Adena and Mark Numaineville, Berkeley City Clerk, at the initial swearing in.

Adena Ishii, a former president of the League of Women Voters Berkeley, Albany, Emeryville, was recently elected Mayor of Berkeley.

Adena has been involved with the League since 2010. In 2014, she was honored with the Spirit of the League Award for her work connecting students with opportunities for civic engagement. She was the youngest and first woman of color to be elected to serve as President of our League from 2017 to 2019. During her tenure, she created membership growth, pushed to hire staff and consultants to support our work, pioneered our internship program by bringing on the first Gen Z intern, and worked to create a more diverse, inclusive, and equitable organization. Her focus was on updating the League’s image and showcasing our relevance to young community members.

We are proud of all the League members who ran for office this last election cycle, and applaud Adena’s current achievement, as the first Asian-American to be elected as mayor of Berkeley.