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2022 Los Angeles City Controller election

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2022 Los Angeles City Controller election
← 2017 November 8, 2022 2026 →
Registered1,608,639
Turnout28.58%
 
Candidate Kenneth Mejia Paul Koretz
First round 240,374
43.12% 		131,921
23.67%
Runoff 509,757
63.32% 		295,338
36.68%
 
Candidate Stephanie Clements David Vahedi
First round 88,678
15.91% 		39,240
7.04%
Runoff Eliminated Eliminated
Mejia:      30–40%      40–50%      50–60%      70–80%
Koretz:      30–40%
City Controller before election

Ron Galperin

 Elected City Controller

Kenneth Mejia

The 2022 Los Angeles City Controller election was held on held on November 8, 2022, to elect the Los Angeles City Controller. Incumbent City Controller Ron Galperin was unable to seek a third term due to term limits, and unsuccessfully ran for California State Controller. However, he was serving an extended second term due to a law that shifted election dates from an off-year election to a midterm and statewide election year. Certified Public Accountant Kenneth Mejia defeated city councilmember Paul Koretz to become the 20th City Controller.

Mejia and Koretz were the two frontrunners, with Mejia being a newcomer to city politics and Koretz being a veteran at a time of anti-incumbent sentiment. This sentiment was exacerbated by the subsequent City Council scandal in October. Mejia's campaign employed unconventional tactics such as displaying Los Angeles Police Department spending data on billboards, utilizing social media platforms like TikTok to interact with voters, and incorporating costumes and his two corgis into his campaign efforts.

In the runoff election, Mejia secured a landslide victory over Koretz, becoming the first Asian American to be elected to a citywide office and the first Filipino elected official in Los Angeles. He is also the youngest and the first person of color to hold the position of City Controller in over a century.

Candidates

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Advanced to runoff

[edit]

Eliminated in primary

[edit]

Withdrew

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  • Madeline Cortez Le, activist
  • Rob Wilcox, spokesperson for the Los Angeles City Attorney (endorsed Koretz)[2]

Background

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Incumbent City Controller Ron Galperin was termed out of office, but had been serving an extended term due to a change in election dates in the city.

The Los Angeles City Controller is an official in the city government, serving as the paymaster and chief accounting officer. Similar to the Mayor and City Attorney, the City Controller is elected by popular vote every four years, with a runoff election held if no candidate secures more than 50% of the vote. Elections in Los Angeles have been nonpartisan since 1909, meaning candidates' party affiliations do not appear on the ballot.[3]

The incumbent City Controller was Ron Galperin, a member of the Democratic Party who was first elected to the position in 2013 and re-elected in 2017. He had been serving an extended second term due to a change in city election dates, aligning with midterm elections instead of off-year elections. However, due to city term limits, Galperin was unable to run for re-election.[4] Instead, he chose to enter the California State Controller primary in 2022, where he placed fifth out of six candidates.[5]

The race occurred against the backdrop of multiple corruption scandals within the Los Angeles government, including the audio scandal that would later happen after the primary election. The central question revolved around which candidate was best suited to provide oversight, act as a watchdog, and ensure transparency in city spending.[6]

Campaign

[edit]

Mejia, a political newcomer, had previously worked as an auditor and ran for California's 34th congressional district three times, twice as a member of the Green Party.[7] In contrast, Koretz was a political veteran with a career spanning from 1988, having served on the West Hollywood City Council, the California State Assembly, and the Los Angeles City Council.[8] Mejia's campaign was noted for its unconventional tactics, focusing on educating voters about the role of the city controller and its significance within City Hall. The erected multiple billboards across the city highlighting Los Angeles Police Department funding data, including how the $317.4 million was allocated for LAPD officer salaries that year.[9][10][11] Political veteran Rick Cole took notice of the billboards and reached out to Mejia, offering his assistance and advice.[12] Later on, Mejia appointed Cole as the Deputy City Controller.[13] Mejia also utilized social media platforms like TikTok to actively engage younger voters, encouraging their participation in the electoral process. He dressed up in a Pikachu suit while campaigning in Little Tokyo and featured his two corgis in campaign media.[14]

In February 2022, Wilcox was the target of an unprovoked attack near City Hall, during which the assailant reportedly used a racial slur towards him.[15][16] Months later, Wilcox dropped out of the race and endorsed Koretz, alleging that Mejia held alarming views. Wilcox cited Mejia's criticisms of Los Angeles' allocation of more than $3 billion in funding to the Los Angeles Police Department as a key concern.[17] Mejia responded by asserting that City Hall insiders were expected to join forces against his campaign because he was an outsider.[2] By the date of the primary, Mejia and Koretz emerged as the top two candidates, with Mejia securing the majority of votes ahead of Koretz.[18]

