Supervisors decide not to create second Latino-majority district
After hearing hours of emotional testimony from hundreds of speakers, the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors approved a redistricting map late Tuesday largely preserving the status quo, protecting incumbents and rejecting demands from Supervisor Gloria Molina and Latino activists that the board draw a second Latino district.
In the end, Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, who had been an ally of Molina, changed his vote from supporting a second Latino district to supporting Supervisor Don Knabe's plan largely preserving the existing districts.
Ridley-Thomas had been a staunch advocate for redrawing political lines to add a second Latino-majority district, but said he didn't want to have the board deadlock and hand over the decision to a trio of other countywide elected officials — Dist. Atty. Steve Cooley, Sheriff Lee Baca and Assessor John Noguez.
Molina and Ridley-Thomas hugged after the 4-1 vote, which was also supported by Zev Yaroslavsky and Michael D. Antonovich.
Knabe said he felt the county could prevail in court. Knabe has argued it was unnecessary to dramatically redraw districts and that supervisors should represent people of all ethnicities.
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-- Rong-Gong Lin II and Jason Song at the Los Angeles County Hall of Administration
Photo: Carmen Celis shows her support for redistricting proposals at the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors meeting held to consider various redistricting proposals. Credit: Irfan Khan / Los Angeles Times
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