(LA County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky with Courage Campaign founder Rick Jacobs at an event for White House Social Secretary Jeremy Bernard in July 2012. Photo by Karen Ocamb)
Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, a longtime LGBT ally, announced on his blog Thursday morning, Aug. 23, that he will not run for the office of Mayor of Los Angeles:
By the end of my current term on the Board of Supervisors in December, 2014, I will have served the people of the city and county of Los Angeles for nearly 40 eventful, productive and fulfilling years. Beginning as a 26 year-old councilman, I have quite literally come of age in public life at the forefront of Los Angeles’ most critical issues. While I have never been a supporter of term limits, I do believe that four decades is long enough for any citizen to hold elective office, especially in an executive capacity.
So I’ve made the decision to complete my current term on the board and then move on to the other things I’ve longed to do outside the political arena while I have plenty of productive years ahead of me. Simply put, it’s time for a new generation of leaders to emerge and guide this region into the future.
Many LGBT politicos have been waiting for Yaroslavsky’s decision since he has been considered the automatic frontrunner in a field that includes strongly pro-LGBT City Controller Wendy Greuel, City Council members Eric Garcetti and Jan Perry, as well as openly gay conservative Republican radio host Kevin James. Yaroslavsky has not yet endorsed a mayoral candidate, nor has he endorsed a candidate seeking his seat as Supervisor for the Third District, which he will vacate in two years. Recently, former State Sen. Sheila Kuehl quietly confirmed that she is in the running to replace Yaroslavsky.
(Zev Yaroslavsky campaigning with his wife Barbara in 1975. Photo courtesy Zev Yaroslavsky)
Yaroslavsky has been a good friend to the LGBT community since 1975, when his campaign for LA City Council brought him to the doors of the LA Gay Community Services Center on Wilshire Boulevard. There he met center co-founder Morris Kight, who many years later he would appoint to the LA County Human Relations Commission. When Kight died in 2003, the LA Times included this:
“Morris comes from an era where to be openly gay, you were putting your physical safety on the line,” Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky told The Times some years ago.
“People today forget that…. In those days, you were risking your well-being. You were risking harassment, you were risking arrest, you were risking getting beaten up by hate-mongers. And the law enforcement community didn’t think twice about hassling gays.”
(LA County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky in the Hall of Administration. Photo courtesy Zev Yaroslavsky)
Here’s the complete announcement from Yaroslavsky’s blog:
For many months, I’ve been wrestling with one of the most difficult decisions of my political life—whether to run for the office of Mayor of Los Angeles. I’ve been urged to enter next year’s race by friends, supporters and residents throughout the city. And I’ve been humbled and touched by the confidence they’ve placed in me.
I’m a lifelong resident of Los Angeles, a city facing serious challenges and opportunities. I have no doubt that, with my expertise and experience, I could help transform L.A.’s fortunes. In the end, however, it is this very length of service that has tipped the scales for me.
By the end of my current term on the Board of Supervisors in December, 2014, I will have served the people of the city and county of Los Angeles for nearly 40 eventful, productive and fulfilling years. Beginning as a 26 year-old councilman, I have quite literally come of age in public life at the forefront of Los Angeles’ most critical issues. While I have never been a supporter of term limits, I do believe that four decades is long enough for any citizen to hold elective office, especially in an executive capacity.
So I’ve made the decision to complete my current term on the board and then move on to the other things I’ve longed to do outside the political arena while I have plenty of productive years ahead of me. Simply put, it’s time for a new generation of leaders to emerge and guide this region into the future.
I want to thank the many people who have given me advice and encouragement during the period that I have weighed this decision. I deeply appreciate their patience and understanding. I also want to thank the voters who have elected me 11 times and given me the privilege of representing them. Above all, I’m eternally grateful to my family, which has encouraged me every step of the way while sacrificing so much.
Now, with that said, let me be clear: I’m not finished yet. I have more work to do and very little time in which to complete it. My dedicated staff and I will give our all during the next 27 months to get the job done. I look forward to working with you toward that end.
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One interesting tidbit about Zev, which in my opinion counts as more than mere trivia, is that it is very likely that he has participated in far more LA Pride parades than any other person — ever — including a time when it was something of a risk to do so. His participation predates the City of West Hollywood. For being willing to endure that, year after year, he has earned some sort of special recognition.
Quite apart from that, Zev is definitely one of the good ones.
Done with the kind of integrity and character we have come to expect from Zev. One of the good ones, indeed.