Charlene Zettel (née Gonzales) (born May 26, 1947) served in the

California State Assembly The California State Assembly is the lower house of the California State Legislature (the upper house being the California State Senate). The Assembly convenes, along with the State Senate, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento, Califor ...

from 1999 until 2002. Ms. Zettel was born in

East Los Angeles, California East Los Angeles (), or East L.A., is an Unincorporated area#United States, unincorporated community and census designated place (CDP) situated within Los Angeles County, California, United States. According to the United States Census Bureau, ...

. She attended Flintridge Sacred Heart Academy in La Canada-Flintridge and then earned her bachelor's degree in

dental hygiene Oral hygiene is the practice of keeping one's oral cavity clean and free of disease and other problems (e.g. bad breath) by regular brushing of the teeth (dental hygiene) and adopting good hygiene habits. It is important that oral hygiene be carr ...

from

University of Southern California The University of Southern California (USC, SC, or Southern Cal) is a Private university, private research university in Los Angeles, California, United States. Founded in 1880 by Robert M. Widney, it is the oldest private research university in ...

, where she was one of the original USC Song Girls. While serving in the State Assembly, Zettel worked for the passage of "Oliver's Law", which provides parents with information about day care providers. She was also the first Republican Latina elected to the State Assembly. She stepped down with one term to go before term limits would have claimed her in order to run for the

California State Senate The California State Senate is the upper house of the California State Legislature (the lower house being the California State Assembly). The state senate convenes, along with the state assembly, at the California State Capitol in Sacramento. ...

, but lost that election to

Dennis Hollingsworth Dennis Clark Hollingsworth (born January 12, 1967) is an American politician who represented California's 36th State Senate district, which includes portions of San Diego and Riverside County, from 2002 to 2010. In 2000, Hollingsworth was electe ...

, who claimed 54% of the vote while Zettel claimed 46%. She was appointed the Director of the Department of Consumer Affairs in March 2004 by Governor

Arnold Schwarzenegger Arnold Alois Schwarzenegger (born July30, 1947) is an Austrian and American actor, businessman, former politician, and former professional bodybuilder, known for his roles in high-profile action films. Governorship of Arnold Schwarzenegger, ...

. Charlene Zettel was appointed University of California Regent by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger in 2009 and served until her term expired on March 1, 2021. She is also a board member of the

San Diego San Diego ( , ) is a city on the Pacific coast of Southern California, adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a population of over 1.4 million, it is the List of United States cities by population, eighth-most populous city in t ...

Regional Airport Authority and a former public interest director of the Federal Home Loan Bank of San Francisco. Also in 2009, she was appointed director for the San Diego Office of the Governor. Zettel has been married to David for 40 years; the couple has two adult sons.

References

# Politicians from Los Angeles University of Southern California alumni Republican Party members of the California State Assembly Women state legislators in California Hispanic and Latino American women in politics Living people 21st-century American women politicians 1947 births 21st-century members of the California State Legislature {{California-CAAssembly-stub