LA City Councilmember Kevin de León seeks reelection
Los Angeles City Councilmember Kevin de León officially announced Wednesday that he is running for reelection in March, hoping for another round representing the 14th District.
The councilmember has seen a fair share of controversy while serving three years with the council as he escaped a recall effort in 2022, brought on by his connection to a leaked racist recording that led to the resignation of Los Angeles City Council President, Nury Martinez.
The leaked audio recorded De León, Martinez and Councilmember Gil Cedillo as well as L.A. County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera. The racist comments were made during an October 2021 conversation about the redistricting process. During the hour-long conversation, the group discussed the redistricting process while also making racist comments about residents and Councilmember Mike Bonin's son.
After the audio recording was made public, De León apologized for his part, saying he regrets appearing to condone and even contribute to certain insensitive comments that were made.
De León said at the time, he refused to resign so he could ensure that his constituents in District 14 continued to be represented. "I have to do the hard work. I have to repair. I have to help heal. I have to help restore," the councilman said.
In his reelection announcement, De León touted his accomplishments saying he led the fight to expand vaccinations for Black and Brown communities hit hardest by COVID, created the largest tiny home village in the nation for the homeless, doubled illegal dumping crews citywide, secured millions in LAPD overtime for his district, broke ground on two of Los Angeles' newest parks, and has helped feed more than 35,000 struggling family households.
"In just three years, we've made unprecedented strides in our district on the issues that matter the most to my constituents, like improving public safety and tackling homelessness head-on. Our team's commitment to revitalizing our parks and public spaces has created a safer, more livable community" De León said.
"My constituents deserve this high level of dedicated public service and I'm grateful for their ongoing trust and support. At the end of the day, the heart and soul of the work that we do as council members is about serving the people, especially those that are struggling. That's what I care about and that's why I'm running."