Mario Cordero — Port of Long Beach

Executive Director

THE LATEST: Last year was the busiest ever for the Long Beach port as pandemic-driven demand resulted in marine terminals handling 8.1 million containers in 2020. The port also welcomed two of the world’s largest container ships, the MSC Mia and the MSC Nela, both capable of carrying nearly 24,000 containers. Under Cordero’s leadership, officials coordinated safety measures to keep goods flowing, set up a Covid-19 test site to protect supply chain workers and facilitated shipments of personal protective equipment for medical suppliers around the country. In October, the port opened the $1.5 billion replacement for the Gerald Desmond Bridge, improving traffic flow for a span that carries 15% of the nation’s waterborne goods.
BACKGROUND: Before becoming executive director at the Port of Long Beach in 2017, Cordero was appointed to the Federal Maritime Commission by President Barack Obama in 2011. Prior to that, he served on the Long Beach Board of Harbor Commissioners for eight years. He previously spent more than 30 years practicing law, with a focus on workers’ compensation cases. Last year, Cordero was appointed chairman of the American Association of Port Authorities and named to the board of the Los Angeles branch of the Federal Reserve Bank of San Francisco.
YEARS ON THE LA500: 3
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