By Hillel Aron
(From LA School Report, March 13th, 2013)
When District 6 runoff candidate Antonio Sanchez showed up to the UTLA endorsement interview last year, he was accompanied by Miguel Santiago, an old friend of Sanchez’s as well as a member of the Los Angeles Community College Board of Trustees and — more importantly — State Assembly Speaker John Perez’s District Director.
Santiago’s appearance with Sanchez was interpreted by some within UTLA to mean that Sanchez carried the Assembly Speaker’s stamp of approval.
“In no uncertain terms, it was made clear to us that Sanchez is protected all the way up and down the power structure of the State,” said a highly placed source within UTLA.
This was one of the reasons that UTLA endorsed Sanchez in the primary — and one of the reasons the union leadership and members may struggle tonight when the House of Representatives reconsiders the union’s District 6 endorsements.
But it is not entirely clear whether pulling Sanchez’s endorsement would have any political consequences, in Sacramento or in Los Angeles — or even how it might affect the runoff.
Eric Bauman, Chair of the LA County Democratic Party, Vice Chair of the State Party and a Senior Advisor to Speaker Perez confirms that Santiago went to the endorsement meeting, but said Santiago’s presence wasn’t a message.
“It does not reflect the Speaker’s position, and the Speaker hasn’t endorsed in that race,” he said. “It’s just coincidental that Tony Sanchez is close friend with the Speaker’s staff.”
Read the full post here.