Los Angeles City Councilman Bernard Parks officially locked up his third term this morning when the City Clerk posted the final outstanding ballots in which he widened his lead over challenger the feisty Forescee Hogan-Rowles.
Regardless of which candidate was affected more by a lightly regarded third party, Jabari S. Jumaane, his scant 975 votes, 5.27 percent, may have made a difference.
Mr. Parks finished with 9,482 votes, 51.21 percent, easily surpassing the 50-plus-1 threshold 2½ weeks after Election Day to stave off a runoff.
In her second run for the Council, Ms. Hogan-Rowles drew 8,058 votes, 43.52 percent, a half-point less than she had on Election Day.
After digesting the results, she issued this statement:
“I'm proud of our campaign and the coalition we built together with workers and neighborhood leaders. We came just a few votes away from forcing Bernard Parks into a runoff — even though he used to be one of the most popular leaders in the city.
“Our campaign sends an important message to elected leaders like Bernard Parks who ignore their constituents and the workers who keep our city working:No matter how popular you think you are, you can't take the people for granted.
“I want to thank everyone —volunteers, Block Club members, pastors and community leaders, union families and workers, Neighborhood Council members, friends and family and the residents and small business owners of the great 8th District for all of their support and hard work. We have now made the first step toward change in the 8th, and we will continue our movement to hold our elected members accountable.”
