Michael Ted Levin ( ; born October 20, 1978) is an American politician and attorney who serves as the

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Article One of th ...

for

California's 49th congressional district California's 49th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of California. The district is represented by Mike Levin. The district currently covers the North County (San Diego area), northern coastal areas of San D ...

since 2019. He is a member of the Democratic Party and represents most of

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 ...

North County North County is a region in the northern area of San Diego County, California. It is the second-most populous region in the county (after San Diego), with an estimated population of 869,322. North County is well known for its affluence, especially ...

, as well as part of southern Orange County.

Early life and education

Levin was born in

Inglewood Inglewood may refer to: Places Australia *Inglewood, Queensland * Shire of Inglewood, Queensland, a former local government area *Inglewood, South Australia *Inglewood, Victoria *Inglewood, Western Australia Canada * Inglewood, Ontario *Inglewoo ...

California California () is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States that lies on the West Coast of the United States, Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares Mexico–United States border, an ...

, and raised in Lake Forest, Orange County. His mother is

Mexican-American Mexican Americans are Americans of full or partial Mexican descent. In 2022, Mexican Americans comprised 11.2% of the US population and 58.9% of all Hispanic and Latino Americans. In 2019, 71% of Mexican Americans were born in the United State ...

and his father is

Jewish Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

. Levin was raised in both the Jewish and

Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the List of Christian denominations by number of members, largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics Catholic Church by country, worldwid ...

faiths. His maternal grandparents immigrated to the United States from

Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...

as children, arriving with little formal education or money. They eventually established a business distributing

Wurlitzer The Rudolph Wurlitzer Company, usually referred to as simply Wurlitzer, is an American company started in Cincinnati in 1853 by German immigrant (Franz) Rudolph Wurlitzer. The company initially imported stringed, woodwind and brass instruments ...

jukeboxes A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that plays a user-selected song from a self-contained media library. Traditional jukeboxes contain records, compact discs, or digital files, and allow user ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles, often referred to by its initials L.A., is the List of municipalities in California, most populous city in the U.S. state of California, and the commercial, Financial District, Los Angeles, financial, and Culture of Los Angeles, ...

, enabling Levin's mother and her four sisters to attend college. Levin graduated from Loyola High School in Los Angeles in 1997. He then attended

Stanford University Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly referred to as Stanford University, is a Private university, private research university in Stanford, California, United States. It was founded in 1885 by railroad magnate Leland Stanford (the eighth ...

, where he was elected student body president. He graduated in 2001 with a

Bachelor of Arts A Bachelor of Arts (abbreviated B.A., BA, A.B. or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is the holder of a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the liberal arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts deg ...

degree and went on to earn a

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

from

Duke University School of Law The Duke University School of Law is the law school of Duke University, a private research university in Durham, North Carolina. One of Duke's 10 schools and colleges, the School of Law is a constituent academic unit that began in 1868 as the ...

in 2005, focusing on

environmental law Environmental laws are laws that protect the environment. The term "environmental law" encompasses treaties, statutes, regulations, conventions, and policies designed to protect the natural environment and manage the impact of human activitie ...

Early career

After law school, Levin worked as an attorney specializing in energy and environmental law, focusing on

regulatory compliance In general, compliance means conforming to a rule, such as a specification, policy, standard or law. Compliance has traditionally been explained by reference to deterrence theory, according to which punishing a behavior will decrease the viol ...

and government affairs. In addition to his legal work, Levin co-founded CleanTech OC, a

trade group A trade association, also known as an industry trade group, business association, sector association or industry body, is an organization founded and funded by businesses that operate in a specific industry. Through collaboration between compani ...

promoting sustainable energy in Orange County, and served as vice president of Better Energy Systems, a

cleantech Clean technology, also called cleantech or climate tech, is any process, product, or service that reduces negative environmental impacts through significant energy efficiency improvements, the sustainable use of resources, or environmental prote ...

startup in

Berkeley, California Berkeley ( ) is a city on the eastern shore of San Francisco Bay in northern Alameda County, California, United States. It is named after the 18th-century Anglo-Irish bishop and philosopher George Berkeley. It borders the cities of Oakland, Cali ...

