NorCal BWOPA Leaders
BWOPA Northern California Leaders Building Black Civic Power Through Service and Leadership
Across Northern California, Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) leaders are turning decades of professional experience, public service, and community advocacy into collective civic power.
Led by Northern California Regional Director Champagne Brown, BWOPA’s regional leadership includes Hon. Joey D. Smith, President of the Richmond/Contra Costa Chapter; Latressa Wilson Alford, Esq., President of the Solano/Napa Chapter; and Mellonie Richardson, President of the Sacramento Chapter. Together, these women are strengthening BWOPA’s presence across the region while creating opportunities for Black women to become informed, connected, and engaged in the decisions shaping their communities.
Their leadership reflects the diversity of pathways Black women bring to public life. Smith, a longtime BWOPA Lifetime Member, labor leader, and public servant, now serves as an elected Director of the East Bay Municipal Utility District. Alford brings more than 30 years of government, public policy, political, and community affairs experience to her leadership. Richardson, a human resources and organizational development leader, has helped build the Sacramento Chapter into a trusted source for voter education and community engagement.
Together with Brown, they are carrying forward BWOPA’s nearly six-decade legacy while advancing its four core issues: health equity, criminal justice reform, education reform, and economic empowerment.
“Our chapters are where women discover that their voice, their experience, and their leadership matter,” said LaNiece Jones, State President & CEO of BWOPA California. “You don’t have to be an elected official or a policy expert to make a difference. There is a place in BWOPA for every Black woman who wants to learn, serve, advocate, mentor, or lead. When we bring our individual strengths together, we build the collective power to transform our communities and California.”
That philosophy is at the heart of BWOPA’s expanding statewide movement. Through 10 chapters across California, BWOPA is creating pathways for women to engage in public policy, serve on boards and commissions, advocate for their communities, pursue elected leadership, and prepare the next generation to lead.
For BWOPA’s Northern California leaders, building political power begins locally—with relationships, education, service, and women willing to step forward.
There is a place for you in this movement.
BE A BWOPA GIRL. Join us. Get involved. Lead with us. For information about BWOPA membership, civic engagement, and leadership opportunities, contact [email protected] or visit www.bwopatileleads.org.
About BWOPA California: Established in 1968 by 12 visionary Black women leaders, Black Women Organized for Political Action (BWOPA) is a California-based legacy organization dedicated to building the civic, political, and leadership power of Black women and their communities. Through 10 chapters across California, BWOPA advances civic engagement, leadership development, and public policy advocacy centered on four core issues: health equity, criminal justice reform, education reform, and economic empowerment.
For more information, contact [email protected] or visit www.bwopatileleads.org.