Newsom says LA leaders in racist recording should resign

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Govt. Gavin Newsom speaks to members of the press on Sunday at the KQED radio headquarters in San Francisco. Maggie Angst

Govt. Gavin Newsom on Sunday called for the resignations of Los Angeles City Council members who used crude and racist remarks during a private conversation about political redistricting that became public two weeks ago.

I think they should (resign), Newsom said during a press briefing after his Sunday gubernatorial debate in San Francisco.

When asked why he didnt call for resignations earlier, Newsom said that he wanted to give them space.

I wanted to provide the opportunity for them to justify what they said and the opportunity to be transparent about what they said, Newsom said. So were hoping and looking forward to (resignation) announcements soon.

The governors remarks come two weeks after the Los Angeles Times published a recording of the conversation and officials across the nation urged those involved to resign. President Joe Biden called for resignations on Oct. 11.

The leaders recorded in the conversation were among the most powerful Latino politicians in California: former City Council President Nury Martinez, City Councilman Gil Cedillo, City Councilman Kevin de Len and former Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera.

In the conversation, they discussed how to preserve and expand Latino political power, including by diluting Black votes. California Attorney General Rob Bontas office launched an investigation into Los Angeles redistricting process, the once-a-decade process of redrawing legislative boundaries.

Shortly after the tape was released, Herrera stepped down and Martinez resigned.

In an interview last week with Univision and the CBS affiliate in LA, de Len said he would not resign because he wanted to be part of the process helping the city heal from the harm caused by the racist remarks.

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Maggie Angst covers California politics and Gov. Gavin Newsom for The Sacramento Bee. Before joining The Bees Capitol Bureau, she worked for the Mercury News and East Bay Times where she covered San Jose City Hall and later wrote enterprise stories on the breaking news team.

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