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Supervisorial Snapshot
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| Mark Ridley-Thomas is one of the two principal contenders to fill the supervisor's seat being vacated by Yvonne B. Burke. Photo by Gary Leonard. |
Business Community Steps Up for the 'Labor' Candidate
by Jon Regardie
Scene: A sun-splashed patio at the Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce on the afternoon of Tuesday, March 11. The event is a fundraiser for Second District County Supervisor candidate Mark Ridley-Thomas, the state senator and former Los Angeles City Councilman.
In Attendance: Several dozen business people from Downtown and beyond, including: event organizer John Semcken, an executive with Majestic Realty, who formerly worked with Ridley-Thomas in the effort to build Staples Center and then to secure a professional football team for the Coliseum; power attorney George Kieffer, of the firm Manatt, Phelps and Phillips; former NFL great and current businessman/developer Keyshawn Johnson; attorney and sports agent Jerome Stanley; CB Richard Ellis First Vice President of Brokerage Services David Louie.
The Buzz: A general annoyance at media reports that paint Ridley-Thomas, whose chief opponent is current City Councilman Bernard Parks (seven other people have also filed to run), as simply the "labor" candidate. "He's always been business-friendly to me," said Johnson, who first worked with Ridley-Thomas on the Chesterfield Square project in South Los Angeles. "Political people usually talk a good game and don't deliver. Well, I've seen him do both. For me, that goes a long way."
Semcken described him as a "coalition builder" adept at bringing together disparate groups. "I think the healthcare issues in the county are insurmountable without somebody like Mark Ridley-Thomas," said Semcken. "Business has to give a little, the unions have to give a little, the community has to stand behind it and understand what the issues are. That's what Mark can do."
The Breakdown: Ridley-Thomas indeed has received backing from most unions, while Parks has been endorsed by the majority of local elected office holders. But Ridley-Thomas says the designation that he is the "labor candidate" is not bothersome.
"I'm not frustrated so much as I feel honored to have the backing of a range of labor organizations. So I feel significantly complimented by it," he said.
"But that is not the extent of the support that I enjoy. My support from law enforcement is important, the support afforded by business leaders is important.... I understand what it means to cause communities to thrive in an appropriate way. The small business community is very motivated in terms of their support for my candidacy."
The primary is June 3. If no candidate wins a majority of the vote, the top two finishers will proceed to a runoff.
Supervisorial Snapshot captures some of the sights, scenes and happenings of the race for the Second District L.A. County Supervisors seat. The district includes portions of Downtown Los Angeles.
Contact Jon Regardie at regardie@downtownnews.com.
page 3, 3/17/2008
© Los Angeles Downtown News. Reprinting items retrieved from the archives are for personal use only. They may not be reproduced or retransmitted without permission of the Los Angeles Downtown News. If you would like to re-distribute anything from the Los Angeles Downtown News Archives, please call our permissions department at (213) 481-1448.
In Attendance: Several dozen business people from Downtown and beyond, including: event organizer John Semcken, an executive with Majestic Realty, who formerly worked with Ridley-Thomas in the effort to build Staples Center and then to secure a professional football team for the Coliseum; power attorney George Kieffer, of the firm Manatt, Phelps and Phillips; former NFL great and current businessman/developer Keyshawn Johnson; attorney and sports agent Jerome Stanley; CB Richard Ellis First Vice President of Brokerage Services David Louie.
The Buzz: A general annoyance at media reports that paint Ridley-Thomas, whose chief opponent is current City Councilman Bernard Parks (seven other people have also filed to run), as simply the "labor" candidate. "He's always been business-friendly to me," said Johnson, who first worked with Ridley-Thomas on the Chesterfield Square project in South Los Angeles. "Political people usually talk a good game and don't deliver. Well, I've seen him do both. For me, that goes a long way."
Semcken described him as a "coalition builder" adept at bringing together disparate groups. "I think the healthcare issues in the county are insurmountable without somebody like Mark Ridley-Thomas," said Semcken. "Business has to give a little, the unions have to give a little, the community has to stand behind it and understand what the issues are. That's what Mark can do."
The Breakdown: Ridley-Thomas indeed has received backing from most unions, while Parks has been endorsed by the majority of local elected office holders. But Ridley-Thomas says the designation that he is the "labor candidate" is not bothersome.
"I'm not frustrated so much as I feel honored to have the backing of a range of labor organizations. So I feel significantly complimented by it," he said.
"But that is not the extent of the support that I enjoy. My support from law enforcement is important, the support afforded by business leaders is important.... I understand what it means to cause communities to thrive in an appropriate way. The small business community is very motivated in terms of their support for my candidacy."
The primary is June 3. If no candidate wins a majority of the vote, the top two finishers will proceed to a runoff.
Supervisorial Snapshot captures some of the sights, scenes and happenings of the race for the Second District L.A. County Supervisors seat. The district includes portions of Downtown Los Angeles.
Contact Jon Regardie at regardie@downtownnews.com.
page 3, 3/17/2008
© Los Angeles Downtown News. Reprinting items retrieved from the archives are for personal use only. They may not be reproduced or retransmitted without permission of the Los Angeles Downtown News. If you would like to re-distribute anything from the Los Angeles Downtown News Archives, please call our permissions department at (213) 481-1448.
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