Five mayoral candidates will face off in Royce Hall tonight in a live, televised debate that will focus on jobs and the economy.
The debate, co-hosted by NBC4, UCLA and the L.A. Coalition for the Economy & Jobs, will include Councilman Eric Garcetti, City Controller Wendy Greuel, radio talk show host Kevin James, City Councilwoman Jan Perry and Emanuel Pleitez, a former technology executive.
The candidates were invited out of the more than a dozen candidates running for mayor this year because they have a physical and online campaign center, multiple endorsements, campaign staff and have raised at least $150,000, according to NBC’s website.
In addition to the debate’s moderator, NBC4 political reporter Conan Nolan, three expert panelists will help present questions to the candidates, including Franklin D. Gilliam Jr., dean of the UCLA Luskin School of Public Affairs and a professor of public policy and political science. The other panelists include chairman of the L.A. Coalition and chairman and Chief Executive Officer of City National Corporation Russell Goldsmith, and president and CEO of the Central City Association of Los Angeles as well as the Downtown Center Business Improvement District Carol E. Schatz.
A limited number of tickets to the debate are available for students or faculty members of UCLA at the Central Ticket Office or at the UCLA Government and Community Relations website.
The debate will also be aired live on NBC at 7 p.m.
| Eric Garcetti Democrat Garcetti is currently a member of the Los Angeles City Council, representing the 13th district, in the Hollywood and Downtown area, since 2006. The fourth-generation Angeleno was formerly a professor of diplomacy and world affairs at the University of Southern California and Occidental College. |
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| Wendy Greuel Democrat Greuel became City Controller of Los Angeles in 2009. Previously, she served with the Cabinet Secretary as the Field Operations Officer for Southern California in 1993. She was elected to the Los Angeles City Council in 2002 to represent the 2nd District, which includes the Northeastern San Fernando Valley. |
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| Jan Perry Democrat Perry represents the 9th district of the Los Angeles City Council. She formerly served as president pro tempore of the Los Angeles City Council and as director of the Los Angeles Census 2000 Outreach Project. |
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| Kevin James Republican James is an American radio host and political commentator, who has commented on local and national politics. He is also a former Assistant U.S. Attorney for Southern California and served on the board of directors for AIDS Project Los Angeles, a nonprofit AIDS coalition that focuses on HIV/AIDS-related education and legislation, from 1995 to 2000. |
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| Emanuel Pleitez Democrat Pleitez is the Chief Strategy Officer of Spokeo, a Pasadena-based tech company. In 2007, Pleitez worked as a financial analyst at the global investment banking and securities firm Goldman Sachs Group Inc. He has since served on the Obama-Biden Presidential Transition Team and the president’s Economic Recovery Advisory Board. |
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