33 Candidates Qualify For LA City Council And School Board Races

LOS ANGELES, CA — Los Angeles voters will head to the polls next March to choose between 33 candidates who qualified for the primary races for the Los Angeles City Council and Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education. On Monday, the Los Angeles City Clerk's Office released the official list candidates.

Voters will narrow the pool down to the top two candidates in 11 races for the Nov. 3 general election.

In all, there are seven City Council seats open. Two of the open seats won't have incumbents running in Districts 10 and 14. Those races do, however, include some well-known figures in Los Angeles political circles including Los Angeles County Supervisor Mark Ridley-Thomas, running in for the District 10 council seat and former California Senate member Kevin De Leon, who is running for the District 14 seat.

In Council District 8, incumbent Marqueece Harris-is running unopposed.

There are four seats open on the Los Angeles Unified School District Board of Education. Of those races, only District 7 has no incumbent running for reelection.

In the primary, the top two candidates with the most votes will move on to a general election runoff on Nov. 3.

The candidates who have qualified for the primary election ballot include:

Council District 2

• Paul Krekorian, incumbent member of the City Council
• Rudy Melendez, a laborer and artist
• Ayinde Jones, an attorney

Council District 4

• Nithya Raman, a homelessness nonprofit leader
• David Ryu, incumbent member of the City Council
• Sarah Kate Levy, a writer and women's advocate

Council District 6

• Bill Haller, a music studio owner
• Nury Martinez, incumbent member of the City Council
• Benito Benny Bernal, a community advocate

Council District 8

• Marqueece Harris-Dawson, incumbent member of the City Council

Council District 10

• Mark Ridley-Thomas, Los Angeles County Supervisor, district 2
• Grace Yoo, a community leader and attorney
• Melvin Snell, a human rights activist
• Channing L. Martinez, a community organizer
• Aura Vasquez, former Los Angeles Board of Water and Power commissioner

Council District 12

• John S. Lee, incumbent member of the City Council
• Loraine Lundquist, an educator and scientist

Council District 14

• Raquel Zamora, an educator and businesswoman
• Cyndi Otteson, an organizer and businesswoman
• Kevin De Leon, a former California Senate member
• John Jimenez, a nonprofit organization executive
• Monica Garcia, a Los Angeles Unified School District board member

LAUSD Board of Education District 1

• George J. McKenna III, incumbent school board member

LAUSD Board of Education District 3

• Marilyn Koziatek, a school programs director
• Scott Mark Schmerelson, incumbent school board member
• Elizabeth Bartels-Badger, an educator of disabled students and a businesswoman

LAUSD Board of Education District 5

• Christina Martinez Duran, a teacher and fiscal advisor
• Jackie Goldberg, incumbent school board member

LAUSD Board of Education District 7

• Patricia Castellanos, a workforce deputy
• Mike Lansing, a youth development CEO
• Tanya Ortiz Franklin, an educator, lawyer and advocate
• Silke M. Bradford, a senior education director
• Lydia A. Gutierrez, a public school teacher