Eric Garcetti gets endorsement from councilman he calls ‘Mr. L.A.’

Los Angeles mayoral candidate Eric Garcetti won the endorsement of another City Council colleague on Thursday.

At a news conference in Silver Lake, Councilman Tom LaBonge said he was supporting Garcetti over City Controller Wendy Greuel because Garcetti has a proven track record of revitalizing neighborhoods.

“Wendy’s a friend of mine, Eric’s a friend of mine, but you make a judgment about what’s best right now for the city,” LaBonge said. “You’ve got to know how to move bureaucracy and move community, and Eric knows how to do that.”

LaBonge spoke to journalists at a new park near the Silver Lake Reservoir, which straddles the council districts he and Garcetti represent. LaBonge said he worked closely with Garcetti to build the park and improve an adjacent running path despite opposition from some neighbors.

Garcetti said he couldn’t be prouder of the endorsement from LaBonge, who has a reputation as one of the city’s biggest boosters. LaBonge hikes Griffith Park daily and publishes a calendar each year with loving photographs he’s taken around the city.

“This is the endorsement of Mr. L.A.,” Garcetti said.

The candidate also addressed a new Greuel endorsement expected later Thursday. Greuel is attending a round table with several prominent women leaders, including House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi (D-San Francisco), Sen. Barbara Boxer (D-California), U.S. Rep. Judy Chu (D-Monterey Park) and U.S. Rep. Janice Hahn (D-San Pedro). A spokeswoman for the Greuel campaign said new endorsements would be announced. Boxer, Chu and Hahn have already expressed their support for Greuel.

Garcetti emphasized that he has deep support among women and pointed to his record of appointing more women than men to city commissions and to his council staff.

He said voters don’t decide who to vote for based on sex. “Being a woman, being a Jew, being Latino ... it just gets you in the door,” he said. “At the end of the day people want a mayor that will lead.”

“This campaign is not going to be decided in Washington or Sacramento,” he said. “It’s going to be decided in Silver Lake and in San Pedro and in Sylmar.”

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