Arellano Quits LAUSD Race

Christopher Arellano, the beleaguered Los Angeles school board candidate who lied about his background, said Tuesday he is withdrawing from the June runoff election because his missteps have become the major issue of the campaign.

Arellano said in an interview that he reached his decision after being urged to bow out by leaders of the city’s powerful teachers union, which backed him and financed his campaign, and other supporters, including City Councilman Eric Garcetti and state Assemblywoman Jackie Goldberg (D-Los Angeles).

“I have decided it is just better to drop out. It is best for myself and my supporters,” Arellano said.

“The race has now changed into questions about me, my past and the things I have done. If I stayed in, that would have continued and that’s not why I wanted to run.”

A political novice, Arellano, 33, became a front-runner in the special election when he won the backing of the teachers union, for which he works.

He portrayed himself as having had a troubled youth, describing his adolescence as “dysfunctional,” and said he dropped out of school at 14.

Supporters praised him for turning his life around, saying he was an example to at-risk students.

His campaign unraveled, however, after Arellano falsely said he had completed two master’s degrees at USC, and reports surfaced that he had twice been convicted of shoplifting during the 1990s.

Supporters largely dismissed the criminal charges as youthful indiscretions, but Arellano’s failure to complete his graduate work -- despite saying he did so in campaign mailers -- angered many.

After spending $200,000 the union contributed to his campaign, Arellano placed only a distant second in the March 7 election, narrowly forcing a runoff against Monica Garcia.

“I’m glad he made this decision,” said A.J. Duffy, president of United Teachers Los Angeles. “I think it’s the right one given the political realities and the revelations that surfaced. And it takes UTLA out of that difficult situation.”

Arellano acknowledged that he had paid a steep price for his exaggerated claims.

“I realize that I made a terrible mistake,” he said. “People were asking why I had done such a thing.”

Arellano’s decision throws into question the June 6 runoff to fill a school board seat left vacant since November when Jose Huizar was elected to the City Council.

Los Angeles City Clerk Frank Martinez said he could not recall a candidate pulling out of a runoff election. City lawyers, he said, were investigating whether Enrique Gasca, who finished behind Arellano in the special election, would be allowed to run against Garcia.

Until Arellano formally notifies the city of his decision -- which he had not done by late Tuesday afternoon -- plans to submit his name to county election officials for the ballot would proceed, Martinez said.

Gasca, who could not be reached for comment, would face a daunting challenge if allowed to take on Garcia.

Huizar’s former chief of staff, Garcia won Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s backing and the support of many of Huizar’s donors. Gasca struggled to generate much interest and financed much of his campaign himself.

After Garcia’s dominant showing in the special election -- she won 47% of the votes -- Duffy said it would be unwise for Gasca to enter the runoff and did not expect the union to back him.

“I can’t speak for my members,” he said. “But my gut feeling is that we will not get back into this race.”

But Arellano’s tailspin and his decision to step aside could also mark a small victory for Villaraigosa in his ongoing campaign to take control of the Los Angeles Unified School District. The teachers union strongly opposes a city takeover and chose to back Arellano, in part, because he is a vocal opponent of the idea.

Garcia, meanwhile, has indicated she is open to the mayor’s plan.

Garcia said she would continue to prepare for her runoff campaign.

She questioned, however, the wisdom of a runoff against Gasca after she only just missed an outright victory, which she would have secured with more than half of the votes.

“No doubt I would have liked it to be over. I think the voters made a strong statement,” she said. “I would welcome the chance to go to work for the families of this district immediately. We don’t have a day to waste, let alone three months.”

Arellano said he has reenrolled at USC and plans to finish his degree, while continuing to handle teacher grievances for the union. He expressed regret about leaving the race for the seat that will represent a district stretching from Boyle Heights to Mid-Wilshire, including Chinatown, Koreatown and the Pico-Union area.

“I still think I would have fought for the kids like no other candidate,” he said.