Spirited Contest Is Expected for Villaraigosa’s Council Seat

With Antonio Villaraigosa ascending to the mayor’s office, the race to replace him on the Los Angeles City Council promises to be a free-for-all involving some of the city’s most powerful Latino politicians.

Almost certain to run are Jose Huizar, president of the board of the Los Angeles Unified School District, and Nick Pacheco, who was ousted by Villaraigosa in 2003 after one term on the council. Pacheco has scheduled an announcement for noon today in Boyle Heights.

Huizar and Pacheco attended UC Berkeley together, and Huizar backed Pacheco against Villaraigosa in the 2003 council election.

Another possible candidate, state Sen. Gil Cedillo (D-Los Angeles), who grew up in Boyle Heights, said he is “mulling” a candidacy.

Although Cedillo supported Mayor James K. Hahn in Tuesday’s election, he and Villaraigosa attended Roosevelt High together and have known each other for more than 30 years.

The 14th District has long been a hotbed of politics. It includes Boyle Heights, Monterey Hills, Eagle Rock, El Sereno and Glassell Park. Its population is more than 70% Latino.

In 1999, the last time the seat was open, 13 people ran. The list of names being bandied about Wednesday was shaping up to be long as well.

“That Eastside seat has always been a high profile seat that has generated citywide interest,” said Jorge Flores, a former campaign consultant who now does public affairs work. He said Richard Alatorre was a powerful citywide force when he held the seat for many years “and now the seat has produced the next mayor.”

The only open council seat in Tuesday’s election, District 11 on the Westside, was won by Bill Rosendahl, a former host of public affairs programs who beat Flora Gil Krisiloff by a 13% margin.

Rosendahl won the seat being vacated by Cindy Miscikowski because of term limits.

Now there will almost certainly be another election to fill the seat being vacated by Villaraigosa, whose council term ends June 30, 2007.

The council can appoint someone to finish Villaraigosa’s term -- a rare move -- or call for a special election. An election would probably occur in late summer or early fall, with a runoff election several weeks later if needed, City Clerk Frank T. Martinez said.

Villaraigosa is to be sworn in as mayor on July 1. His council office is expected to be overseen by the city’s chief legislative analyst, Gerry Miller, assuming the council follows long-standing tradition and selects him. At that point, the district will not have a vote in council matters until a successor is elected and sworn in.

A brief look at the potential field:

Jose Huizar: An El Sereno resident, he was elected to the school board in 2001 and became its president in 2003. He ran unopposed for reelection in March.

“I am very interested,” Huizar, 36, said Wednesday of the council seat. “I grew up in the district, I have my hand on the pulse of the many issues, particularly when it comes to schools and safety.”

Besides his high-profile job, Huizar supported Villaraigosa in the mayoral election and would probably benefit from reciprocal help. But he could also face questions about his effectiveness with the LAUSD.

Councilman “is a more powerful position that can impact the community more,” said Fernando Guerra, a political scientist, lobbyist and longtime ally of Villaraigosa. “It also pays a lot more, and the trend in education reform is moving toward the city being more involved.”

Huizar makes $24,000 a year for a part-time school board position, and works as an attorney for the law firm Escobar, Avila, Christopher and Ruiz. City Council members receive an annual salary of $143,837.

Asked if he planned to support Huizar for the 14th District seat, Villaraigosa said, “I haven’t talked to him about that yet, but he’s a bright young man. He’s been great on the school board.”

Nick Pacheco: He won election to the City Council in 1999, but in 2003 he lost to Villaraigosa, and in 2004 he failed in an effort to unseat Los Angeles County Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley.

The 41-year-old Eagle Rock resident would not elaborate on his scheduled announcement today, but in recent weeks Pacheco has called several council members to talk about the vacancy.

“He still has name recognition but he might be seen as damaged goods,” said Jaime Regalado, executive director of the Edmund G. “Pat” Brown Institute of Public Affairs at Cal State Los Angeles.

Pacheco practices family and business law, and said there is unfinished business from his first term -- such as work on a new constituent services center.

“Ever since Antonio announced that he was running for mayor, I would say once a week someone would approach me and say, ‘If things work out for Antonio, we’d like you to come back,’ ” Pacheco said Wednesday. “I just say, ‘OK, thank you.’ It’s getting more intense since the primary.”

Gil Cedillo: The legislator was seen prominently on the stage with Hahn on election night.

Cedillo has received national attention for attempting to grant driver’s licenses to illegal immigrants.

“Nothing would be more exciting to go back to the 14th and work with my high school friend Antonio Villaraigosa and assist in leading the city with him,” Cedillo said Wednesday from Sacramento.

Cedillo, 51, has also been mentioned as a possible replacement for Miguel Contreras, the late executive secretary and treasurer of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor. That job is arguably more powerful than the council, as the union doles out hundreds of thousands of dollars in campaign contributions each year to candidates.

Cedillo said he is considering both jobs and said he enjoys his work on policy in Sacramento. His first term in the Senate ends in 2006. He also said he has many relationships with family and friends in Los Angeles.

The rest: Other possible candidates include Paul Gonzalez, the former Olympic boxer who finished third in the District 14 election in 2003; public affairs consultant Victor Griego, who lost the 1999 runoff election to Pacheco; and Alvin Parra, president of the El Sereno Chamber of Commerce and a former aide to county Supervisor Gloria Molina.

“If the people wanted Pacheco, they would have re-elected him,” said Gonzalez, who said he would run if he could raise enough money. “Huizar has enough problems already with the school district. He needs to finish his task there before thinking about the City Council.”