Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) “began his 2018 bid for governor with a a new website, confirming his entrance into what is expected to be a competitive race,” the Los Angeles Times reports.
“After a three-year hiatus from the political limelight, Villaraigosa joins a heady field of candidates that is expected to grow larger in the months ahead.”
Los Angeles Times: “Antonio Villaraigosa has kept out of the news in the six months since he opted to skip the race for U.S. Senate. But a reception at his Hollywood Hills home on Monday to raise money for Hillary Clinton was the latest of many signs the former Los Angeles mayor is preparing quietly to run for governor of California in 2018.”
“I’m not sure we’re a party of enough new ideas. I think both parties kind of are married to their constituencies and their powerful interests, and they’re unwilling to challenge them in the way I did as mayor.”
– Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D), quoted by the Los Angeles Times.
Former Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa (D) told the Los Angeles Times that he would not enter the race for Barbara Boxer’s seat in the U.S. Senate, leaving state Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris (D) as the only major candidate.
“Villaraigosa’s surprise decision followed weeks of meetings and phone conversations with Democratic luminaries, campaign consultants, fundraisers and potential supporters. Close allies had expected him to run.”
“In any other campaign, a labor union backing a Democrat for U.S. Senate would be routine. But the first to line up publicly behind state Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris turned out to be the Los Angeles Police Protective League,” the Los Angeles Times reports.
“The announcement Wednesday underscored that a paramount goal for Harris is to keep Antonio Villaraigosa from entering the Senate race — or at least to make it more difficult for the former Los Angeles mayor should he decide to jump in. Indeed, for Harris, the ritual of rolling out endorsements has appeared to be largely about fending off Villaraigosa, a fellow Democrat whose allies say he is leaning toward announcing his candidacy and could do so soon.”
“One of Antonio Villaraigosa’s closest friends and advisors said Thursday that all signs were pointing toward the former Los Angeles mayor declaring his candidacy for U.S. Senate within the next two weeks,” the Los Angeles Times reports.
“State Atty. Gen. Kamala Harris, also a Democrat, is the only major candidate in the contest so far. For more than three weeks, Harris has been raising money for the June 2016 primary – an arduous task, given California’s high campaign costs and the $2,700 federal limit on donations from individuals. Any top-tier candidate needs to raise several hundred thousand dollars a week, experts say.”
Taegan Goddard
Taegan Goddard is the founder of Political Wire -- which for more than two decades has been one of the nation's most influential political news sites.
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