Martin Jeffrey "Marty" Block (born June 28, 1950) is an

American American(s) may refer to: * American, something of, from, or related to the United States of America, commonly known as the "United States" or "America" ** Americans, citizens and nationals of the United States of America ** American ancestry, pe ...

politician A politician is a person active in party politics, or a person holding or seeking an elected office in government. Politicians propose, support, reject and create laws that govern the land and by an extension of its people. Broadly speaking, a ...

who served in 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, Cal ...

. A

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

, he represented Senate District 39, which encompasses central

San Diego County San Diego County (), officially the County of San Diego, is a county in the southwestern corner of the U.S. state of California. As of the 2020 census, the population was 3,298,634, making it California's second-most populous county and the fi ...

including most of the city of

San Diego San Diego ( , ; ) is a city on the Pacific Ocean coast of Southern California located immediately adjacent to the Mexico–United States border. With a 2020 population of 1,386,932, it is the List of United States cities by population, eigh ...

. Block is the immediate past Chair of the California Legislative Jewish Caucus. Before being elected to the State Senate, he 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. The A ...

, representing Assembly District 78 from 2008 to 2012. Before his time in the

California Legislature The California State Legislature is a bicameral state legislature consisting of a lower house, the California State Assembly, with 80 members; and an upper house, the California State Senate, with 40 members. Both houses of the Legisla ...

, he was a longtime administrator and professor at

San Diego State University San Diego State University (SDSU) is a public research university in San Diego, California. Founded in 1897 as San Diego Normal School, it is the third-oldest university and southernmost in the 23-member California State University (CSU) system ...

Biography

Block earned his B.A. in

political science Political science is the scientific study of politics. It is a social science dealing with systems of governance and power, and the analysis of political activities, political thought, political behavior, and associated constitutions and la ...

and education at

Indiana University Indiana University (IU) is a system of public universities in the U.S. state of Indiana. Campuses Indiana University has two core campuses, five regional campuses, and two regional centers under the administration of IUPUI. *Indiana Universit ...

as well as a J.D. degree from

DePaul University DePaul University is a private university, private, Catholic higher education, Catholic research university in Chicago, Illinois. Founded by the Congregation of the Mission, Vincentians in 1898, the university takes its name from the 17th-centu ...

law school. He began his career as a history teacher in

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

before coming to San Diego. Block retired after 26 years as a professor, dean and director at

where he founded the National Higher Education Law and Policy Institute. He is a five-time recipient of outstanding faculty awards at San Diego State University and was presented with the University Distinguished Service Award upon retirement by SDSU President Stephen Weber. Block has been president of both the

Board of Education and the

San Diego Community College District The San Diego Community College District (SDCCD) is a public community college district in San Diego, California. The SDCCD is one of the five community college districts in San Diego County and part of the California Community Colleges system. ...

Board of Trustees. He has frequently served as Judge Pro Tem of the San Diego Superior Court. Block’s community involvement includes time as commissioner of the San Diego County Commission on Children, Youth and Families. He also founded the San Diego Latino/Jewish Coalition and served as president of the

American Jewish Committee The American Jewish Committee (AJC) is a Jewish advocacy group established on November 11, 1906. It is one of the oldest Jewish advocacy organizations and, according to ''The New York Times'', is "widely regarded as the dean of American Jewish org ...

, San Diego Chapter. Block was elected as a delegate to the

Democratic National Convention The Democratic National Convention (DNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1832 by the United States Democratic Party. They have been administered by the Democratic National Committee since the 1852 ...

four separate times in 1988, 1992, 1996, and 2004.

California State Legislature

Marty Block marching in the 2014 San Diego LGBT Pride Parade

State Assembly

In 2008, Block ran as a

to represent California's 78th district in the California State Assembly. He received the endorsement of the San Diego Police Officer’s Association. In 2008 Block defeated his Republican opponent, John McCann, 92,045 (55.4%) to 74,160 (44.6%). David Glanzer, the Director of Marketing and Public Relations for Comic-Con served as Marty Block's Director of Communication for the 2008 campaign and later served as Press Secretary for the Assemblyman. In 2010 Block defeated Republican Rick L. Powell to win re-election. He completed two terms in the Assembly before leaving his Assembly seat after his successful campaign for the California 39th Senate District.

State Senate

In 2012 Block ran for State Senate in the 39th district. He defeated Republican George Plescia 58.4% to 41.6% in the November general election. He took office on December 3, 2012. He is credited with leadership for a proposal to increase funding for higher education. In 2016, after being challenged by fellow Democrat

Toni Atkins Toni Gayle Atkins (born August 1, 1962) is an American politician serving as the 51st and current President pro tempore of the California State Senate since 2018. A member of the Democratic Party, she previously served as the 69th Speaker of the ...

, the outgoing Speaker of the State Assembly, Block chose to not seek a second term.

References

External links

Block's VoteSmart Bio Page

2008 campaign web site

Join California Marty Block
* {{DEFAULTSORT:Block, Marty 1950 births American legal scholars California lawyers DePaul University College of Law alumni Educators from California Indiana University Bloomington alumni Jewish American state legislators in California Living people Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly Politicians from San Diego Politicians from Chicago San Diego State University faculty School board members in California Syracuse University alumni 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American Jews