Waters backs Newsom for lieutenant governor

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San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom secured the endorsement of Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles) in his run for lieutenant governor, the Newsom campaign announced Wednesday.

The support of Waters is one of the few major endorsements from a prominent Los Angeles lawmaker for Newsom, who is running against Los Angeles Councilwoman Janice Hahn.

Newsom is hoping the Waters nod also helps him with women and African Americans -- two voting groups Hahn is counting on to boost her election chances. ‘I enthusiastically endorse Mayor Gavin Newsom for lieutenant governor,’ Waters said in a statement. ‘Gavin has proven himself an essential advocate for civil rights and for working Californians, and he has been a trailblazer in one of the more important issues of our time: access to quality health care for everyone. Time and again, he has shown an unwavering commitment to responsible environmental stewardship, consumer protections for the working poor, and social justice.’

--Anthony York in Sacramento