State Sen. Mark Ridley-Thomas (D-Culver City) this morning won the endorsement of La Opinión, the most influential Spanish-language daily newspaper serving readers in the Latino community throughout Los Angeles County.
They said the senator is “better suited” to succeed the retiring Yvonne Brathwaite Burke on the County Board of Supervisors than his chief rival, Los Angeles City Councilman Bernard Parks in the June 3 election.
In the process, the newspaper stepped into the middle of the senator’s dispute with Mr. Parks over who said what about the King/Drew Medical Center and Trauma Center before it closed.
“I intend to confirm the rightness of their endorsement of my candidacy by demonstrating leadership that is forward-looking, inclusive, collaborative and progressive,” Sen. Ridley-Thomas said.
In today’s editorial, La Opinión’s editors wrote of the senator:
“Ridley-Thomas has shown himself to be an inclusive leader, a bridge-builder on community issues, and a person who has a commitment to engaging with Latinos. During his earlier efforts, Mark Ridley-Thomas developed mechanisms for local participation that actually served as a model for today’s Neighborhood Councils. In other areas, we share many of his priorities such as the creation of affordable housing.”
“In terms of Martin Luther King, Jr. Hospital, he has been consistent that the institution fulfills its mission and provide high quality service to all residents in the area. Finally, with regards to immigration, Ridley-Thomas has taken a position that is both realistic and humane. The Board of Supervisors takes on many of the local government’s most important issues. Mark Ridley-Thomas will be a much-needed progressive voice on the Board. Vote for Mark Ridley-Thomas!” La Opinión’s editors wrote.
La Opinión joins the growing list of influential members of the Latino community in L.A. County – elected officials, business, labor, civic, religious and community leaders – that have endorsed Sen. Ridley-Thomas for Supervisor, including:
Congresswoman Hilda Solis
State Senate Majority Leader Gloria Romero
State Sen. Ron Calderon
State Sen. Gil Cedillo
State Sen. Lou Correa
State Sen. Dean Florez
State Sen. Mike Machado
State Sen. Alex Padilla
State Sen. Jenny Oropeza
Assembly Speaker Fabian Nuñez
Assemblymember Anna M. Caballero
Assemblymember Chuck Calderon
Assemblymember Joe Coto
Assemblymember Kevin De Leon
Assemblymember Hector De La Torre
Assemblymember Pedro Nava
Assemblymember Nicole Parra
Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca
Culver City Historian Julie Lugo Cerra
Lynwood Mayor Pro Tem Aide Castro
Hawthorne Councilman Pablo Catano
Hawthorne City Councilmember Daniel D. Juarez
Los Angeles School Board President Monica Garcia
Los Angeles Unified School Board Member Yolie Flores Aguilar
Maywood Vice Mayor Veronica Guardado
Maywood Councilwoman Ana Rosa Rizo
Sen. Martha Escutia (Ret.)
Sen. Richard Polanco (Ret.)
Maria Elena Durazo, L.A. County Federation of Labor
Annelle Grajeda, SEIU, Local 721
Dolores Huerta
Rev. Mark Garcia
Rev. Altagracia Perez
United Farm Workers
Mexican American Bar Assn.
L.A. County’s Second District includes the cities of Culver City, Inglewood, Hawthorne, Lawndale, Carson, Lynwood, Compton and portions of Los Angeles and unincorporated sections of south and southwest Los Angeles County.
