Candidates Play Musical Chairs for Hot Seats

Within moments of telling supporters that she was conceding her state Senate race to Los Angeles Councilman Alex Padilla early Wednesday, Assemblywoman Cindy Montanez said she intended to run to replace Padilla at City Hall next year.

Montanez’s announcement was not surprising, although it came near 2 a.m. -- before all the results were tallied in the Democratic primary that Padilla won by 11 percentage points. At the time, Montanez had not called Padilla to concede the election, nor had she done so by late Wednesday afternoon.

Because Montanez ran for state Senate, she must vacate her Assembly seat in December. She said that she plans to move from San Fernando into the northeastern San Fernando Valley -- possibly nearby Pacoima or Sylmar -- to be eligible to run for City Council.

“I really look forward to being able to represent this area. It’s the area where I grew up,” Montanez said Wednesday afternoon. “I’m really excited about this opportunity. I have a passionate commitment to that district. I want to keep representing that district.”

Felipe Fuentes, who is Padilla’s chief of staff, says he is weighing a council run against Montanez. For the seat to become vacant, Padilla -- who is heavily favored in state Senate District 20, a Democratic stronghold -- must win the general election in November.

If he wins, Padilla will take the job held by state Sen. Richard Alarcon (D-Sun Valley), who was forced out by term limits and on Tuesday won the Democratic nomination to replace Montanez in the Assembly. He has no competition on the November ballot.

That would set up a rematch of sorts; Fuentes’ aunt Yolanda Fuentes ran against Montanez for the Democratic nomination for the 39th Assembly District in 2002 -- which Montanez won by 31 percentage points.

“I have a tremendous amount of respect for the community, but before I make a final decision I need to check in with community leaders, my family and my friends,” Fuentes said. “I believe that I’m uniquely qualified to continue all the good work that we’ve started in the district.”

Montanez, 32, was elected to the San Fernando City Council in 1999 and became mayor in 2001. Fuentes, 35, was a Padilla field deputy from 1999 to 2001, then served as deputy mayor for special projects for James K. Hahn and rejoined Padilla as chief of staff in 2003.

There would be interesting dynamics in the race. Montanez has been in elected office since 1999 and Fuentes never has been. Montanez received the endorsement from Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa in her Senate race and there is no reason to think he would not also support her in a bid for the council.

Fuentes is a lifelong resident of the district and resides in Sylmar. He is well-connected at City Hall and would likely benefit from Padilla’s backing given the councilman’s ability to generate campaign contributions; Padilla raised more than $1.8 million in his Senate race compared with Montanez’s almost $1.2 million -- however, labor unions also spent heavily in independent campaigns for Montanez.

Padilla would not comment on who should replace him. “I’m not gone yet. We still have a lot of work to do -- the general election isn’t until November,” Padilla said. “This isn’t so much a change, but it’s my next stop in serving residents of the Valley and the city.”

Padilla said that he would likely leave the council after the November election. Council President Eric Garcetti then can appoint a caretaker for Council District 7 until an election is held.

Padilla has three years left in his term.

City Clerk Frank Martinez said that an election to replace Padilla would likely be held March 6 along with council elections that are scheduled in the seven even-numbered districts. There are 15 council members.

In the past, the City Council has voted to call a special election when a member puts it in writing that it is their intention to resign at a future date.