Mark Ridley-Thomas was sworn-in as the first African American male ever to serve on the L.A. County Board of Supervisors on Monday, December 1, 2008…
The Honorable Kamala D. Harris, District Attorney for the City and County of San Francisco, administers the oath of office to Supervisor-elect Ridley-Thomas in the Board of Supervisors Hearing Room at the Kenneth Hahn Hall of Administration.
Supervisor Ridley-Thomas addresses constituents and supporters shortly after being sworn-in as Supervisor.
Senator Mark Ridley-Thomas voted earlier today with his wife, Avis, and his son, Sebastian, at Transfiguration Catholic Church. His other son, Sinclair, could not get away from Morehouse College and voted absentee ballot.
Sebastian Ridley-Thomas talks about civic responsibility, voting and this historic day.
If you haven’t done so already, please go out and vote!
Eric Bauman, the Los Angeles Democratic Party Chair, emphatically urged Angelenos to vote for Barack Obama and Mark Ridley-Thomas at a Get Out The Vote (GOTV) rally in front of City Hall this afternoon:
“You know, I feel hope in the air. But why do I feel hope in the air? Because, since the 1st of January, one million new Democrats registered to vote in the state of California. One million new Democrats!
And that one million new Democrats says, “yes we can, si se puede”. And tomorrow night at 8 o’clock we are going to say, “yes we did, si se pudo”. Because one million new Democrats means victory in California.
But, one million new Democrats needs to know they can’t stop at the top. You can’t just vote for Barack Obama. You have to vote for Mark Ridley-Thomas for the L.A. County Board of Supervisors. We have to win the Board of Supervisors.”
Ridley-Thomas Engaged 2nd District Voters on ‘Election Saturday’, holding a Major GOTV Rally in Final Weekend Drive to Nov. 4 Vote
Approximately 300 supporters showed up to the Mark Ridley-Thomas for Supervisor campaign headquarters on Saturday for a major Get Out The Vote (GOTV) rally. Video from the event follows below…
Dr. Cornel West helped get the party started by joining 72-year-old volunteer Joe Stringer on an improvised dance floor!
Later, Dr. Cornel West pumped up the large standing room only crowd as only he can:
“When [Senator Ridley-Thomas] decided to run, I said I’m coming back again. Why? Because every election he’s had for 30 years I’ve been standing right by his side. Oh yes! Oh yes!
That’s why the folks call me up on the radio and TV and say, ‘Brother West, we want your endorsement’. No, endorsement is too weak. This is a wholesale, unequivocal, affirmation of who he is as a human being committed to unconditional truth and unconditional love and politics is just the vehicle for it.
That’s the kind of states-person we need. And that’s what you got here in L.A. County.”
Senator Ridley-Thomas followed Dr. Cornel West with a rousing speech of his own where he implored supporters to keep working “wall to wall until 7:59 p.m. [Tuesday] and then I’m going to squeeze the death out of that last minute”.
Earlier in the program, State Controller and Ridley-Thomas supporter, John Chiang, spoke about the sweeping change coming on election day:
“On Tuesday when we elect Barack Obama as President of the United States of America, when we elect Mark Ridley-Thomas as our next great county supervisor, we’re going to send a signal from the eastern shores to the midwest cornfields to the Rocky Mountains to our home here in Los Angeles, California that our hopes and dreams are alive.”
Prior to Chiang’s remarks, State Board of Equalization Chair, Judy Chu, enthusiastically endorsed Senator Ridley-Thomas:
“I’m so excited. I’ve known Mark Ridley-Thomas for 25 years now — ever since he was Director of SCLC. And ever since I’ve known him, he’s always been committed to equality, to justice and to the people. And that’s the type of person we need at the Board of Supervisors.”
Many other community leaders - including Inglewood City Councilman Daniel Tabor, L.A. County Young Democrats President Becca Doten, LAUSD Board of Education President Monica Garcia, and Cerritos Councilmember Joseph Cho, Ph.D - spoke about the importance of electing Mark Ridley-Thomas to the L.A. County Board of Supervisors.
On Tuesday, October 28th, Senator Ridley-Thomas faced off against Bernard Parks at the final candidates forum. The video above is the closing statement delivered by Senator Ridley-Thomas at the Thomas A. Edison Middle School Auditorium. The event was sponsored by the Florence Firestone Chamber of Commerce.
Speaker of the California State Assembly Karen Bass offers a heartfelt endorsement of Mark Ridley-Thomas for L.A. County Supervisor:
“I have worked with Mark Ridley-Thomas for over 30 years and, like Barack Obama, Mark Ridley-Thomas was a community organizer, a civil rights leader, a legislator. We’ve been serving in the State Assembly and Senate together for the last few years. And he has the same set of values I do — a strong, deep commitment to social and economic justice.
And frankly, the Board of Supervisors in Los Angeles County, that is the institution that, from my point of view, manages the lives of poor folks. And I believe that his commitment to improving the quality of life for those in our society who are the most vulnerable makes him the most qualified to do the job.”
Senator Ridley-Thomas and Speaker Bass Rally Dems at West L.A. Headquarters
Speaker Bass: “Let me just tell you that the Obama factor up and down this state is going to have us picking up seats in the Assembly, and in the Senate and we have to take advantage of this opportunity and send Mark Ridley-Thomas to the County Board of Supervisors.”
