elections

Nov 10 2011

Mayor, council races decided

Voters made a lackluster showing at the polls in Palmdale Tuesday just as they did around the rest of the region.
 

Cynthia E. Griffin  |   OW Managing Editor
Nov 3 2011

Talking about the needs of L.A.’s 15th District

Five candidates did not attend the Watts forum: realtor Rebecca Chambliss, businessman Frank Pereyda, small business owner and former 15th District Councilman Rudy Svorinich, and write-in candidates Emery Soos and Timothy Weaver.

To give residents an opportunity to learn even more about the candidates for the 15h District Council race, we sent an survey to each of the 15 people running. Following you will find their answers as well as other pertinent information. Some candidate did not respond, despite repeated calls and e-maiL.

Cynthia E. Griffin  |   OW Managing Editor
Nov 3 2011

Housing, employment, public safety key concerns

Ten of the 15 candidates trying to win the right to fill the unexpired term of former L.A.

Councilwoman Janice Hahn turned out for a candidate forum in Watts Saturday, and the common themes they stressed were that the 15th District needs to receive its fair share of funding and resources to address concerns such as public safety, housing, and unemployment.

Nov 3 2011

Vote Tuesday

Incumbent Mayor James C. Ledford Jr. has two other candidates nipping at his heels in the Palmdale mayoral election on Tuesday. They are Maggie Campbell and Desmond Kester.

Campbell holds a bachelor’s degree from San Francisco State University and an honorary doctorate of divinity degree. She is the pastor of the Church of the Living God in Palmdale.

Jun 16 2011

Janna Zurita defeats incumbent

Janna Zurita, cousin of former Compton Mayor Omar Bradley, narrowly defeated two-term City Councilwoman Barbara Calhoun, and is expected to be sworn into office no later than July 1. After failing to obtain the 50 percent plus one vote needed to win outright, the outgoing second district councilwoman, who has often been ally of current mayor Eric Perrodin battled Zurita for the council slot. Despite her low showing in the April primary (615 votes), Zurita upset Calhoun by capturing 1,637 (51 percent) of the ballots cast.

Across Black America

Here’s a look at African American people and issues making headlines throughout the country.

California
Allied Integrated Marketing recently announced it is launching a new African American marketing division, Allied Moxy. The new division will create innovative campaigns that integrate publicity, promotions, digital and grassroots outreach to speak directly to the full diversity of African American consumers. Spearheading Allied Moxy are industry veterans Kim Walters and Gloria Jones. Walters will oversee national strategy from Los Angeles, while Jones will oversee regional/local strategy from Washington, D.C. Walters brings more than a decade of marketing experience working with entertainment companies such as Codeblack Entertainment, Sony Pictures Home Entertainment, and A&E Lifetime Television, as well as consumer brands such as KIA and L.A. Gear and awards programs such as NAACP Image Awards and Soul Train Music Awards. Jones has been with Allied for five years running publicity and promotional campaigns for clients, including Universal Pictures, Focus Features and Relativity Media, and previously worked for WBDC-TV in D.C. and MTV Networks’ Nick @ Nite and TV Land.

 

Representing Los Angeles and Center Theatre Group, Tyler Edwards, a senior at the Orange County High School of the Arts, placed third at the national finals of the fifth annual August Wilson Monologue Competition (AWMC) at Broadway’s August Wilson Theatre in New York City. “I am thrilled . . . I’m so glad that I took it for L.A. the first time we got up . . . that’s what we’re talking about!” said an elated Edwards following the competition. Edwards, an aspiring actor, describes the soaring, lyrical monologues found in the plays by Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright August Wilson as “very inspirational,” and said prior to the Los Angeles Regional Finals of the August Wilson competition, “I would love to share a bit of that inspiration with any audience, in hopes that they leave with more appreciation than they walked in with.”

 

Georgia
Bounce TV, the nation’s first-ever over-the-air broadcast television network for African Americans, will launch a second new original comedy series, “Uptown Comic,” on June 18, immediately after the series premiere of the just-announced sitcom “Family Time.” “Uptown Comic” is a half-hour series featuring stage and skit performances by some of the hottest up-and-coming comics in the country. The show is currently in production in front of a live studio audience at the longest-running African American comedy club in the U.S.—Uptown Comedy Corner in Atlanta. Actor and comedian Joe Torry (Russell Simmons’ Def Comedy Jam) hosts. “Family Time,” a half hour situation comedy created by Bentley Kyle Evans ( “The Jamie Foxx Show,” “Martin,” “Love That Girl”) and produced by Evans and partner Trenten Gumbs is set to launch Monday, June 18, at 8 p.m. The series premiere of “Uptown Comic” will follow and be seen weekly at 8:30 p.m. (All Times Eastern.)