Councilmember Macias was elected to the Huntington Park City Council in March 2013. She was re-elected to a second four-year term on March 2017 and to a third term on June 7, 2022. Two years after her first election, she was voted by her peers to serve as the Mayor of Huntington Park for the 2015-2016 term, making her the youngest Mayor in the history of the City. During the March 21, 2018 reorganization, she was elected by her peers to serve once again as Mayor for the 2019-2020 term. On April 18, 2024 she was, once again, selected by her peers as Mayor for the 2024-2025 term.
Councilmember Karina Macias grew up in Huntington Park as an only child of immigrant parents. She attended Middleton Elementary School, Gage Middle School, and graduated with honors from Dorsey High School under the Police Academy Magnet Program, where she had great teachers that taught her the values of community service and civic engagement.
She earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science and Psychology, with a minor in International Studies from Mount St. Mary’s University in Los Angeles. Passionate about global issues, she then went on to earn her Master’s Degree in International Studies from Chapman University. She also holds a Management Essentials Certificate from Harvard Business School.
Determined to utilize her degrees in a way that made her community better, upon graduation Ms. Macias began working with the Sisters of St. Joseph as an Assistant Justice Coordinator for the Social Justice Office where she provided educational services on a variety of social justice topics to the Sisters within the Los Angeles Province for 5 years. Additionally, she managed an emergency monetary assistance fund and co-chaired the Southern California Partners for Global Justice group. Her career has given her the community outreach skills that she uses on the City Council, as well as a profound understanding of local government and the importance of transparency in policymaking and governance. Currently she works as a Home Health Care Provider and is a member of SEIU 2015.
During her time in office, Councilmember Karina Macias accomplished a number of goals. Most notably, she has set a precedent of having transparent and open conversations with the community on city issues and initiated the Youth Commission to help teach students the importance of civic engagement. She is focused on continuous support of the community through policy initiatives, but also increased resources that support the health and wellbeing of all residents. In addition, she has focused on attracting future investment to boost Huntington Park’s economic development and make it competitive both locally and globally. She served as Huntington Park’s representative on the Southeast Gateway Line Gateway COG Committee, Los Angeles County Sanitation Board, and the Los Angeles Metro Service Council.
When she is not working or serving on Council, Mayor Macias enjoys writing poetry, being with family, going to the movies, and enjoys Huntington Park local parks. An avid lover of coffee, she can often be found frequenting Huntington Park’s local coffee shops.