Monique Limón Sworn In as California Senate Leader by Kamala Harris in Santa Barbara Ceremony

In the auditorium of her former junior high school, surrounded by family, students, and state leaders, Senator Monique Limón was sworn in Friday afternoon as the next president pro tempore of the California State Senate — becoming the first mother and first Latina to hold the post — with the oath administered by former Vice President Kamala Harris.

The ceremony, held at the Marjorie Luke Theatre on the campus of Santa Barbara Junior High School, was both formally ceremonious yet intimate and personal — a local counterpart to the swearing-in earlier this week in the Senate chambers at the state Capitol in Sacramento. The program opened with student performances by folklórico dancers from Santa Barbara Junior High and young flamenco dancers from Flamenco Avellana Dance Studio, before giving way to a surprise guest speaker and a recurring theme centered on Limón’s roots in the city where she grew up and began her public life.

“I had to be here,” surprise speaker Harris said in her remarks, drawing applause from the packed auditorium. “I’ve always been so admiring of your leadership.”

Harris, who described Santa Barbara as personally meaningful to her — noting she eloped to our beautiful city — framed Limón’s ascension as both historic and emblematic of California itself.

“As a native Californian, the pride that I have knowing that we have this kind of leadership in our system, showing who we are and who we can be,” Harris said. “She is a leader among so many people who deserve to be seen and heard.”

Limón, 46, took the stage wearing a bright-pink suit — a detail that did not go unmentioned by later speakers — and spoke with a mix of gratitude, passion, and fierceness. She thanked her family repeatedly, calling them the people who “keep me humble,” and spoke of the dual weight of pride and responsibility that comes with being the first.

“What it takes to be the first in this country — being the first is important,” Limón said. “Ensuring we are not the last is even more so.”

She described the moment as “an honor of a lifetime” and emphasized that her leadership would be shaped by the community that raised her.

Limón acknowledged the broader national moment in which her swearing-in occurred, calling it a time of “real pain and real fear,” and paused to honor Reneé Nicole Good, referencing Wednesday’s fatal ICE shooting in Minnesota. She contrasted that uncertainty with California’s identity.

“California is the land where hard work meets opportunity,” she said, adding that the state must continue to “push forward for the betterment of all.”

Several speakers returned to the same contrast — between California’s political trajectory and the direction of the country at large — without naming it directly. State Senator Angelique V. Ashby, who followed Limón, leaned into that framing with humor and conviction.

“The vice president is here — what in the world!” Ashby said, drawing laughter.

Ashby, herself a mother and lawmaker, offered a pointed introduction to Limón’s biography.

“Who in the world is Monique Limón?” she asked. “A native Californian. We are standing in her junior high. A daughter of immigrants. Her name is synonymous with child care. Higher education — that’s her jam.”

Ashby described Limón as a “fierce negotiator” who “leads with compassion but suffers no fools,” before adding, “She is the first to look this stunning in an all hot-pink suit!”

More seriously, Ashby spoke of Limón’s rise as inseparable from Santa Barbara itself — from Santa Barbara public school student to being elected a school board member in 2010, a state assemblymember in 2016, and a state senator beginning in 2020. Her perpetual ascension culminated earlier this year when her colleagues selected Limón to serve as Senate president pro tempore, the California Senate’s highest leadership post.

“This is a thank-you to Santa Barbara — this school, this city, those teachers,” Ashby said. “On behalf of the state of California, thank you very much, because that little girl’s voice speaks for every last one of us.”

Assemblymember Gregg Hart also brought it back to the Santa Barbara roots, calling Limón “a product of this community and of this incredible family,” a family which filled many rows in that auditorium. 

Exhibit A of Limón’s impact came from Ventura County Supervisor Vianey Lopez, who once worked on Limón’s staff. Her remarks were framed by Limón’s own words — a line Lopez said Limón had spoken at the Capitol: “Who I am defines where I’m going.”

“From a staff perspective,” Lopez said, “simply put — she is inspiring.”

Limón assumes the Senate’s top leadership post at a moment when California faces significant fiscal and policy challenges, particularly regarding the state’s budget. Governor Gavin Newsom last week released a $348.9 billion budget proposal for the 2026-27 fiscal year, kicking off negotiations over how to close remaining gaps while protecting funding for education, climate resilience, and core services. Assemblymember Hart said the process will require balancing fiscal restraint with the needs of Californians struggling with housing costs and rising expenses. 

Standing strong on the ground where she grew up, Limón seemed ready to face the challenge. 

“Decades ago, I stood on this stage as a student in this school,” she said. “And today, I stand with you here as the new leader of the California State Senate.”

She credited educators who supported her as an English-language learner, mentors who offered both opportunity and feedback, nonprofit and advocacy organizations that centered community voices, and local leaders who, she said, “strengthened my resolve to never back down from the values that this community holds dear.”

She turned at one point to her daughter, Gianna.

“Every day, the work I do, I do with keeping you in mind,” Limón said. “You are the reason that I work as hard as I do, that I fight as hard as I do and push as hard as I do.”

Limón also marked the date: Friday was the eighth anniversary of the Montecito debris flow. “That day, that moment, left scars in our community,” she said. “The 23 lives that we lost will always stay with us.”

What also stayed, she said, was the region’s response. “The community resilience and togetherness that we saw in those days and weeks,” Limón said, “has shaped my policy and my resolve to always lead with the people that we represent.”

She closed by situating her leadership within a longer arc. 

“As the 50th president pro tempore of the California State Senate,” she added, “I am humbled to lead our house, to lead this state, to safeguard the foundation of our collective future.”