On September 6, 2022, former City Controller Laura Chick, who held the office from 2001 to 2009, issued an open letter accusing Mejia of being an extremist and unfit for public office.[19] In response, Mejia criticized the Koretz campaign, stating that they "enlisted another career politician" in an attempt to smear his campaign.[20] On election day, Mejia was projected to win against Koretz.[21] The day after, Koretz acknowledged that he wouldn't win against Mejia, stating that he didn't know if he would "bother to issue a concession statement" because he believed that people didn't want to hear from candidates for controller.[22] With his win, Mejia became the first Asian American to hold a citywide office in Los Angeles, as well as the first Filipino elected official in the city.[23]

Fundraising

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Paul Koretz had a substantial lead in early fundraising, followed by David Vahedi and Kenneth Mejia.[24] Candidates received 6-to-1 matching funds from the city, with Mejia receiving the most ($428,000).[25]

Endorsements

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Stephanie Clements

Newspapers and other print media

Paul Koretz

U.S. senators

U.S. representatives

Statewide elected officials

State assemblymembers

Mayors

City controllers

City councilmembers

Los Angeles County officials

Individuals

Labor unions

Organizations

Newspapers and other print media

Kenneth Mejia

State assemblymembers

City councilmembers

City officials

Individuals

  • Stephanie Clements, assistant director of Public Works and 3rd-place finisher in the primary election[33]

Organizations

Newspapers and other media

David Vahedi

U.S. representatives

City councilmembers

Results

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2022 Los Angeles City Controller primary election
Candidate Votes %
Kenneth Mejia 240,374 43.12
Paul Koretz 131,921 23.67
Stephanie Clements 88,678 15.91
David T. Vahedi 39,240 7.04
James O'Gabhann III 21,984 3.94
Reid Lidow 21,769 3.90
Rob Wilcox (withdrawn) 13,460 2.41
Total votes 557,426 100.00
2022 Los Angeles City Controller runoff election
Candidate Votes %
Kenneth Mejia 509,757 63.32
Paul Koretz 295,338 36.68
Total votes 805,095 100.00

