Mid-day Political Munchies ...........

Former LA City Council President and current State Senator Alex Padilla announces his candidacy for California Secretary of State.

State Senator Alex Padilla on left. How many former and future LA City Council members can you find in the above photo?

Recent speculation has had the former twenty-something LA City Council President (and friend of Mirthala Salinas) heading to a higher political place. Congress? Board of Supervisors? Even a run for LA mayor was broached. But when the clouds of speculation burned off today, it was the California Secretary of State Office that is the desired next stop in the upward political progression of Alex Padilla. From his new "Alex Padilla for Secretary of State Website".

The strength of our democracy depends on the active involvement of all of our citizens. Last November, more than 10 million Californians did not vote. I’m running for Secretary of State to change that.The Secretary of State is California’s chief elections officer; and for me, that means increasing voter participation -- making sure voters know when, where and how to vote -- and ensuring that every vote is counted and accounted for.We should modernize our voting systems and use technology, where appropriate, to make information about our elections more accessible to voters. We must increase the transparency of campaign finance so that voters can easily determine who is funding campaigns and initiatives. I will also work to make voting more accessible and convenient. We must reverse the current trend of declining participation. I believe we can.

Maybe his newly elected CD 7 City Councilman Felipe Fuentes, can have a immigration rights lobbyist ghost write new voting guidelines?

** We have dueling campaign kickoffs coming to CD 1 this Saturday,
From the Jose "Mini Ed" Gardea for CD 1 Campaign.

With only 6 weeks until Election Day, momentum is on our side - and everybody knows it!
We are back to knocking on doors and calling voters about the May 21st Runoff Election. Join us this Saturday, April 13th, for our first major precinct walk and campaign open house.
When: Saturday, April 13th at 10 a.m. Where: 5320 N. Figueroa St., Los Angeles, CA 90042 (Devon Glass building)What: Campaign Open House/ Precinct Walk. 

From the Gil Cedillo for CD 1 Campaign.

Please join Gil Cedillo at our NEW campaign headquarters as we kick off the general election campaign!
Por favor vengan a acompañar a Gil Cedillo en nuestra NUEVA oficina central en Highland Park para la inauguracion de la campaña!
Food and refreshments will be provided.Vamos a tener comida y bebidas.
Location/Ubicacion:5577 N. Figueroa StreetLos Angeles, CA 90041(SW corner at Avenue 56)
Time/Tiempo:10:00am - 12:00pm Opening Program12:00pm - 6:00pm Phone Banking & Canvassing Fun!

Wonder if Northeast LAPD will take up positions on the 5400 block to separate the campaign combatants?

** We love the use of political satire and thanks to the LA Weekly, we have a new favorite political twitter satirist in CD 13.  The photo below is a hoot.

From the account: @mayorsam Hmm, well @WorkingCAL once asked me to dress up like @psy_oppa for a photo, and I refused, so maybe that's why. #ChoiStyle

Its time for "Another Soulvine Thursday"!

Awakening from a political coma, Betty describes Mark and Maxine leading her to the Villar Greuel, in a mayoral afterlife.

According to the Mayan calendar, the world was supposed to end on Dec. 2, 2012. But it did not because the Mayans were interpreting the wrong indicators. I, on the other hand, have studied the signs and beheld the true indication that the world is well on its way toward ending: Rep. Maxine Waters and Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas have endorsed the same candidate!!! They have both endorsed Wendy Greuel for mayor. These two ultra powerful Black local politicians have been at odds for years and have never, ever backed the same candidate for any post. The rest of us are allied to one or the other of these two and, in general terms, we don’t like each other either professionally or socially. We’re sometimes civil, but certainly not friendly. But lo, Waters and Ridley-Thomas agree on something — an amazing situation the Mayans didn’t see. Yeah, the world is surely ending.
As a result of Greuel’s coup in getting both these politicians’ endorsement, Eric Garcetti saw the sky falling and applied whatever pressure he had to amass a gathering of less stellar Black politicians to rush over to Leimert Park and endorse him. That gathering produced one of the most revealing photographs ever published in the L.A. Times. Everyone standing with Garcetti in this picture was wearing pained expressions. We know they don’t like each other and they looked like that they would rather be someplace else. There was a grim-faced Herb Wessonstaring into space; an equally grim-faced Bernard Parks staring at the ground and an indifferent sunglass-shrouded Jan Perry peeking over Garcetti’s shoulder, while Dove Pinkney stared impassively at Garcetti, who was the only animated figure in the photo. I’m told that Rep. Karen Bass, arrived at the park for the event but when she saw the motley bunch gathered around Garcetti, she fled the scene, declaring, “No, I’m not in this.” Bass subsequently endorsed Garcetti by herself. You guys need to see this picture if you missed it in last Saturday’s Times. It’s a keeper. 

God help Betty on Election Day.

Your thoughts ..............
Scott Johnson in CD 14