Los Angeles elects U.S. Rep. Karen Bass mayor; first Black woman in post.
December 20, 2013|Reuters
LA JOLLA, Calif., Dec 20 (Reuters) – A charismatic black woman became Los Angeles’ first black mayor on Tuesday as voters approved her bid to become the first black woman to hold the city’s top job at a rare ballot box show of unity in a city where a generation of leaders are black.
“For so long, I said I would never run for office, I didn’t even care,” said Karen Bass, a former businesswoman who has been the face of a city whose most prominent elected official is a white man.
“But I said I would always do what I had to do to make this city better for all of us,” Bass said after the victory became official, the first time Los Angeles has elected a black woman mayor.
Voters approved the ballot measure with a decisive margin, rejecting a second measure that would have raised property taxes by three percent to pay for homeless programs. The second measure passed, but with fewer than 60 percent of the vote, with many voting for the first measure to give the city more power to raise taxes.
The race played out largely on social media as the nation watched the election closely. It was the first time a black candidate has ever won a major U.S. city.
Bass, who was born in Washington but grew up in the nearby town of Cuyamaca, said she intends to tackle the problem of homelessness in her first term.
“There was a lack of leadership and a lack of engagement by the community,” Bass said. “Now, the next generation has got to take a look at this and say wow, what a waste.”
She will inherit a city that is the largest in the nation. More than 6 million people, or more than a quarter of the population, live in Los Angeles, making it the largest U.S. city by population.
“I’m here to give every Angeleno the same opportunities I had,” Bass said. “I will hold government accountable, but I am an angel who
