Capitol Weekly’s Top 100: Lorena Gonzalez

No. 15 Lorena Gonzalez

By definition, the leader of a group the size of the California Federation of Labor Unions – a coalition of 1,300 unions representing approximately 2.3 million members – has plenty of power before they ever step through the door. But no job title alone could ever really capture the oomph Gonzalez brings to the California Capitol. She is a fierce and very vocal advocate for working people and is one of the rare Big Labor leaders who work as much in the public eye as behind the scenes. She helps to shape labor strategy and policy, and has the connections in and out of the Capitol to move that agenda forward. Her big political battles this year have centered on prodding lawmakers and Gov. Newsom to more greatly regulate artificial intelligence and devout support for the proposed billionaire tax heading to the ballot in November. The latter has her at odds with Newsom, but then that relationship has always been shaky at best. And the blunt and occasionally combative Gonzalez relies less on relationship building than other labor leaders anyway.

Updated Aug. 11, 2026