MY TURN-In six weeks Los Angeles will hold another local election. This news will probably make almost eighty per cent of the voting public’s eyes glaze over.
Who cares who is running in District #4 for City Council or who wants seat #3 in the Community College Board of Trustees or for that matter seat #1 in the Board of Education race? Local elections are not exciting…incumbents usually win and if there is an open seat, the one with the most money raised…usually a politician… wins!
It’s a damn shame, because your local officials have more influence on your day to day life than the federal or even state elected officials. Running for office is NOT a walk in the park! It is tough, physically grueling, mentally exhausting and emotionally a roller coaster.
It is interesting to note that most people who win elections come from the political spectrum…not civic activists. That is why when I discovered that nine of the people running in the March primary were Neighborhood Council founders and activists I was intrigued.
Controller Ron Galperin is the poster child for Neighborhood Councils (NC). If you check his biography he was a successful lawyer, a part time Cantor for two decades and still does some cantor gigs for fun. He has served on numerous Boards and Associations BUT he developed his interest in tax revenue when he was a member of the Bel Air/Beverly Crest Neighborhood Council.
He told me that he was lucky to be part of a passionate and active NC, who truly worked on behalf of their community. He became an NC Budget Advocate, which gave him an inside look at the City finances and then Chair of the City NC Budget Advocates. From there he was appointed as the Chair of the Commission on Revenue Efficiency (CORE); served as a member and chair of numerous civic and charitable institutions; taught civic classes; was a business owner; and got his feet wet in the political arena. In 2012 he was elected Controller.
Not only that … but everyone's aware of how much he loves his job as Controller. He does not fit the picture of a “controller” as we tend to think of someone wearing an eyeshade, a pen protector and mumbling numbers. His innovations since taking office have been widely recognized and one hears hardly any criticism of how he runs his Department.
He will probably be embarrassed, but I would describe him as a Renaissance Man. His recent talk tours around the City have him engaging his audience, when he talks about how the City spends its money. We all know that the City buys $180.000 worth of frozen rats to feed those reptiles at the Zoo. We also know that anyone can go on line and see every check written and to whom.
I asked him what it was like running for elected office and if he had any advice for our eight NC oriented candidates (one of the nine is an incumbent).
He said that he was a neophyte when he first joined the NC but was fortunate to be around smart passionate people who were very involved in City affairs. He admitted that running for office was hard, but he advised the candidates to enjoy the process. He explained, “It’s a chance to meet new people, hear what their issues are and be more directly engaged in the community.”
We hear about the challenges in fund raising, especially for candidates who do not have a political or special interest endorsement such as the Political Party, Sierra Club, the NRA, PETA etc. He said ,“Whoever put the word ‘fun’ in fundraising was obviously a masochist.”
It is certainly NOT fun … but unfortunately necessary. He said, you have to learn to be good at it. Some people who you expected to support will disappoint you and others will pleasantly surprise you.
I asked him how one gets chosen for a Slate. He said that many of the postcards and mailers one receives in the mail are not official endorsements. Just because they have a donkey or an elephant on it doesn’t mean it is a political party’s official endorsement. It is a business and some of the people putting slates together will market their slate to the highest bidder. Of course it’s a lot cheaper to pay to be on a slate than to send out direct mail individually.
He added, “That one has to learn not to take it all personally, be consistent in your message-don’t say one thing to one group and something different to the another. Just say what you think!” The best part of campaigning …aside from winning of course…is walking the neighborhoods.
I can attest to the difficulties because I ran for the Community College Board of Trustees and lost! I was in my late twenties and as a magazine publisher for the apparel industry I had a fairly high profile. I was a product of the Community College system for a year before I was able to transfer to UCLA. To this day I don’t remember one of my professors at UCLA but I do remember my Humanities professor at Los Angeles City College.
I recognized the importance of vocational training and thought I could get the Community College system to put emphasis on getting people ready for jobs. I made speeches in front of different groups; had my kids handout flyers at markets on the weekend; put up posters; tried to raise money and got really scared when I saw the actions of some of those who were previously elected.
When I was seventeen I decided I was going to be the first Lady Mayor of the City of Los Angeles. Running for seat number 5 on the Community College Board cured me of that.
One of the many positives of being active in your Neighborhood Council is it gives one a chance to develop important leadership skills. I asked the nine candidates if they would let me share with you their experience with NC’s, their qualifications and what they would like to accomplish if elected.
In this Thursday’s article I will give you a “brief” on each one and talk about some of the obstacles they face. Most of us are more than a little cynical when it comes to the political process and I do agree with Supreme Court Justice, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, that the Citizen’s United decision will probably go down as one of the worst judgments from a Supreme Court in the modern age. Of course it depends on who is writing the history.
I tip my hat to the nine who sincerely want to make a difference. Join me Thursday and take a look at these brave souls. They deserve your attention. It doesn’t mean that those who don’t have NC experience are not good candidates. But it does prove that being active in your NC can lead to larger and more influential positions.
Ron Galperin is proof and he continues to make a difference.
As always comments welcome.
(Denyse Selesnick is a featured CityWatch columnist. She is a former Publisher/journalist/international event organizer. Denyse can be reached at: [email protected])
-cw
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CityWatch
Vol 13 Issue 8
Pub: Jan 27, 2015
