good morning.the Tuesday, February 27th. I'm Gustavo Arellano, a metro columnist for the Times. That means I'm allowed to share my opinion as follows:

Covering Latino politics in Los Angeles is a journey.

But before getting into the main topic thatHere's what you need to know to start your day.

power and glory

I've lived in Orange County all my life and have spent most of my career covering the madness that is OC. He has known some of the biggest names in Los Angeles' Latino politics for decades, including Gloria Molina, Antonio Villaraigosa, Alex Padilla, and Hilda Solis. Sometimes I would listen to the stories.

But I never imagined something like this would happen. cover They continue to make a living after joining the Times in 2019.

I was supposed to be covering Southern California, not some bare political intrigue in a sports-heavy city. But, to paraphrase Michael Corleone from The Godfather Part III, just when I thought it was over, Alex Villanueva pulled me back in.

Covering the downfall of a former Los Angeles County Sheriff in 2022 was an introduction to a whole new world that I found fascinating. Leaked audio from the same year that exposed a Los Angeles City Council member making racist remarks — for which the Times won the 2023 Pulitzer Prize for Breaking News — inspired me to learn more. I realized that I needed to pay attention and try to connect the dots of proverbs that go back decades.

Then came Imelda Padilla's election night party. She won a special election last summer to replace her former boss, City Councilwoman Nury Martinez, who resigned after making bigoted comments about black children and Oaxacans on a leaked tape. . Padilla's celebration was a veritable coronation, with city councilors, congressmen, community leaders and other powerful figures all offering their blessings.

I asked myself then. How did Latino politics in Los Angeles get to this moment?

After almost half a year, I found some answers.

series

“Power and Glory: Latino Politics in Los Angeles” is a four-part series that delves into key moments and players in the scene, focusing on four neighborhoods in Los Angeles and the 2024 race that best represents political trials and triumphs. is.

I start on the East Side, the birthplace of Latino power and always the theater of politics. Desmadre – Chaos. I will focus on the race to defeat City Councilman Kevin de Leon, who was the last person to participate in the tape leak. He represents District 14, which includes Downtown, Boyle Heights and Eagle Rock. Those voters have never met a controversial city council member they didn't elect, and then runs for high-level office (Hi, Antonio and Kevin) or resign in disgrace (that's you, Art Snyder and Jose Huizar).

In part two of the series, we take Highway 5 to the eastern San Fernando Valley. There, U.S. Sen. Alex Padilla and his Beltway roommate, Rep. Tony Cárdenas, have spent his three decades building a political dynasty worthy of “The Crown.” The discipline here is the antithesis of the East Side's clutter. But after Mr. Martinez's resignation and Mr. Cárdenas' announcement last fall that he would not seek re-election, political observers are wondering how long the San Fernando machine will hold out.

Part 3 focuses on South Los Angeles, the historical center of black LA but also home to a majority Latino population for at least a quarter of a century. Three candidates, Sadeh Elhawary, Efren Martinez and Dulce Vazquez, are running to become the first Latinos to serve on the South Los Angeles City Council since Edward R. Roybal in the 1960s. want to be. Will any of these candidates be able to represent South Los Angeles' Latino majority while reassuring Black residents that their needs will be heard and that their long-contested powers will not be lost? ?

The series ends in SELA, a city in southeastern Los Angeles County, as the cool kids call it, or the “corridor of corruption” as former Assembly Speaker Anthony Rendon calls it. A new generation of Latino elected officials is working together to overcome the region's scandal-plagued past. Two of them, Bell Mayor Fidencio Gallardo and Huntington Park City Councilwoman Graciela Ortiz, are running for seats on the Los Angeles Unified School Board.

They also face an interesting dilemma. It's a dilemma that more Latino elected officials in Southern California and beyond will face as the country's demographics continue to change. What does it mean to be a “Latino” politician when Latinos are the supermajority of the population? population?

Why my series is important

Huh, because I wrote it? just kidding! It is important to read “Power y Glory”. Because every Angelino should know about the various nodes of political power in Latino LA. After all, it's not just Latino history, it's the history of the city. Within all these stories are lessons, heroes, villains, and lessons to make cities better for everyone and avoid the mistakes of the past.

All articles are published online today and will appear in newspapers throughout this week.If there is a bon mot rant, or Chizume — Gossip — Email me at gustavo.arellano@latimes.com. enjoy!

Read more of Gustavo's series diving into Latino politics in Los Angeles

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Today's amazing photo comes from Times photographer Brian van der Brug at the Screen Actors Guild Awards. A-list stars brought their A-game to the red carpet at the Screen Actors Guild Awards.

Have a great day! From the Essential California team:

Gustavo Arellano, columnist
Kevinisha Walker, Multiplatform Editor
Stephanie Chavez, Subway Deputy Editor

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