Regalado gives him a 5. "I'm not sure if he's really into it" and "long-distance running for office has always been difficult." He has the skills to deal with the budget and unions, but critics will say that as City Council president, "he wasn't seen as someone willing to make a mark."
Riordan gives him a 6. Padilla is "very good-looking, very articulate, but there isn't much after that." He can't deal with the budget and unions, and will have "average" fundraising skills. Critics may charge that Padilla "is not a doer."
Zev Yaroslavsky
PHOTO BY TED SOQUI
Austin Beutner
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South gives him a 4. "I don't think it's Alex's time. ... He's not that well-known outside of the San Fernando Valley." On the budget, "Alex would be a good negotiator." Critics will research his City Council and Sacramento votes: "You can bet a political researcher is putting them in a database right now." Yet opponents "should not underestimate his skill to raise money."
Jan Perry,according to the Downtown News, is the third most powerful person in downtown Los Angeles — ahead of potential and official mayoral candidates Beutner, Caruso, Garcetti, Greuel, Padilla and Yaroslavsky. She has a master's degree in public administration from USC. She's seen as the council member least afraid of taking on Villaraigosa — in contrast to Garcetti and former Councilwoman Greuel. Perry is closely allied with developers and recently pushed the City Council to approve two skyscrapers that will be wrapped in five-story-high, ultrabright LED advertising billboards — a controversial plan opposed by the City Planning Commission. Considered very smart and a policy wonk, Perry is single and lives downtown. She would be L.A.'s first female mayor and first Jewish mayor.
Perry is fifth in the field of eight.
Gilliam gives her a 4. "She's not much of a crossover candidate" and has "relatively low name recognition." African-American and Latino voters "won't be turned on" by Perry. But she may be able to handle the budget and the unions: "She has a lot of experience, but I don't know if she can close the deal." Her critics "have a long record they can go after."
Kaye gives her a 1. "For the same reason as Garcetti: She's had her chance to fix the city, and she's done little to nothing. ... She would struggle for credibility as mayor." She can't handle the budget or unions: "She's bent over backwards to please the unions."
Klink gives her a 7. "Jan can lay a claim as compelling as anyone for the economic growth of downtown Los Angeles. That alone makes her a compelling candidate." But, "She's going to struggle with name identification on a citywide level." She can handle the budget and unions. Downtown business groups and developers will give her money.
Regalado gives her a 6. "Jan has become the darling of the downtown business interests. ... She doesn't have to worry about campaign coffers." She can handle budget and unions, but critics will say, "She's too close to business."
Riordan gives her a 1. "She doesn't appeal to anyone outside of downtown," yet is a "talented person" who can handle the budget and deal with the unions. She'll have "below average" fundraising success.
South gives her a 4. "She may be the odd woman out." In a two-way race, Perry may do well, but in a large field, "she kind of gets lost." She can handle the budget and unions, but critics will target her "very, very long track record at City Hall."
Zev Yaroslavsky left the L.A. City Council in 1994 after 19 years and was elected to the County Board of Supervisors. He graduated from Fairfax High School and earned a master's degree in British imperial history from UCLA. Personally engaging, Yaroslavsky is often plainspoken. He has taken Villaraigosa to task for pushing "smart growth" and "elegant density," which helped wipe out a net 13,713 affordable housing units. A fiscal watchdog on the Board of Supervisors, he has allied with fellow Democrat Gloria Molina to hold the line on county government employee costs and perks. Seen by some as the smartest elected official in L.A., he's been married for nearly 40 years and has deep roots in the Jewish community. If he ran and won, he would become L.A.'s first Jewish mayor.
Yaroslavsky is the leader in the field of eight.
Gilliam gives him a 9. He enjoys "big name recognition" and will be able to "point to a lot of accomplishments." He "has tons of skill to work on the budget and work with the unions." Critics will say he's "more of the same," but he will raise "tons of money" from labor, Hollywood, environmentalists and Democrats. He might be "intransigent," like Villaraigosa, on certain issues.
Kaye gives him a 4. Yaroslavsky is the "front-runner" if he runs. He "has a capacity for detail that no one else has. He attracts very smart people around him, and he's tough. He has a following that cuts across many types of people and classes." He can fix the budget and deal with unions. Critics will question "how much he really wants the job." Yaroslavsky will "avoid anything that echoes of Antonio Villaraigosa."
Klink gives him a 7. Yaroslavsky's "one of the strongest politicians out there." Critics will call him a "career politician." The Jewish community will heavily fund him.
