PHOENIX (By Yvonne Wingett,Arizona
Republic) May 16, 2005 - If Antonio Villaraigosa is elected mayor of Los
Angeles on Tuesday, political analysts and Hispanic leaders in the Valley
say he will have created a blueprint Hispanics can use to run for public
office in Arizona and across the country.
Villaraigosa, a Mexican-American and native Los Angeles resident, has reached beyond Hispanic voters, neighborhoods and issues and has taken his candidacy to Whites, African-Americans and Asian Americans and has stumped on issues that cut across ethnic lines: jobs, education and neighborhoods.
Phoenix community leaders and politicians are watching the runoff election closely and say that a victory by Villaraigosa would energize a burgeoning Hispanic voter base here and forge a closer relationship between two of the nation's largest cities.
The 52-year-old city councilman has raised tens of thousands of dollars during his recent visits to Phoenix. Along the way, Villaraigosa has developed relationships with Valley leaders, including Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon and several key Hispanics.
"The potential that this (Villaraigosa's election) could activate remains to be seen, but this creates a ripple effect in every single Hispanic community and enclave," said Michael Frias, a Phoenix political adviser who worked on Villaraigosa's first bid for mayor four years ago.
Tuesday's runoff election is a rematch between Villaraigosa and incumbent James Hahn. Villaraigosa ran against the mayor in 2001 and lost, before winning a City Council seat two years later. Recent polls have the challenger up to 11 points ahead of Hahn, though Hahn had gained ground over the past month.
Villaraigosa would make history if he wins, becoming the first Hispanic leader of Los Angeles in more than a century.
A potent mix of personality and intelligence has helped Villaraigosa. He has emphasized that the "Hispanic agenda" mirrors the "California agenda," and the "American agenda."
His childhood stories of struggling to stay in school connects with kids in East Los Angeles in the same way his familiarity with the anti-illegal immigration Proposition 200 and Phoenix's push to revitalize its core with downtown development connects with the Arizona locals.
That consensus-building style has helped him capture key endorsements from Sen. John Kerry, basketball legend Magic Johnson and others. If it resonates with voters tomorrow, it would symbolize a new kind of politics in America.
"His ability to break the mold that if you're a minority, your first and only obligation is to your community is important," Frias said. "It shows you can be a minority and represent everyone equally."
Despite phenomenal growth, Hispanics are not represented on the eight-seat Phoenix City Council, where African-American Michael Johnson is the only minority. They are looking west, to Villaraigosa's tactics in Los Angeles to help elect a Hispanic to represent southwest Phoenix.
"We want someone from the city of Phoenix to say, '(Former San Antonio Mayor) Henry Cisneros did it. Antonio did it. Ken Salazar (D-Colo.) with the U.S. Senate did it,' " said Phoenix attorney Daniel Ortega, who helped organize fund-raisers in Phoenix for Villaraigosa. "If they can do it, we can do it."
The former California Assembly speaker has zipped in and out of Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport at least three times, raising an estimated $60,000 for his campaign.
He has brought audiences of local Hispanic Republicans and Democrats to their feet with fiery speeches. And at a central Phoenix fund-raiser hosted by some of the state's most influential leaders this month, an absentee Villaraigosa called in and committed to working together on common issues facing the Valley such as immigration, transportation and other urban challenges.
Villaraigosa, a Mexican-American and native Los Angeles resident, has reached beyond Hispanic voters, neighborhoods and issues and has taken his candidacy to Whites, African-Americans and Asian Americans and has stumped on issues that cut across ethnic lines: jobs, education and neighborhoods.
Phoenix community leaders and politicians are watching the runoff election closely and say that a victory by Villaraigosa would energize a burgeoning Hispanic voter base here and forge a closer relationship between two of the nation's largest cities.
The 52-year-old city councilman has raised tens of thousands of dollars during his recent visits to Phoenix. Along the way, Villaraigosa has developed relationships with Valley leaders, including Phoenix Mayor Phil Gordon and several key Hispanics.
"The potential that this (Villaraigosa's election) could activate remains to be seen, but this creates a ripple effect in every single Hispanic community and enclave," said Michael Frias, a Phoenix political adviser who worked on Villaraigosa's first bid for mayor four years ago.
Tuesday's runoff election is a rematch between Villaraigosa and incumbent James Hahn. Villaraigosa ran against the mayor in 2001 and lost, before winning a City Council seat two years later. Recent polls have the challenger up to 11 points ahead of Hahn, though Hahn had gained ground over the past month.
Villaraigosa would make history if he wins, becoming the first Hispanic leader of Los Angeles in more than a century.
Setting a path
A victory would allow Villaraigosa to set the example that Hispanics can win major elections, regardless of ethnicity. Or as his supporters like to say, "Prove that he's not a Hispanic leader. He's a leader who just happens to be Hispanic," and that means a lot in a city as diverse as Los Angeles, where Hispanics make up 46 percent of the population, Anglos 30 percent, Blacks 11 percent and Asians 10 percent.A potent mix of personality and intelligence has helped Villaraigosa. He has emphasized that the "Hispanic agenda" mirrors the "California agenda," and the "American agenda."
His childhood stories of struggling to stay in school connects with kids in East Los Angeles in the same way his familiarity with the anti-illegal immigration Proposition 200 and Phoenix's push to revitalize its core with downtown development connects with the Arizona locals.
That consensus-building style has helped him capture key endorsements from Sen. John Kerry, basketball legend Magic Johnson and others. If it resonates with voters tomorrow, it would symbolize a new kind of politics in America.
"His ability to break the mold that if you're a minority, your first and only obligation is to your community is important," Frias said. "It shows you can be a minority and represent everyone equally."
Despite phenomenal growth, Hispanics are not represented on the eight-seat Phoenix City Council, where African-American Michael Johnson is the only minority. They are looking west, to Villaraigosa's tactics in Los Angeles to help elect a Hispanic to represent southwest Phoenix.
"We want someone from the city of Phoenix to say, '(Former San Antonio Mayor) Henry Cisneros did it. Antonio did it. Ken Salazar (D-Colo.) with the U.S. Senate did it,' " said Phoenix attorney Daniel Ortega, who helped organize fund-raisers in Phoenix for Villaraigosa. "If they can do it, we can do it."
Gaining Phoenix support
For a contender who hopes to be mayor of Los Angeles, Villaraigosa has spent a lot of time raising money and making friends outside of California. He has traveled to Hispanic cities across the Southwest and to Miami, Washington, D.C., and New York.The former California Assembly speaker has zipped in and out of Phoenix Sky Harbor International Airport at least three times, raising an estimated $60,000 for his campaign.
He has brought audiences of local Hispanic Republicans and Democrats to their feet with fiery speeches. And at a central Phoenix fund-raiser hosted by some of the state's most influential leaders this month, an absentee Villaraigosa called in and committed to working together on common issues facing the Valley such as immigration, transportation and other urban challenges.