. In 2011, he was featured in ''OC Metro’s'' “40 Under 40” for his work at FlexEnergy, a company that developed technology to capture and use

methane Methane ( , ) is a chemical compound with the chemical formula (one carbon atom bonded to four hydrogen atoms). It is a group-14 hydride, the simplest alkane, and the main constituent of natural gas. The abundance of methane on Earth makes ...

from landfills and wastewater treatment facilities. From 2014 to 2017, he was the director of government affairs at FuelCell Energy and served on the board of the Center for Sustainable Energy in

. Levin was also active in Democratic politics, serving as executive director of the Democratic Party of Orange County. In 2016, he joined Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign as a member of the national finance committee.

U.S. House of Representatives

Elections

2018

On March 8, 2017, Levin announced his candidacy for the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...

to replace incumbent representative

Darrell Issa Darrell Edward Issa ( ; born November 1, 1953) is an American businessman and politician serving as the U.S. representative for California's 48th congressional district. He represented the 50th congressional district from 2021 to 2023. A memb ...

. The district had historically been one of Southern California's more Republican districts, but redistricting after the 2010 census cut out most of its heavily Republican inland portion, making it significantly more competitive. Issa had nearly been defeated in 2016 as

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

carried the district. At a town hall event that Issa held on March 11, 2017, Levin publicly confronted Issa and mentioned a book he had sent Issa in 2016, ''Climate Change for Beginners''. Levin charged that Issa's solution to climate problems "is to build more natural gas plants and to keep the nuclear energy plants online for longer.... I think that's an unfathomable proposal for a progressive and environmentally-friendly place like San Diego." Due to the competitive character of the race as well as the absence of an incumbent, there were 16 candidates on the ballot in the primary. The large number of candidates in the

nonpartisan blanket primary A nonpartisan primary, top-two primary, or jungle primary is a primary election in which all candidates for the same elected office run against each other at once, regardless of political party. This distinguishes them from partisan primaries, w ...

led to fears that Democrats would be locked out of the general election. In the June 5 primary, Levin came in second to Republican

State Board of Equalization The California State Board of Equalization (BOE) is a public agency charged with tax administration and fee collection in the state of California in the United States. The authorities of the Board attempt to ensure that counties fairly assess ...

chair

Diane Harkey Diane Lynn Harkey (born June 20, 1951) is an American politician who served as a member of the California State Board of Equalization, representing its fourth district from 2015 to 2019. A member of the Republican Party, she was previously electe ...

and advanced to the general election. This assured that the district would be represented by someone from the Orange County portion of the district, though the 49th is a San Diego district by weight of population. Levin is from

San Juan Capistrano San Juan Capistrano (also known colloquially as San Juan or SJC) is a city in southern Orange County, California, United States. The population was 35,253 at the 2020 Census. Named for Saint John of Capistrano, San Juan Capistrano was founded ...

, while Harkey is from nearby

Dana Point Dana Point () is a city located in southern Orange County, California, United States. The population was 33,107 at the 2020 census. It has one of the few harbors along the Orange County coast; with ready access via State Route 1, it is a popu ...

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

endorsed Levin as well as other candidates.

2020

In the 2020 general election, Levin defeated Republican Brian Maryott with 53.1% of the vote.

2022

In the 2022 general election, Levin again defeated Republican Brian Maryott, this time with 52.6% of the vote.

2024

Levin defeated Republican Matt Gunderson in the 2024 general election.

