L.A. mayoral race: Interactive graphic shows where in the city candidates are getting money
Good morning, and welcome to the Essential California newsletter. It’s Wednesday, May 11. I’m Justin Ray.
Los Angeles residents were scheduled to start receiving their ballots this week to make their voices are heard as to who will be the city’s next mayor.
The candidates propose very different solutions for the problems the city faces. But there’s one thing they have in common: Over the next month, they will need to get their names out through a mix of advertising, events and canvassing.
You may have questions, such as, how and where can you vote? What do the candidates stand for? To help you, we published a guide to the election.
During this year’s election, nearly $40 million has poured in from contributions and loans, the most of any Los Angeles city mayoral race to date. Billionaire developer Rick Caruso has given his campaign $25 million, far more than any other candidate in the race.
Speaking of money in the race, the Los Angeles Times has published an interactive graphic that shows from where in the city each candidate has received money. The Times found patterns in the pockets of support received across the state.
There are several takeaways from the interactive graphic. For one, residents of affluent areas opened their checkbooks, with more than $280,000 coming in from Brentwood alone, the largest amount of any area. Karen Bass is getting contributions not only from wide swaths of the city but also from what appears to be the San Bernardino-Riverside corridor. Kevin de León appears to be drawing financial contributions from heavily Latino areas to the east of the city proper.
You can enter your own ZIP Code to see where money from your neighborhood went. Check everything out here.
And now, here’s what’s happening across California:
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L.A. STORIES
Exclusive interview: Columnist Bill Plaschke sat down with Lakers owner Jeanie Buss for an exclusive, wide-ranging interview that included every major question fans asked this offseason. She says she understands fan frustration and agrees that “I’ve got to make it better.” Los Angeles Times
‘The unhoused community is exploding. There are no places to go. Except prisons.’ This conversation between activist Theo Henderson and scholar Ananya Roy is all about how Los Angeles can address homelessness. The discussion, which was held at the UCLA Luskin Institute on Inequality and Democracy, of which Roy is founding director and Henderson is Activist-in-Residence, explores the role of government intervention as well as the need to elevate the public discourse around the topic. Los Angeles Times
Meet the GOAT of bass fishermen. “There are many L.A. sports GOATs. Kobe Bryant. Jackie Joyner-Kersee. Wayne Gretzky. Butch Brown. Butch Brown?” writes Steven E. Banks. “It’s a name spoken in hushed tones of reverence in the bass-fishing community.” Los Angeles Times
An investigation into allegations surrounding Mayor Eric Garcetti and his former top aide found it “extremely unlikely” that Garcetti was unaware of the aide’s alleged inappropriate behavior. Los Angeles Times
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POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT
San Diego is wasting millions in taxpayer money by not preventing injuries to city workers with more rigorous safety protocols and deeper analysis of how injuries happen, according to a new city audit. It also claims that the city’s policy failures on injuries have pushed the city’s rate of workers’ compensation claims 17% higher than the average for large California cities. San Diego Union-Tribune
Michael Tubbs, the first Black mayor of Stockton and author of the memoir “The Deeper the Roots,” discusses his nonprofit End Poverty in California (EPIC). In a new interview, Tubbs explains his plan for overhauling the state’s vast, complex social programs and upending policies and systems that have dictated the status quo for decades. Capital and Main
California lawmakers say they are troubled by state Controller Betty Yee’s behind-the-scenes advice to a politically connected company seeking a $600-million no-bid government contract to provide COVID-19 masks, prompting some to call for a second legislative hearing into the failed deal. Los Angeles Times
CRIME, COURTS AND POLICING
Officials are investigating four homicides in California prisons. The most recent is the death of 22-year-old inmate Camilo Banoslopez. Officials said he was attacked shortly after 11:40 a.m. Friday at California State Prison in Sacramento by four inmates. Los Angeles Times
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HEALTH AND THE ENVIRONMENT
Your lawn will suffer amid the megadrought. Save money and put it out of its misery. The outdoor watering restrictions will make watering your lawn impossible, meaning SoCal residents have to face a brutal truth. “Instead of watching your lawn die, you can be watching your beautiful California native garden thriving,” says Rebecca Kimitch, a Metropolitan Water District spokesperson. Los Angeles Times
CALIFORNIA CULTURE
Why hasn’t UC Berkeley built more student housing? This month, thousands of Cal undergraduates and graduate students may struggle to find housing. “By only housing 22% of its undergraduates and 9% of its graduate students — the lowest percentage in the UC system — UC Berkeley has guaranteed the spring mad scramble,” Frances Dinkelspiel writes. Berkeleyside
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CALIFORNIA ALMANAC
Los Angeles: Sunny 69 San Diego: Sunny 63 San Francisco: Cloudy 63 San Jose: Sunny 69 Fresno: Overcast 73 Sacramento: Sunny 76
AND FINALLY
Today’s California memory is from Libby Breen:
My great-aunt Elizabeth Pallette Brady wrote a history of our family titled “Beneath the Lake.” It contained a story about Joseph Sumner, who traveled by boat and wagon to Kernville, then known as Whiskey Flats. Joe left his young family in Maine in 1849 to seek California gold and, after finding gold, started a mine called the Sumner Mine, later the Big Blue. Twenty years later his wife and grown children joined him. The family history is as fascinating as the beginnings of California and Los Angeles.
If you have a memory or story about the Golden State, share it with us. (Please keep your story to 100 words.)
Please let us know what we can do to make this newsletter more useful to you. Send comments to essentialcalifornia@latimes.com.
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