Sanchez Touts Endorsements by Secession Leaders

Clearly drawing battle lines for Tuesday’s election, 7th District Council candidate Corinne Sanchez played the secession card Friday, joining with secession leaders to highlight her support for the Valley cityhood effort.

Sanchez won the endorsement Friday of Valley VOTE President Jeff Brain and board member Carlos Ferreyra, both of whom said Sanchez has been more supportive than rival Alex Padilla.

“She is open-minded to the idea of a separate city, assuming it is beneficial to all of Los Angeles,” said Brain, who like Ferreyra, said he acted as an individual, not on behalf of his organization. “Alex has not been forthcoming in support of our effort,” Brain said.

Padilla responded Friday by calling the Sanchez position on Valley secession “irresponsible,” and his campaign manager said Sanchez’s emphasis on secession shows she is “out of step with voters.”

The sharp contrast was emphasized further by Sanchez, who sent literature to district voters highlighting the A grade she received from Valley VOTE and the C grade the group gave to Padilla.

Valley VOTE rated Sanchez highly after she said she supports Valley cityhood if a pending study finds it would not hurt the Valley or the rest of Los Angeles. Padilla said he supports the study but refused to take a position on cityhood.

“It brings our government closer to the residents and to the people. I believe if it doesn’t harm the city, and doesn’t harm us, it’s a win-win,” Sanchez said.

Sanchez taunted Padilla, asserting he can’t take a pro-secession position out of fear of antagonizing his major backers, including Mayor Richard Riordan, an ardent foe of secession.

“I think he’s restricted by the people supporting him not to support these issues,” Sanchez said. “[Secession] takes away from the downtown power base, and they are not going to support Padilla doing that.”

Padilla flatly denied the claim. Sanchez should wait, like him, for the study results before taking a position on secession, Padilla said.

“If she is taking a position without knowing all the facts, that’s irresponsible,” Padilla said of Sanchez.

The 11th-hour emphasis on Valley cityhood means Sanchez is betting, down the stretch, that 7th District voters will respond strongly to the secession issue. In talking to voters, Sanchez is convinced many see secession as a pivotal issue in the campaign.

“[Voters] have voiced to me that they believe in secession,” Sanchez said. “Going door to door, that is the first thing they say to me, that we are not getting our fair share. What I think they have interpreted [secession] to mean is they are going to get more attention. They are going to get streets cleaned better, trees trimmed faster.”

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Ferreyra, one of the three original petitioners for the Valley secession study, said the largest percentage of signatures came from the northeast Valley, so he agrees with Sanchez that the issue will resonate with voters. About 60% of the district voters surveyed by Sanchez’s campaign said they support secession. A Los Angeles Times Poll in March also found that 60% of Valley residents supported secession at that time.

On Wednesday, Valley VOTE submitted its plan for creating a new Valley city to the Local Agency Formation Commission.

Padilla said Friday that few voters he has talked to are captivated by the issue.

“In my six months of precinct walking, the total number of people who have mentioned that is up to six,” Padilla said sarcastically.

His campaign manager, Rick Taylor, said the mailing and news conference on secession show that Sanchez is “out of touch with the voters.”

While not committing to support or oppose secession, Padilla said his focus generally will be on fixing problems, not breaking things up, and he believes a new City Charter on Tuesday’s ballot will help.

“Maybe we should give charter reform a chance,” he said.

Sanchez and Padilla made their last scheduled joint appearance Friday on KCET-TV’s news show “Life and Times,” during which Sanchez challenged Padilla’s support for charter reform.

Sanchez said charter reform will worsen the Valley’s problems not solve them, by giving too much power to the mayor.

“I feel it tips the scales in terms of checks and balances between the mayor and City Council,” Sanchez said during the show, which will air Monday.

Padilla said charter reform will give residents more voice in their government through the creation of neighborhood councils.