[1] His father was a member of the United States Air Force and his mother worked for General Motors as a welder on their assembly line.

He served as student body president, but dropped out of college without graduating to take a job as a community organizer for the Service Employees International Union Local 721.

[4] Richardson returned to college through remote learning in 2020, and completed his bachelor's degree from Cal State Dominguez Hills.

[1] Richardson announced his candidacy for the mayoralty of Long Beach in January 2022, upon Robert Garcia's retirement to run for the United States House of Representatives.

[17] The Long Beach Housing Promise was proposed by Rex Richardson and approved by City Council members in April 2023.

The purpose of the initiative is to find alternative revenue sources in order to help reduce the city's long standing reliance on fossil fuels and oil.

[19] Even so, the city is exploring other highly profitable industries such as healthcare, the Port of Long Beach and its supply chain, education, hospitality, and the arts.

[20] On November 14, 2023, Richardson released a comprehensive three-phase plan to address public safety concerns in downtown Long Beach.

The purpose of the initiative is to combat serious public safety issues facing downtown Long Beach, including trespassing, drug dealing and lewd behavior.

West Long Beach has experienced some significant hardships in recent years, including a lack of basic necessities like banks, full-service grocery stores, and pharmacies.

[22] Richardson has made many efforts to reshape Long Beach, California’s economy through his budget proposals leading up to 2024.