Presidential Candidates Bernie Sanders, Pete Buttigieg Back In LA
LOS ANGELES (CBSLA) – Democratic presidential hopefuls Sen. Bernie Sanders and South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg visited the Southland Thursday for public appearances and private fundraisers.
Sanders, I-Vermont, began a two-day visit to the area, starting with an early afternoon health-care town hall discussion at the Aratani Theatre in Little Tokyo. The gathering was free and open to the public.
CBSLA's Randy Paige sat down with the senator where he asked how the change of date of the California primary might impact the calculus of the primary election.
"Look every campaign has limited resources. California is so big, it drives everybody crazy in that sense," said Sander. "It's a very expensive state. But obviously, you're going to see the person who wins California, we think we have a really good chance to be that candidate, is going to be in a very strong position for the rest of the campaign," he said.
Later in the day, Sanders was expected to attend a "grassroots fundraiser" at The Montalban Theater in Hollywood. Tickets for the event began at $27, ranging as high as $2,800. Organizers described the gathering as "an evening of music, art and culture, and a special address from Sen. Bernie Sanders about our campaign and how you can be part of the political revolution."
On Friday night, Sanders held a campaign rally at Santa Monica High School.
Buttigieg, meanwhile, had a full schedule for his one-day Los Angeles visit on Thursday. His only public event was at 2:30 p.m., when he toured Vector90, a South L.A. co-working space co-founded by the late rapper Nipsey Hussle.
Sandwiched around that appearance was four fundraising events, culminating with an evening gathering co-hosted by notables such as Ellen DeGeneres and Portia de Rossi, Sean Hayes, Jason Bateman, and West Hollywood Mayor John D'Amico. The event was held at the home of Kevin MacLellan and Brian Curran. MacLellan is the chairman of global distribution for NBCUniversal.
Tickets for the event ranged from $250 to $2,800.
Buttigieg began his day with a breakfast gathering at an undisclosed location, hosted by investment banker Navid Mahmoodzadegan. Tickets ranged from $1,000 to $2,800. He followed that with a West Hollywood luncheon fundraiser hosted by actress and former ambassador Nicole Avant, filmmaker Jill Goldman and others, with tickets ranging from $500 to $2,800.
He also attended an afternoon "coffee and conversation" event at the Hancock Park home of entertainment-tech entrepreneurs Mike Rose and Ruben Rodriguez. Attendees paid between $500 and $2,800 for that gathering.
(© Copyright 2019 CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved. City News Service contributed to this report.)