Fourth District Long Beach Councilmember Patrick O’Donnell has announced that he has raised $117,000 as a candidate for the 70th Assembly District, according to an email sent by his campaign. The email also stated that O’Donnell has been endorsed by former State Senator Betty Karnette, Signal Hill Councilmembers Larry Forester and Tina Hansen, Long Beach Councilmembers Robert Garcia and Dee Andrews and Assemblymember Anthony Rendon, as well as labor unions and local Democratic leaders.
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Acting Long Beach City Attorney Charles Parkin will remain the city’s top lawyer at least through July 2014. He was appointed as the permanent acting city attorney by the City Council in closed session at the Aug. 6 meeting. Parkin will fill the remainder of the term vacated by former City Attorney Robert Shannon, who retired in July. Parkin was one of several candidates to compete for Shannon’s seat after the City Council decided to field applications for the temporary job. Parkin was appointed last year as the assistant city attorney and has a 28-year career with the City of Long Beach. Shannon, who has 39 years of experience with the City, had been city attorney for four consecutive terms, after first being elected in 1998 and then re-elected in 2002, 2006 and 2010. Long Beach is one of 14 incorporated cities in California in which voters elect a city attorney. In the other 464 cities in the state, city governments appoint a candidate to the position. In Long Beach, the city attorney is elected every four years and has no term limits. At press time, Parkin is the only candidate who has filed paperwork to run for city attorney in the April 8, 2014 primary election.
Signal Hill Mayor Michael Noll and Signal Hill Councilmember Larry Forester have endorsed Long Beach Vice Mayor Robert Garcia for mayor of Long Beach, according to an email sent by Garcia. “I can’t think of a better person to follow Mayor Foster than Vice Mayor Garcia,” said Noll. “Robert understands our regional challenges and is ready to roll up his sleeves and get to work on day one.” Garcia has also been endorsed by State Senator Ricardo Lara and Long Beach School Board President John McGinnis.
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The Teamsters Joint Council 42 has thrown its support behind 5th District Long Beach Councilmember Gerrie Schipske as that city’s mayor, according to an email sent by Schipske on Tuesday. “Gerrie Schipske has a long and illustrious history of standing up for working men and women in Long Beach, and she has repeatedly demonstrated that she is a leader who workers can trust,” said Randy Cammack, president of Joint Council 42. “200,000 working people are proud to back Gerrie Schipske, because of her integrity, her decency, and her honesty.”
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John McGinnis, president of the Board of Education for the Long Beach Unified School District, has announced he will seek a second term on the Board to represent Area 3. In an emailed statement on Aug. 12, McGinnis said he has been endorsed by: Superintendent Chris Steinhauser; Vice President of the Board Diana Craighead; Board Members Jon Meyer, Mary Stanton and Dr. Felton Williams; Mayor Bob Foster; Vice Mayor Robert Garcia; City Prosecutor Doug Haubert; Congressmember Alan Lowenthal; Assemblymember Bonnie Lowenthal; Los Angeles County Supervisor Don Knabe; and former colleagues from Cerritos College, including retired Dean of Academic Affairs Dr. Adolph Johnson, retired Dean of Fine Arts Charles Tilghman and retired Director of Public Affairs and Governmental Relations Mark Wallace.
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Pilar Pinel, founding president of the nonprofit Embracing Latina Leadership AllianceS (ELLAS), has announced she will seek the 1st District Long Beach Council seat. Pinel served as a legislative aide-field deputy for the 1st Council District. According to the ELLAS website, Pinel was the recipient of the 2005 United States House of Representatives Special Congressional Recognition Award for Outstanding and Invaluable Service to Community, the 17th Annual American Business Women’ s Associations’ 2004 Women of Vision Award and the Woman of Worth award by L’Ore’al Paris for her work with ELLAS.
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Rex Richardson, candidate for the 9th District Council seat for Long Beach, has announced that labor union Unite Here Local 11 and Laborers Local 507 have endorsed him. “Construction workers are proud to endorse Rex Richardson, a true champion for working families,” Laborers Local 507 Business Manager Peter Santillan said. “As our councilmember, we believe Rex will make a positive difference for all of our northern Long Beach neighbors because he has spent his career working to advance our dream of a family-supporting wage, affordable and quality healthcare and a secure retirement.”