Tenure

Levin was sworn into the

House of Representatives House of Representatives is the name of legislative bodies in many countries and sub-national entities. In many countries, the House of Representatives is the lower house of a bicameral legislature, with the corresponding upper house often ...

on January 3, 2019, to represent

's 49th district. For the

116th Congress The 116th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the Federal government of the United States, United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate, Senate and the United States House of Representati ...

, he was appointed to the

Natural Resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest, and cultural value. ...

and

Veterans' Affairs Veterans' affairs is an area of public policy concerned with relations between a government and its communities of military veterans. Some jurisdictions have a designated government agency or department, a Department of Veterans' Affairs, Minist ...

committees and the Select Committee on the Climate Crisis. He was sworn in during the

government shutdown of 2019 A government is the system or group of people governing an organized community, generally a state. In the case of its broad associative definition, government normally consists of legislature, executive, and judiciary. Government is a mea ...

Committee assignments

Levin's committee assignments for the

119th Congress The 119th United States Congress is the current term of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It convened on January 3, 2025, for th ...

include: * Committee on Appropriations ** Energy and Water Development and Related Agencies ** Military Construction, Veterans Affairs, and Related Agencies

Caucus memberships

Levin's caucus memberships include: *

Congressional Hispanic Caucus The Congressional Hispanic Caucus (CHC) is an organization of 38 Democratic members of the United States Congress of Hispanic and Latino descent. The Caucus focuses on issues affecting Hispanics and Latinos in the United States. The CHC was fo ...

Congressional Progressive Caucus The Congressional Progressive Caucus (CPC) is a congressional caucus affiliated with the Democratic Party in the United States Congress. The CPC represents the progressive faction of the Democratic Party. " e Congressional Progressive Caucus, ...

Rare Disease Caucus The Rare Disease Legislative Caucus is a bipartisan congressional caucus open to all members of the United States House and Senate. The caucus is currently co-chaired by Representatives Doris Matsui (D-CA) and Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) and Senators R ...

* Sustainable Energy and Environment Coalition (vice chair)

Political positions

Social issues

Abortion rights

Levin has a 100% rating from

NARAL Pro-Choice America Reproductive Freedom for All, formerly NARAL Pro-Choice America and commonly known as simply NARAL ( ), is a non-profit 501(c)(4) organization in the United States that engages in lobbying, politics, political action, and advocacy efforts to op ...

and an F rating from the

Susan B. Anthony List Susan B. Anthony Pro-Life America (formerly Susan B. Anthony List) is an American 501(c)(4) non-profit organization that seeks to reduce and ultimately end abortion in the US, by supporting United States anti-abortion movement, anti-abortion poli ...

for his voting record on abortion-related issues. He has emphasized his support for "a woman's right to a safe, legal abortion".

LGBTQ rights

In 2022, Levin voted for the

Respect for Marriage Act The Respect for Marriage Act (RFMA; ) is a landmark United States federal law passed by the 117th United States Congress in 2022 and signed into law by President Joe Biden. It repeals the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), requires the U.S. federal ...

. In 2024, Levin voted for the

National Defense Authorization Act The National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) is any of a series of United States federal laws specifying the annual budget and expenditures of the U.S. Department of Defense. The first NDAA was passed in 1961. The U.S. Congress oversees the de ...

, which included a provision that would prohibit insurance coverage of trans health care. Levin stated he supported the bill because of the pay raises for service members and other quality-of-life provisions in the bill.

Immigration

In 2025, Levin was one of 46 House Democrats who joined all Republicans to vote for the

Laken Riley Act The Laken Riley Act is a United States law that requires the detention, without Bail, bond, of Illegal immigration to the United States, illegal immigrants admitting to, charged with, or convicted of theft-related crimes, assaulting a police of ...

Gun policy

Levin supports an assault weapons ban, as well as universal and enhanced background checks. In 2022, Levin voted for H.R. 1808: Assault Weapons Ban of 2022, aimed at banning the sale and distribution of certain types of firearms. He also supported the

Bipartisan Safer Communities Act The Bipartisan Safer Communities Act is a United States federal law, passed in 2022. It implemented several changes to the mental health system, school safety programs, and gun control laws. Gun control laws in the bill include extended backgrou ...

