Gaza.

Prior to Congress, Chu served on the Garvey Unified School District Board of Education, the Monterey Park City Council — where she was Mayor three times — and in the California State Assembly. She recently secured nearly $1 million in federal funding for Pasadena’s new Sunset Complex Project Groundwater Treatment Facility, aimed at enhancing the city’s water security and climate resilience.