Council Votes 9-5 to Reject Hermosillo

Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan was handed a humbling setback Friday when the City Council rebuffed his lobbying efforts and rejected the appointment of Latino activist Xavier Hermosillo to the Fire Commission.

Hermosillo’s remarks as chairman of the NEWS for America activist group proved too controversial as council members reported being deluged with constituents’ calls against his selection.

Hermosillo is the sole Riordan appointee out of dozens that have been put forward by the mayor to be rejected by the council so far. But Friday’s decisive 9-5 vote stands as a clear reminder to Riordan: He inherited a weak mayoral system in which his power stems chiefly from his ability to sway the council.

“I respect their right to vote according to their own conscience,” Riordan said after learning of the results, portraying the defeat as nothing more than a disagreement over one man’s views. “The only regret I have about the appointment is that Mr. Hermosillo was not confirmed.”

After a council committee unanimously rejected Hermosillo on Monday and the full council deadlocked Tuesday, Riordan spent the week trying to drum up support for Friday’s showdown. Now he is back at the drawing board, mulling over another choice.

When asked if she was lobbied by the mayor, Councilwoman Laura Chick twisted her arm behind her back and said succinctly: “There’s been a strong attempt to persuade.” She came out early against Hermosillo and was considered a prime target for reversal by the mayor’s strategists.

Although Riordan said Friday morning that he believed he had the eight votes needed for Hermosillo to win confirmation, he did not account for the last minute outcry from the community over Hermosillo’s inflammatory remarks and how it prompted several Riordan allies, aware of their own political fortunes, to jump ship.

“We had the votes and people double-crossed us,” said an angry Councilman Richard Alatorre, a Riordan backer who took on the fight for Hermosillo.

“This is not about Mr. Hermosillo,” he added. “It is about whether we are going to be tolerant . . . and acknowledge that we all don’t believe the same thing.”

The key votes against Hermosillo were cast by Councilmen Hal Bernson, Zev Yaroslavsky and Rudy Svorinich Jr., considered by many to be in the mayor’s camp.

Members of the council criticized the mayor for not consulting them in the first place, for not withdrawing Hermosillo’s nomination when community opposition grew and for squandering political capital on such a controversial nominee.

Hermosillo was criticized for his bold predictions that Latinos are taking over the city--”Wake up and smell the refried beans,” he said on national TV--and for his use of the term mayate (the Spanish term for a black insect) to refer to African-Americans at an awards dinner last year.

“I think (Riordan) will learn from this process,” said Council President John Ferraro, who stuck by the mayor. Maybe next time, Ferraro said, Riordan will run his selections by the council.

“I originally was prepared to support the mayor,” Bernson said. “No way I can ignore the outcry I have heard from my constituents in the 12th District.”

Yaroslavsky and Svorinich made similar remarks.

City Hall insiders said Riordan, who has been in office less than two months, should have listened to the advice of his Chief of Staff William McCarley. , who knows council members’ pet peeves and political agendas better than anyone else in the mayor’s office.

McCarley reportedly predicted strong council opposition to Hermosillo’s appointment and recommended against it. He refused to discuss that advice Friday, calling his recommendations to Riordan confidential.

“Some things are impossible to do--even for Riordan,” Councilman Nate Holden said. Despite his opposition to Hermosillo, Holden viewed the rejection not as a blow to Riordan but as a sign that he stands by his nominees.

As the vote neared Friday morning, Riordan made a personal appearance in the council chambers to honor Ferraro with a cake for 40 years of public service. Before leaving the room, he made it a point to shake hands with council members.

But the goodwill failed to translate into votes.

Joining Alatorre and Ferraro in support of Hermosillo were Councilmen Richard Alarcon, Mike Hernandez and Joel Wachs.

The nine other council members present--including all three black members--voted against Hermosillo. Councilwoman Jackie Goldberg, who was not at the meeting, sent word that she would reject him when she returned next week.

Before the vote, community leaders lined up one after another to alternatively praise and vilify the outspoken Hermosillo.

“This issue is much larger than Xavier Hermosillo,” said Assemblyman Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles), who praised the nominee for his advocacy in the Latino community and attributed the dissent to political correctness.

Joe Hicks, executive director of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference of Greater Los Angeles, asked the council to reject Hermosillo because of “his documented insensitivity to other groups.”

In emotional remarks after his rejection was clear, Hermosillo took a conciliatory tone, saying that he would work with all races to improve the city. But he also made some defiant jabs at the council.

The 43-year-old public relations consultant said Svorinich, his own councilman, let him down by changing his vote and added: “Nine council members still don’t get it but I think they better understand the frustration in the community after today.”

The council rarely flexes its muscle in such situations. It did so once during the final year of Mayor Tom Bradley’s regime when it turned down his appointment of attorney Melanie E. Lomax, a nominee to the Department of Water and Power commission, on the grounds that she was lacked environmental credentials and performed poorly during her tenure as a police commissioner.

Times staff writer John Schwada contributed to this story.