Endorsement: The Times rescinds its endorsement of Danielle Sandoval for L.A. City Council District 7, the seat being vacated by the late Rep. Jackie Speier. City leaders had been concerned that the Times had not been objective in making its decision, but the organization said it found new reasons for support after being alerted to a “lengthy” investigative report by two local journalists.
— Times Editorial Board
“The first thing we did when we were approached by the news organizations was to look independently at their coverage of Councilwoman Sandoval,” said Jonathan Barnett, city news editor, in a statement. “We concluded that their investigative work uncovered additional reasons to support their endorsement.
“We felt that our endorsement of Ms. Sandoval would still be necessary,” he said.
The Times also rescinded a second endorsement in June, in which it endorsed an incumbent L.A. City Council member, Ami Bera, over an independent candidate.
In both cases, the newspaper said it made that decision after looking at the full coverage of the candidate’s campaign, which was then reviewed by multiple Times editorial boards.
Speier, who represented the 4th district for the last 22 years, died in June following a fall at her L.A. home. A special election has not been held, and district 5, where she had been elected in 2009, has been reassigned to another city council member.
Sandoval represents District 7 and was first elected in June.
On Tuesday, the Times also said it was rescinding an endorsement of another independent candidate, former State Senator Ron Calderon, over State Assemblyman Rocky Chavez, over Chavez’s support for the measure allowing the Los Angeles Unified School District to impose a tax increase to address the state’s education deficit.
In that case, the Times made the decision in a separate editorial review. The editorial board also weighed in on the candidates for the same seat, calling for that candidate, Tony Young, to be seated.