Carson Mayor Cites Health in Dropping Reelection Bid

Carson Mayor Pete Fajardo, who has presided over one of the most ethnically diverse communities in Los Angeles County, issued a surprise statement from the Philippines on Monday that he will withdraw from the upcoming mayor’s race due to poor health.

The move throws open the March election to five remaining candidates, including a city councilman, the city clerk and a former mayor. But the move is fueling speculation that Fajardo left because of legal problems and his crumbling political base among Filipino and African Americans.

“Much to my regret, I have to announce that I have withdrawn my candidacy,” said Fajardo from the Philippines via a speakerphone at a news conference at the Carson Hilton.

“My physical health right now, that is my primary concern,” said Fajardo, who is in his late 50s.

During the 20-minute phone call, Fajardo said he has suffered two strokes since late November--one in Carson days before his Nov. 29 departure for his homeland to visit a sick relative and another several days later. Since then, he has had surgery to clear a blockage near his heart and remains overseas on doctor’s orders, he said.

He will fax his withdrawal and medical records to City Hall within two days, he said.

Fajardo declined to endorse a candidate to lead the South Bay city of about 88,000, divided nearly equally among whites, blacks, Latinos and Asians, including large Filipino and Japanese communities. His campaign committee will study the field and recommend someone within a week, said Art Bongco, chairman of Fajardo’s now-folded campaign.

“I would go with someone who is able and qualified, not necessarily belonging to any specific ethnic group,” said Fajardo, prompting murmurs in the standing-room-only audience of about 50. Some considered it a veiled reference to Fajardo’s open rivalry with Elito Santerina, a teacher who is the only Filipino American seeking to succeed Fajardo.

Councilman Daryl Sweeney said he was not surprised by Fajardo’s withdrawal and has already sought Fajardo’s endorsement.

“My prayers are with him and his family,” Sweeney said.

For years, Sweeney and Fajardo had been allies, forming the heart of an African American-Filipino American coalition that dominated city politics. But this summer, turmoil concerning the ethnic diversity of City Hall employees split the city’s leadership along ethnic lines. Critics complained that Fajardo was favoring Filipino Americans in his appointments and triggered a new pattern of appointments among other ethnic groups seeking parity.

The Sweeney-Fajardo alliance appeared to disintegrate further in early December when Sweeney entered the mayor’s race.

Last week, in a move that raised eyebrows, the council refused to excuse Fajardo’s weeks-long absence, leaving open the possibility that he could be removed from office if he did not return from overseas within days. Carson elected officials can be removed from office if they miss 60 days of public meetings--unless the council votes to excuse them.

Bongco, Fajardo’s campaign chairman, criticized the council’s move against the mayor while Fajardo is sick and out of the country. “What I saw that night [of the City Council vote] seemed to be inexcusable,” Bongco said. “We lacked the compassion.”

During his call from the Philippines, Fajardo denied rumors in City Hall that he left the city “in a rush” due to legal problems. Fajardo, who had been a paralegal, pleaded guilty last summer to a federal charge of improperly collecting fees as if he were an attorney. He was sentenced to one year of probation and ordered to pay the $4,600 he had collected.

So as “not to cause confusion,” Fajardo said, he would return to the United States unannounced as soon as doctors allow him to.

He said he is officially retiring and ruled out the possibility of a future run for office.

City Clerk Helen Kawagoe, businessman and former Carson mayor Mike Mitoma, activist James Peoples, Santerina and Sweeney are the remaining mayoral candidates. The election is March 6.