EPISODE 116 – MICHELLE RIVERA IS GOING TO PARIS THIS FALL; LEARN HOW YOU CAN SUPPORT HER

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Urban Planners, geek out! Michelle Rivera, of UCLA’s Masters in Urban and Regional Planning program, connects with us to talk about her journey towards this esteemed graduate program. Shout outs and discussion items include Michelle and I’s coming out of UC Davis (go Aggies!), the importance of nonprofit work for learning the how-tos of community organizing, Michelle’s time with Chancee Martorell of the Thai Community Development Center in East Hollywood, her work with L.A. City Hall’s recent decision to codify the Al Fresco program, and of course, her fundraising efforts to get to Paris, France this fall, where she’ll continue her studies for three months at Sciences Po University. Please find her fundraiser for this HERE, and follow her journey via Instagram at @mujer.de.epazote.

Also, remember to submit your voicemail to the new J.T. Weather Report!

Here are the four easy steps to take when calling into the hotline:

I. Choose an interesting nickname for yourself to keep your anonymity.

II. Tell me which side of The City (or County) you’re calling from.

III. Tell me how you’re liking the weather, or if you’ve seen anything interesting through it like a downed power line, fallen tree, a pack of opossums, etc.

IV. Keep it under a minute! This helps us tune in to more reports rather than less.

***And if you’d like to keep your number anonymous as well, did you know that pressing *67 before you dial a number keeps your number blocked? That’s right!

Submit your voicemail to the J.T. Weather Report at (213) 458-5042.

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J.T.

four colourful houses

Here is The City’s new Plan to House L.A. from 2023 – 2029

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According to the L.A. City Planning department:

“On June 14, 2022, the full City Council adopted the targeted amendments. The Housing Element will guide the creation and implementation of the City’s housing policy from 2021 to 2029. On June 29 [2022], the California Department of Housing and Community Development (HCD) informed the City of Los Angeles that its 2021-2029 Housing Element was in full compliance with State law.” The plan is said to begin implementation as early as this February 2023

L.A. Planning Executive Summary (Adopted)Download

From the Executive Summary of this report, according to former Mayor Garcetti in his 2021 State of the City address:

“Loving Los Angeles means facing the bitter truth about our past that maps of our city were drawn to protect the wealth of white people and destroy the wealth of Black people and other people of color. Redlining and exclusionary zoning resulted in a city where today Black and Mexican origin families hold 1/90th of the wealth of white families on average, it’s a city where Black people are overrepresented among those experiencing homelessness by a factor of four, and where Latino homelessness accounts for the greatest jump of newly homeless Angelenos.”

You can also learn more about this document via L.A. City Planning’s FAQ page.

J.T.

EPISODE 98 – TELL THEM EVERYTHING NOW, WITH NAHSHON DION

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For our 98th installment (originally recorded May 29th, 2022), Nahshon and I discuss yours truly’s roots in Los Angeles, the L.A. mayor’s race, the L.A. County Sheriff’s office, and even Acapulco restaurant. Nahshon Dion is a multi-talented, award-winning creative nonfiction writer, teaching artist, creative director, executive producer, and arts patron from Pasadena, California. She hosts TRANSBRATIONS, a YouTube show, whose next guest, on June 21st, features Writer and Professor Elmaz Abinader, co-founder of Voices of Our Nation Arts Foundation (VONA).

*It was Toni Morrison–not Angela Davis–in a conversation with Angela Davis, who noted the abundance of libraries in the United States per capita compared to the rest of ‘the West’s’ states and nations.*

*Set the Night on Fire: L.A. in the Sixties was authored by Mike Davis and Jon Weiner–not Weinstein–in 2020.

J.T.

close up shot of scrabble tiles on a white surface

Eight Days Out, L.A.’s Missing Voters in the Millions for the 2022 Primary

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With just eight days left before the June 7th primary, as of Friday, May 27th, less than 139,000 ballots of 2.1 million mailed out to voters in the city of Los Angeles have been returned to the Registrar’s office, making for a gap of 2,010,187 ballots to find quickly over the next week. 66% of these returned ballots have come from voters aged 50 and upwards. Since these groups hold only 44% of all ballots, their early returns mark an increase of 22% over their registration rate. Voters aged 18 – 49 currently hold 55% of L.A. city’s ballots, but can only claim credit for 36% of ballots returned to the Registrar so far, marking a 19% gap with respect to their registration rate.

Ballots returned by Age and Ethnicity in L.A. City, respectively as of May 27th, 2022; Political Data, Inc.

Additionally, white voters have returned 59% of L.A. City’s 2.1 million ballots so far, or approximately 82,000 ballots, a 10 point increase from their share of ballots overall (49%). Latinx voters have accounted for only 20% of returns so far, or roughly 28,000 ballots, despite their hold on 33% of ballots overall, making for a 13 point decrease or gap with respect to their registration. Ballots returned from Asian-American voters currently make for 12%, or 17,000 ballots, a 3 point increase from their hold on ballots overall. And ballots from African-American voters returned so far make for 9% of all returns, or about 12,500 ballots, consistent with their hold on ballots overall (9%).

It’s accurate to say, then, that the 13 point gap for ballots returned from younger, Latinx voters in particular relative to their hold on all ballots have so far opened a path for more returns from white and Asian-American voters, particularly those over the age of 50.

