Thomas Allen Torlakson (born July 19, 1949) is an American

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and

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from

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 ...

. In 2010, he was elected to the position of

California State Superintendent of Public Instruction California () is a state in the Western United States that lies on the Pacific Coast. It borders Oregon to the north, Nevada and Arizona to the east, and shares an international border with the Mexican state of Baja California to the so ...

, a position he served in until 2019. He is a member of the Democratic Party. He previously served three terms 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 ...

, representing the 11th district, which consists of northern portions of

Contra Costa County Contra Costa County (; ''Contra Costa'', Spanish language, Spanish for 'Opposite Coast') is a U.S. county, county located in the U.S. state of California, in the East Bay of the San Francisco Bay Area. As of the 2020 United States census, the ...

. He also served two terms 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. ...

, representing the 7th district.

Early life

His younger brother,

James Torlakson James "Jim" Daniel Torlakson (born February 19, 1951) is an American visual artist and educator, known for his photorealist oil paintings, watercolors and aquatint intaglio prints. He is based in Pacifica, California, a costal city near San Franc ...

, is an artist in

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. Another younger brother (Christopher Torlakson) is deceased. Torlakson attended

Westmoor High School Westmoor High School is a public high school in Daly City, California, Daly City, California, United States. It serves grades 9 through 12 as part of the Jefferson Union High School District (JUHSD). It generally serves the residents of Daly Ci ...

Daly City, California Daly City () is the second-most populous city in San Mateo County, California, United States. Located in the San Francisco Bay Area, and immediately south of San Francisco (sharing its northern border with almost all of San Francisco's southern ...

. On May 25, 2017, Torlakson issued the commencement address where he graduated from 50 years ago. Torlakson served in the

U.S. Merchant Marine The United States Merchant Marine is an organization composed of United States civilian sailor, mariners and U.S. civilian and federally owned merchant vessels. Both the civilian mariners and the merchant vessels are managed by a combination of ...

during the

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from 1967 to 1970. His assignments included

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Thailand Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

and later on

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oil tankers to

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which was his first job where he was a union member. In 1968, he received the Merchant Marines Vietnam Service Medal. After his maritime service, Torlakson attended the

University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley (UC Berkeley, Berkeley, Cal, or California), is a Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Berkeley, California, United States. Founded in 1868 and named after t ...

. He earned a

B.A. 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 degree ...

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in 1971, and an

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Education Education is the transmission of knowledge and skills and the development of character traits. Formal education occurs within a structured institutional framework, such as public schools, following a curriculum. Non-formal education als ...

in 1977. Torlakson is married to Mae Cendana, a member of the Ambrose Recreation and Park District board of directors. He has two daughters, Tiffany and Tamara, from a previous marriage.

First two State Assembly terms

In 1996 Torlakson, then a

Supervisor A supervisor, or lead, (also known as foreman, boss, overseer, facilitator, monitor, area coordinator, line-manager or sometimes gaffer) is the job title of a lower-level management position and role that is primarily based on authority over la ...

, ran for the

seat of term-limited Bob Campbell (D-Richmond). He defeated George Miller IV, son of veteran congressman George Miller III, in the Democratic primary. Torlakson campaigned with the slogan, "His own name, his own record."TomTorlakson.com
He was easily reelected in 1998.

State Senate

In 2000 Torlakson won an expensive, hard fought campaign to unseat Republican

state Senator A state senator is a member of a State legislature (United States), state's senate in the bicameral legislature of 49 U.S. states, or a member of the unicameral Nebraska Legislature. History There are typically fewer state senators than there ...

Richard Rainey (R-Walnut Creek) by 12%. While serving in the State Senate, Torlakson was appointed to chair the important Senate Appropriations Committee.

State Superintendent

Torlakson ran for

in the

2010 elections This is a list of elections that were held in 2010. * 2010 United Nations Security Council election * 2010 national electoral calendar * 2010 local electoral calendar Africa * 2010 Burkinabé presidential election * 2010 Burundian Senate election * ...

, defeating Larry Aceves in the general election held on November 2, 2010. Torlakson replaced Jack O'Connell, who was termed out of office. He was re-elected in 2014 against challenger Marshall Tuck. As Superintendent, Torlakson was eighth in the

line of succession An order, line or right of succession is the line of individuals necessitated to hold a high office when it becomes vacated, such as head of state or an honour such as a title of nobility.Governor of California The governor of California is the head of government of the U.S. state of California. The Governor (United States), governor is the commander-in-chief of the California National Guard and the California State Guard. Established in the Constit ...

. On Monday, July 25, 2016, Governor

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;

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; Senate President Pro Tem

Kevin de León Kevin Alexander Leon (born December 10, 1966), known professionally as Kevin de León and colloquially as KDL, is an American politician who served as the Los Angeles City Council member for District 14 from 2020 until 2024. A member of the Dem ...

; Assembly Speaker

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; Secretary of State

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; then

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Kamala Harris Kamala Devi Harris ( ; born October 20, 1964) is an American politician and attorney who served as the 49th vice president of the United States from 2021 to 2025 under President Joe Biden. She is the first female, first African American, and ...

;

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Dave Jones; and Board of Equalization chair

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were all out of state attending the

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, leaving Torlakson Acting Governor. As Acting Governor, Torlakson proclaimed a state of emergency for the Sand Fire in

Los Angeles County Los Angeles County, officially the County of Los Angeles and sometimes abbreviated as LA County, is the most populous county in the United States, with 9,663,345 residents estimated in 2023. Its population is greater than that of 40 individua ...

and the

Soberanes Fire The Soberanes Fire was a large wildfire that burned from July to October 2016 in the Santa Lucia Mountains of Monterey County, California. It destroyed 57 homes and killed a bulldozer operator, and cost about $260 million to suppress, maki ...

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Electoral history

References

External links

Interview on PMAKid.com

State Assembly Website
* http://www.ucop.edu/state/advocacy/biographies/SDTorlakson07.pdf.

* http://www.answers.com/topic/tom-torlakson * http://journalism.berkeley.edu/projects/election2000/state/legis3.html * http://halfwaytoconcord.com/?s=torlakson
Join California Tom Torlakson
{{DEFAULTSORT:Torlakson, Tom 1949 births Democratic Party California state senators California superintendents of public instruction Living people Democratic Party members of the California State Assembly People from Antioch, California 21st-century members of the California State Legislature 20th-century members of the California State Legislature