California State AssemblyCandidate for District 79Short Term

Dr. Akilah Weber is a board-certified obstetrician/gynecologist, and she is the founder and director of the Pediatric & Adolescent Gynecology Division at Rady Children’s Hospital-San Diego. She also leads the adolescent gynecology program at UC San Diego Health, and she serves as an Assistant Clinical Professor in the Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology & Reproductive Sciences at UCSD.
 
Dr. Weber has served on the La Mesa City Council since 2018 where she’s worked to implement the city’s Climate Action Plan and championed the creation of both a Community Police Oversight Board and the La Mesa homelessness task force. Since the outbreak of COVID-19, Dr. Weber has also been on the frontlines of the city’s efforts to protect public health. Her long record of community activism includes serving on the boards of La Mesa Conversations and the La Mesa- Foothills Democratic Club, and volunteering as the science coordinator for the Links to STEM program for children who are underrepresented in STEM fields.
 
Dr. Weber grew up in the Oak Park neighborhood of San Diego and graduated from Encanto Elementary School and Gompers Secondary School. She earned her Bachelor’s degree from Xavier University and her Medical degree from the University of Rochester Medical School. Dr. Weber completed her residency in Obstetrics & Gynecology at Chicago Cook County Hospital and her fellowship in Pediatric & Adolescent Gynecology at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital.
 
Dr. Weber, and her husband, Dennis, live in La Mesa, with their boys, Kadir and Jalil, and their rescue dog, Shaka. She is a member of Delta Sigma Theta Sorority, Inc. and The Links, Incorporated.

Healing people is the most rewarding work I have ever done, and I love helping my patients. I decided to run for State Assembly because many of my patients are struggling with challenges that I can’t help solve from a doctor’s office. 

I have treated moms who are worried about their child’s school, daughters who are worried about an elderly parent’s financial situation, and young women on the verge of homelessness. Physical health is vitally important, but health is also about more than that. I want to fight to improve the health of San Diego County and all the people who call it home.

As a medical doctor, I know that to have a healthy California then we must start producing healthy families and communities. As a 25-year resident of this district I am intimately aware of our needs and know first-hand the challenges present. I know that we must improve access to quality and affordable healthcare for everyone and that the achievement gap must be closed so our children in this district have equal opportunity to thrive. We must improve economic security for all persons and small businesses; combat climate change and tackle the housing, mental health and homelessness crisis. I know we must continue to fight for equity for all so every person can reach the American dream. I believe I have the experience to make a difference on these issues, and I am committed to doing what I can to solve them.

COVID-19 has shined a bright light on the weaknesses of our public health system and the terrible human cost of its failure. In San Diego County, 255,000 people have gotten sick, and more than 3,000 people have lost their lives. Thousands of business owners have had to close their doors, and hundreds of thousands of workers can’t find another job. There are steps that our leaders can take now to restore public health. As a doctor and a local City Councilmember, I believe I have the experience to help.