The trajectory so far is reminiscent of L.A.’s last major primary in 2017, when Eric Garcetti and Mitch O’Farrell were re-elected to their offices by only 17% of L.A.’s voters; ballots from white voters also surged then as those from Latinxs fell by nearly half. The 2017 primary also saw saw an uptick in ballots returned from Asian-Americans compared to their registration rates, while ballots from African-American decreased, albeit slightly, compared to their registration rates.

Data from Tableu Public by paulmitche11, 2017

Let’s now take a look at the numbers more locally. In Council District 13 (CD-13), at least 11,000 of approximately 148,000 ballots have been returned so far. 57% of these ballots are from voters aged 50 and upwards, compared to their share of 48% of the electorate in the district overall, an increase of 9 points. 43% of returned ballots in CD-13 so far hail from voters aged 18 – 49, compared to their share of 51% of the electorate overall, a decrease of 8 points compared to their registration. In terms of ethnic categories, white voters have accounted for 59% of these same returns so far, or 4 points up from their overall share (55%). Latinx voters, who account for 30% of the ballots in CD-13, have accounted for 22% of returned ballots so far, or a decrease of 8 points compared to their registration.

Ballots returned by Age and Ethnicity in CD-13, respectively, as of May 27th, 2022; Political Data, Inc.

Asian-American voters, the third largest bloc in CD-13, have accounted for 17% of ballots returned in the area so far, an increase of 4 percentage points, while African-American voters, the fourth largest bloc in the area, have accounted for 2% of returns, consistent with their share of ballots in CD-13 overall.

Ballots returned by Age and Ethnicity in CD-1, respectively, as of May 27th, 2022; Political Data, Inc.

In Council District 1, at least 7,300 of roughly 106,500 ballots have been returned so far. 62% of these ballots are from voters over the age of 50, compared to their 47% share of the electorate in the area overall, an increase of 15 points. Along ethnic categories, ballots returned from Latinx voters have made for 36% of returns so far, making for a gap of 12% with respect to their share of the electorate in CD-1 overall (48%), which is also the largest voting bloc in the area. White voters, who make up for the second largest voting bloc in the area (34%), have returned 35% of CD-1’s ballots, an increase of 1 point with respect to their share of the area’s eligible voters. Asian-American voters, who represent the third largest bloc of voters in CD-1, have returned 27% of the area’s ballots, an increase of 11 points from their registration rates in CD-1 (16%). African-American voters, the fourth largest bloc in the area (3%), have returned about 2% of ballots there, a slight decrease of 1% with respect to their registration in CD-1.

While so far L.A. City’s numbers aren’t exactly reassuring, they’re also not far removed from trends for the Golden State as a whole at the moment. Consider that across California, there are roughly more than 22 million voters on the rolls; of this number, those over the age of 50 represent up to 10.8 million voters (slightly more than the size of all of L.A. County before 2020, or 49%). However, as of May 27th, these voters accounted for more than 75% of ballots returned so far, an increase of 26 points with respect to their overall share. Inversely, voters aged 18 – 49 represent 51% of California’s electorate, but only made for 25% of votes back to the state registrar as of May 27th.

Ballots returned by Age and Ethnicity in California overall as of May 27th, 2022; Political Data, Inc.

Additionally, white voters maintain the largest bloc in California, representing 57% of the electorate, but have returned at least 69% of the state’s ballots so far, or an increase of 8 points. Latinx voters, who make for the second largest bloc at 27%, have returned 15% of the state’s ballots, or a decrease of 12 points with respect to their rate of registration. Asian-American voters, who are the third largest group of voters at 12% of the state’s electorate, have returned 12% of ballots, consistent with their registration rate; and African-American voters, the fourth largest voting bloc at 4%, have returned 3% of the state’s ballots, a slight decrease of one point compared to their registration rates.

The numbers are obviously poised to change over the next week, but it’s clear that it will take more from the state and voting proponents across our cities to dislodge the historic trends. As the California Public Policy Institute noted as early as 2000: “At present, California’s electorate does not accurately reflect the state’s diversity. Despite being only about half of the state’s population, whites make up 68 percent of the voters. Latinos are well behind with only 19 percent of the electorate, and blacks and Asian Americans follow with 6 and 7 percent, respectively.”

According to the U.S. Census in 2000, Latinxs made for 32% of the state’s population then, while Asian-Americans accounted for 11% and 7%, respectively. As recently as 2020, white residents made for roughly 41% of the state’s population, while Latinxs, Asian-Americans, and African-Americans accounted for about 39%, 15%, and 6%, respectively.

Statistics cited for the June 2022 primary are from Political Data, Inc.’s Tracker, a well-crafted data engine. Keep up with more updates over the next week via this page and wherever else you follow JIMBO TIMES. And if you’re still doing research for your ballot, the L.A. Times can lead you to a useful guide HERE.

J.T.

EPISODE 83 – SCOTT EPSTEIN FOR COUNCIL DISTRICT 5

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In our 83rd episode, we sit down for a chat with Scott Epstein (@scottforla), a former chair of the Mid-City West Neighborhood Council and current candidate for Council District 5, which is home to–among other L.A. landmarks–the L.A. County Museum of Arts, UCLA, the Pico-Robertson area, and more of what makes up the “west-side” of Los Angeles. Scott and I discuss the growing number of unhoused residents in CD-5, including unhoused UCLA students, as well as his take on Mitch O’Farrell’s militaristic response to the unhoused crisis in Echo Park. Scott and I also consider the major discretionary powers of L.A. City Council members, and how Los Angeles is–with a few key exceptions–more of a City Council “town” and not that of a mayor’s. To learn more about Scott, find his campaign page at scottforla.com.

J.T.