See also

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References

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  1. ^ Torok, Ryan (January 22, 2020). "Paul Koretz to Run for City Controller". The Jewish Journal of Greater Los Angeles.
  2. ^ a b "LA controller candidate Rob Wilcox drops out, endorses Paul Koretz". Los Angeles Daily News. May 19, 2022.
  3. ^ Sonenshein, Raphael J. (2006). Los Angeles : structure of a city government (PDF). [Los Angeles]: League of Women Voters of Los Angeles. ISBN 0-9668991-1-3.
  4. ^ Webster, Keely (December 29, 2022). "Former Los Angeles Controller Ron Galperin prepares for next act". The Bond Buyer.
  5. ^ Garofoli, Joe (January 6, 2022). "Los Angeles controller Ron Galperin jumps into California state controller race". San Francisco Chronicle.
  6. ^ "Guide to the 2022 race for L.A. city controller". Los Angeles Times. June 4, 2022.
  7. ^ Duffy, Maggie; Pauly, Madison (May 2023). "The Accountant Who Wants to Take On the Police". Mother Jones.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  8. ^ Smith, Dakota (November 8, 2022). "L.A. voters poised to select new city attorney, controller". Los Angeles Times.
  9. ^ Poukish, Hannah (November 24, 2022). "Inside Kenneth Mejia's unconventional campaign and historic win".
  10. ^ Pauly, Madison (December 30, 2022). "Hero of 2022: Those LA Police Funding Billboards". Mother Jones.
  11. ^ Otten, Tori (November 9, 2022). "Kenneth Mejia Called to Cut the Police Budget in Los Angeles—and He Won". The New Republic.
  12. ^ "A unique pairing in the LA city's controller's office". Spectrum News. January 6, 2023.
  13. ^ Oreskes, Benjamin; Wick, Julia (December 3, 2022). "L.A. on the Record: Karen Bass tries to hit the ground running". Los Angeles Times.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  14. ^ McMenamin, Lex (December 5, 2022). "Meet the Gen Z'ers Behind the Kenneth Mejia for City Controller Campaign". Teen Vogue.
  15. ^ "City Controller Candidate Rob Wilcox Attacked Near LA City Hall". CBS News. February 11, 2022.
  16. ^ Smith, Dakota (February 11, 2022). "City controller candidate Rob Wilcox attacked outside City Hall". Los Angeles Times.
  17. ^ "LA controller candidate Rob Wilcox drops out of race, endorses Paul Koretz". Spectrum News. May 20, 2022.
  18. ^ Chou, Elizabeth (June 7, 2022). "Election 2022: Kenneth Mejia and Paul Koretz lead primary race for LA City Controller". Los Angeles Daily News.
  19. ^ Spigelman, Ian (September 6, 2022). "Ex-Controller Laura Chick Guts Kenneth Mejia in Koretz Endorsement". Los Angeles.
  20. ^ Zahniser, David (September 6, 2022). "Former L.A. controller Laura Chick blasts candidate Kenneth Mejia as an 'extremist'". Los Angeles Times.
  21. ^ "Political newcomer Kenneth Mejia projected to win LA city controller's race over Koretz". ABC7. November 9, 2022.
  22. ^ Smith, Dakota (November 9, 2022). "Koretz acknowledges Mejia victory in L.A. controller race: 'I'm clearly not going to win'". Los Angeles Times.
  23. ^ Wang, Claire (November 11, 2022). "In L.A., Kenneth Mejia is the 1st Asian American to hold citywide office and 1st Filipino elected official". NBC News.
  24. ^ Oreskes, Benjamin; Moore, Maloy (2022-02-01). "Bass takes in nearly $2 million to lead mayoral rivals in early fundraising". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2022-04-14.
  25. ^ Zahniser, David; Wick, Julia (2022-04-30). "L.A. on the Record: Can free campaign money help even the playing field?". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2022-05-12.
  26. ^ "Hydee Feldstein Soto for LA City Attorney, Stephanie Clements for LA City Controller". Los Angeles Daily News. May 2, 2022.
  27. ^ "Endorsements for California's June 7, 2022 primary election". The San Bernardino Sun. May 31, 2022.
  28. ^ "Southern California News Group's endorsements for the June 7 primary". Daily Breeze. May 11, 2022.
  29. ^ "Endorsements for California's June 7, 2022 primary election". Inland Valley Daily Bulletin. May 31, 2022.
  30. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k Gordon, Eric A. (May 31, 2022). "Los Angeles June 7 primaries reflect major national issues". People's World.
  31. ^ a b c d "Paul Koretz Announces as Candidate for LA City Controller, in 2022". WEHOville. January 2, 2020.
  32. ^ a b c d e f g h i "Koretz announces endorsements". Park Labrea News & Beverly Press. February 18, 2021.
  33. ^ a b c d "Former L.A. Controller Laura Chick blasts candidate Kenneth Mejia as an 'extremist'". Los Angeles Times. September 6, 2022.
  34. ^ Wardlaw, Valerie (May 5, 2022). "Meet Paul Koretz – Candidate for City Controller". Los Angeles Sentinel.
  35. ^ a b c d Zahniser, David (2022-11-03). "L.A. city controller race guide: Paul Koretz vs. Kenneth Mejia". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  36. ^ a b c d "31-year-old activist and CPA leads race for Los Angeles controller". spectrumnews1.com. June 8, 2022. Retrieved 2022-06-17.
  37. ^ Banz, Julie (March 21, 2022). "LAAPOA Endorses Paul Koretz for City Controller". Los Angeles Airport Peace Officers Association.
  38. ^ a b "31-year-old activist and CPA leads race for Los Angeles controller". Spectrum News 1. 2022-06-08. Retrieved 2023-03-13.
  39. ^ Sahakyan, Armen (October 13, 2021). "ANCA Western Region Endorses Paul Koretz for Los Angeles City Controller". Armenian National Committee of America.
  40. ^ "Endorsement: Paul Koretz for Los Angeles City Controller". Los Angeles Daily News. September 20, 2022.
  41. ^ Dolak, Kevin Andrew (2022-09-19). "The L.A. Times Soon-Shiong Family Drama Goes National". Los Angeles Magazine. Retrieved 2023-03-12.
  42. ^ "Endorsement: Kenneth Mejia for L.A. City Controller". Los Angeles Times. April 20, 2022.
  43. ^ "Por Kenneth Mejía para Contralor de la Ciudad". La Opinión (in Spanish). 2022-05-12. Retrieved 2022-05-13.
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