‘When the lights go down in the city,’ increased voter apathy dims hard partying Mayor’s Cabinet dreams

Antonio Villaraigosa’s road to Washington continues to be met with bumps in the road. (Photo courtesy www.sfgate.com)

Apparently being known mainly for partying with celebrities doesn’t instill much confidence in voters. In fact, L.A. Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa is finding out the hard way that his city is growing increasingly indifferent to how its government functions.

After the dismal results in last week’s elections, many analysts are blaming everything from the weather to public sentiment towards attack ads.

However, with local election turnout hovering in the neighborhood of sixteen percent, some experts are beginning to blame the Mayor’s public missteps and spotty track record as key reasons for an increased apathetic attitude among voters.

With Villaraigosa’s alleged Cabo booze-fest with notorious actor Charlie Sheen, and romantic rumblings with Desperate Housewives actress, Eva Longoria, still fresh in voter’s minds, it’s not surprising that he would be more associated with the tabloids than with effective governance.

However, it’s not just his personal life that’s faced increased skepticism lately. His signature issue, the Metro Rail, is off track and mired in lawsuits, and the city’s budget is continuing to dive in the red. His recent Los Angeles Lakers ticket scandal hasn’t helped matters much either.

Perhaps even more embarrassing, LA Weekly recently reported that Villaraigosa spends roughly eleven percent of his week dealing with direct issues involving the city of Los Angeles.

Despite his public and professional reputation continuing its downward spiral, he’s still managed to position himself as a political figure that is primed for the next level.

With current Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood’s departure growing closer by the day, Villaraigosa is surprisingly still in the conversation to fill his position.

Set to leave office July 1, Villaraigosa for his part has played the coverage surprisingly coy.

“I am flattered and humbled by the speculation that has included my name for a possible Cabinet secretary position, but I am firmly committed to remaining in LA and finishing my term,” said Villaraigosa in last month’s statement on the topic.

Although his transportation experience has been primarily limited to visiting a host of countries- including a ten day trip to South America that was widely criticized for taking about eight days too long- his name is still coming up as LaHood’s potential successor, much to his mortified critic’s dismay.

SOURCE:  Concerned Citizens for Los Angeles

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