Brian Calderón Tabatabai is West covina’s Mayor, an educator, coach and candidate for the california state Assembly’s 48th district.
Brian is a born-and-bred product of the San Gabriel Valley, who campaigned on a platform of transparency and neighborhood empowerment to win his seat on the West Covina City Council in 2020.
As a lifelong Democrat and elected official, Brian has engaged with community organizations, nonprofits, the business community, unions, local residents and other stakeholders to address the issues of homelessness, renter protections, racial and economic justice and Indigenous and LGBTQ rights. He currently serves as a Los Angeles County representative on the League of California Cities Public Safety Commission, where he continues to push for alternatives to incarceration.
As mayor pro tem, Brian joined unions and the nonprofit The People’s Collective for Environmental Justice to stop a planned Amazon warehouse project that would have offered only low-paying, non-union jobs while wreaking havoc on local traffic, air and water quality. Meanwhile, during the Covid-19 Pandemic, Brian facilitated a partnership with Los Angeles County and local church organizations to feed thousands of families.
During his time on the West Covina City Council, he has led the community against the establishment of a costly and unnecessary private health department, secured funds to repair fields that threatened the cancellation of youth football and ensured that street-paving projects included funds to meet needs in our most economically challenged neighborhoods.
A graduate of UCLA, with a master’s degree in leadership from California State University, Los Angeles, Brian has more than two decades’ experience as a classroom educator and led El Monte High School’s football program to its first title in 30 years, before leading Charter Oak High School to an undefeated season and 20th league championship.
He began his career as an elementary school teacher of students with special needs in Baldwin Park. After three years at Kenmore Elementary School, Brian transferred to the El Monte Union High School District to pursue his other passion – youth sports coaching. While at El Monte High School, Brian flourished both in the classroom as an English and social science teacher and as a coach for the basketball and football teams. He served as the offensive coordinator during the school’s first football title in three decades and was named Coach of the Year before departing to join Charter Oak’s staff.
Brian has dedicated his life’s work to ensuring that our kids get the absolute best education and support in safe, modern schools. From his work reforming school discipline to focus more on students’ social-emotional needs to his role as one of the main authors of El Monte Union High School District’s ethnic studies program, Brian continues to be a champion for the voiceless.
Brian, who champions his ancestors’ legacy, carries with him the strength of his Abuela, who fought to make sure her children had access to college-prep courses in the 1960s; the courage of his Father who escaped a brutal revolution to build a family and life; and the love of his Mother, whose life has been dedicated to helping others.
This family history drives Brian’s work with his students, his athletes and his community. It also guides Brian and his wife Celenia in raising their son, Anthony, and providing him with a top-notch education in a community as strong, diverse and supportive as West Covina.