Villaraigosa's COUSIN is running for CA Assembly Speaker

CA is heading for big, big trouble! This smacks of nepotism and corruption!!! If Villaraigosa became governor, his cousin would have the second most powerful job in CA!!!! Schwarzeneggter appointed Villaraigosa's SISTER to the Superior Court two years ago; and now his cousin is running! We cannot allow a Villaraigosa dynasty in this country! Unfortunately, the voters have NO say in the matter!!! Also, you may notice...ALL of the candidates for Speaker are...you guessed it...Mexicans!

Villaraigosa's cousin vies for Assembly seat

The labor organizer and relative of the Los Angeles mayor is up against other candidates with political ties for the seat being vacated by Speaker Fabian Nuñez.
By David Zahniser, Los Angeles Times Staff Writer
February 23, 2008

A labor organizer who is also Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa's cousin said Friday that he is running in the June 3 election for the legislative seat being vacated by state Assembly Speaker Fabian Nuñez.

John Perez, 38, described his plans a day after stepping down from the board of the Los Angeles Community Redevelopment Agency, where he spent two years as a mayoral appointee.

His candidacy quickly injected some drama into a race that also features a Nuñez aide and an aide to state Sen. Gil Cedillo. Both legislators are Democrats representing neighborhoods in and around downtown Los Angeles.

Nuñez, a powerful statewide leader, sent an e-mail Thursday asking his allies to support his candidate, Ricardo Lara. Cedillo, for his part, will co-host a fundraiser in Sacramento next month for his aide, district director Arturo Chavez.
Despite the high-powered involvement, all three candidates downplayed their ties to more famous politicians, saying they will run on their own qualifications.
"I want to be judged on my own merit, as my own individual," said Lara, who lives in Boyle Heights and spent eight years working for now-deceased Assemblyman Marco Firebaugh before joining Nuñez.

Nuñez represents an assembly district that includes Boyle Heights, Little Tokyo, Westlake, Vernon and part of South Los Angeles. He has served in the post since 2002 and, since his recent effort to roll back term limits failed, will be forced to leave office at the end of the year.

Villaraigosa declined to say whether he would back Perez, whose mother was the sister of Villaraigosa's mother.

The mayor already has one family member in public life -- his sister, L.A. County Superior Court Judge Mary Lou Villar, who was placed on the bench by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Perez, who is openly gay, is a late arrival to the race, having moved into the district from Los Feliz earlier this month. Perez, who grew up in El Sereno, has spent seven years handling political matters for the Orange County office of the United Food and Commercial Workers, which represents supermarket workers.

With a 15-year union background, Perez hopes to grab the endorsement of the powerful Los Angeles County Federation of Labor, the 800,000-member union coalition whose secretary treasurer, Maria Elena Durazo, is an ally of Villaraigosa.
Although Durazo also has been an ally of Nuñez, the two were seriously at odds last year over the Assembly speaker's support of Indian gaming compacts.

"A good portion of labor is ticked off at Fabian, so that makes John very competitive" in the quest for union support, said Jaime Regalado, who heads the Edmund G. "Pat" Brown Institute of Public Affairs at Cal State L.A.

Regalado pointed out that Cedillo and Villaraigosa also are no longer close.

And there is another personal dynamic to the race: If Villaraigosa endorses Perez, he could risk alienating Nuñez, whom he has relied on when seeking state transportation funds for Los Angeles and the passage of his education bill, which was later struck down in court.

Chavez, 44, said he has more life experiences than his opponents, including a 15-year stint running a vocational training business for injured workers.

A fourth Democratic candidate, Michael Aldapa, lives in Lincoln Heights and has no ties to any politician.

"I'm definitely the underdog", he said.

http://www.latimes.com/news/local/los_a ... &cset=true

http://www.crala.net/internet-site/A...mages/jose.jpg


John A. Pérez

John A Pérez was appointed to the Board of Commissioners of the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles (CRA/LA) by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and approved by the Los Angeles City Council on October 12, 2005.

John A. Pérez has spent a decade and a half as a union organizer and political operative, most recently in his current capacity as Political Director of the United Food and Commercial Workers (UFCW) Union Local 324. The UFCW represents roughly 24,000 workers in Orange County and Southern Los Angeles and represents 1.4 million workers nationwide. As such, the UFCW is the largest private sector union in North America.

Previously, John held the post of Executive Director of the United Food and Commercial Workers Union. Region 8 States Council, representing California, Arizona, Nevada, Utah and Hawaii. In this capacity, he served as the UFCW's primary political contact in the region and successfully increased the union’s political engagement and impact.

Immediately prior to his present post, John was the Political Director for the California Labor Federation AFL-CIO. The California Labor Federation works toward building power for working people through collective bargaining and political action. The federation has more than 1.300 affiliated local unions and represents 2.1 million union members in diverse communities and sectors of the states economy.

In addition to his work on behalf of UFCW, John serves as an elected member of the Democratic National Committee. He is also a board member for the California League of Conservation Voters, AIDS Project Los Angeles, the Latino Coalition against AIDS, Coro Southern California and the California Center for Regional Leadership.

In addition to his work with numerous other bodies John chairs the California Voting Modernization Board and has served on a variety of Boards and Commissions at the Local, State and Federal Level including the Presidential Advisory Council on AIDS and HIV.

John grew up in the working class community of Highland Park, just north of downtown Los Angeles. This experience shaped his appreciation for the political process and its impact on the lives of working people. He went on to study Sociology and Ethnic Studies at the University of California at Berkeley. After graduation, John returned to Southern California and joined Diverse Strategies for Organizing, a Los Angeles based consulting firm representing communities, candidates, and unions. In that capacity, John worked on numerous State and Federal races, and designed organizing and education programs for several community-based organizations and labor unions.

http://www.crala.net/internet-site/Abou ... -Perez.cfm

"John A Pérez was appointed to the Board of Commissioners of the Community Redevelopment Agency of the City of Los Angeles (CRA/LA) by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and approved by the Los Angeles City Council on October 12, 2005.

Villar didn't waste any time appointing his cousin to the CRA Commission, did he?
[b]
"In addition to his work with numerous other bodies John chairs the California Voting Modernization Board"[/b]

I wonder if he chaired the CA Voting Board BEFORE or AFTER Villar stole the election! Now we know why voter fraud is so rampant!

I am so furious about this...I can't see straight! How can Villar get away with this nepotism without being challenged by the CA Constitution? It's collusion and corruption!

Villar's father and Perez's uncle, Antonio Villar, is a convicted sex offender involving a little girl under the age of 14! This family is scum!

Chicago has aldermans and congressmen tied to Mexico.

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by AmericanMe

CA is heading for big, big trouble! This smacks of nepotism and corruption!!! If Villaraigosa became governor, his cousin would have the second most powerful job in CA!!!! Schwarzeneggter appointed Villaraigosa's SISTER to the Superior Court two years ago; and now his cousin is running! We cannot allow a Villaraigosa dynasty in this country! Unfortunately, the voters have NO say in the matter!!! Also, you may notice...ALL of the candidates for Speaker are...you guessed it...Mexicans!

---

I dont know whether to laugh or cry! This is so INSANE, CORRUPT, ABSURD, DISHONEST, RUTHLESS, IMMORAL, TRAITOROUS, ETC, ETC!

IMO, CALIFORNIA IS BECOMING JUST LIKE MEXICO.

It appears Calderon was right when he said "where there is a Mexican, there is Mexico.

I will never vote for another Hispanic. Because IMO most, not all, BUT MOST, turn their backs on the oath taken to uphold the U.S. Constitution, and represent Hispanics only.

They need to be voted out of office ASAP!