Soledad native wins State Representative seat in Rhode Island

PROVIDENCE, R.I. (KION) David Morales is about to become the youngest state legislator in the country, and he got his start on the Central Coast, according to Supervisor Luis Alejo.

Alejo said 22-year-old Morales, who just won a Rhode Island State Representative seat, is a Soledad native who was raised in public housing and Soledad High School grad.

Morales says on his website that he was raised by a single mother and started working in farm labor at 16 to help support his family. During high school, he said he took college courses at night and was able to graduate with a Bachelor's degree from UC Irvine at 19. By the time he was 20, he graduated with a Master's in Public Policy from Brown University.

"Proud of our inspiring young leaders from Monterey County who are representing us well in other parts of our nation!! WE ARE PROUD OF YOU, BROTHER!" Alejo said in a social media post.

Morales is set to be sworn in on Jan. 5.