, which was passed and signed into law.

Housing

Levin has stated that he supports restricting hedge funds from buying single-family housing stock. Levin has also advocated for investments to increase affordable housing, he supports a tax credit for first-time homebuyers and secured federal funding for a homeless shelter.

Governance

Congressional stock trading

Levin has expressed his support to ban congressional stock trading. Levin stated in a post online, “Every single lawmaker should agree: the public’s interests, not personal profits, should always come first,” and “We need a congressional stock trading ban NOW.”

2024 presidential nominee

On July 12, 2024, Levin called for

Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...

to withdraw from the

2024 United States presidential election United States presidential election, Presidential elections were held in the United States on November 5, 2024. The Republican Party (United States), Republican Party's Ticket (election), ticket—Donald Trump, who was the 45th president of ...

Foreign policy

Middle East

= Israel

= Levin supports a two-state solution for Israel and Palestine. In March 2024, Levin called for a temporary cease-fire to allow humanitarian aid to get into Gaza. He also called on the continuation of military funds to Israel to defend itself against Hamas. Levin has supported a cease-fire in conjunction with the release of Israeli hostages. In April 2024, Levin stated that "It appears to me that new leaders are needed

n Israel N, or n, is the fourteenth letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages, and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''en'' (pronounced ), plural ''ens''. History ...

adding that Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, is not "ultimately leading to a more peaceful outcome" in the region.

Environment

Levin has prioritized addressing

climate change Present-day climate change includes both global warming—the ongoing increase in Global surface temperature, global average temperature—and its wider effects on Earth's climate system. Climate variability and change, Climate change in ...

, which has garnered attention from national media outlets covering energy and environmental issues. During the 2022 elections, these outlets considered his reelection bid a high-profile race. Levin voted for the

Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 The Inflation Reduction Act of 2022 (IRA) is a United States federal law which aims to reduce the federal government budget deficit, lower prescription drug prices, and invest in domestic energy production while promoting clean energy. It was ...

, the largest climate policy ever passed by Congress. Levin has expressed support for the

Green New Deal The Green New Deal (GND) calls for public policy to address climate change, along with achieving other social aims like job creation, economic growth, and reducing economic inequality. The name refers to the New Deal, a set of changes and ...

. Levin supported the

Infrastructure

Levin supported the

Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act (IIJA), also known as the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL),H.R. 3684 is a United States federal statute enacted by the 117th United States Congress and signed into law by President Joe Biden on Nov ...

, a bill to address the country's infrastructure needs through investments in rebuilding and modernization. The legislation also funds new initiatives aimed at enhancing the resilience of infrastructure against the effects of climate change and expanding the reach of broadband infrastructure. It passed with bipartisan support. Levin is a proponent of moving the

Pacific Surfliner The ''Pacific Surfliner'' is a passenger train service serving the communities on the coast of Southern California between San Diego and San Luis Obispo. The ''Pacific Surfliner'' is Amtrak's third-busiest service (exceeded in ridership only ...

railway line, which runs along the coastal bluffs of Del Mar, to a safer location. He pushed for additional

funding to be allocated for a rail tunnel under Del Mar, with the goal of completing the project by 2035.

Personal life

Levin lives in

with his wife, Chrissy, and their two children.

Electoral history

References

External links

Congressman Mike Levin
official U.S. House website
Mike Levin for Congress
campaign website * , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Levin, Mike 1978 births American environmentalists American politicians of Mexican descent California Democrats Candidates in the 2018 United States elections Hispanic and Latino American members of the United States Congress Jewish members of the United States House of Representatives Living people Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from California Politicians from Orange County, California 21st-century American Jews Duke University School of Law alumni Loyola High School (Los Angeles) alumni 21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives