Help DSA Elect More Socialists to LA’s 99 Neighborhood Councils!
Help DSA Elect More Socialists to LA’s 99 Neighborhood Councils!
Los Angeles has a system of 99 neighborhood councils comprised of unpaid volunteer elected officials who represent their neighborhoods to the city council. The system was established in 1999 in part as a way to placate a secession movement by wealthy white NIMBYs in the San Fernando Valley. Despite the diversity of neighborhoods represented across the many councils today, by design, the system continues to benefit the interests of profit-seeking real estate developers and business owners. Because of this fragmented system, progressive neighborhood leaders fighting for working class power in their neighborhood councils don’t stand a chance.
We’re going to change that.
More than one hundred DSA members are running in the upcoming neighborhood council elections–with a commitment to work together and advocate for the large-scale and citywide policies and budgets that benefit working class Angelenos.
We’re fighting for a people’s budget to defund the police, compassionate support for our unhoused neighbors, protections for renters against eviction, sidewalks that are actually walkable, bike lanes that are not used as marketing tools for real estate developers, improved bus service, a fair COVID-19 vaccine rollout, ending displacement from gentrification, and so much more.
It’s going to take all of us to do this.
Participation in Neighborhood Council elections, as a candidate or as a voter, is open to all Angelenos regardless of party affiliation, citizenship status, or incarceration history. The 99 neighborhood councils are divided into 12 “regions” that have different election schedules — look up when your elections are happening by clicking here.
Join us in this fight to organize our neighborhoods block-by-block, starting with the following actions:
The DSA members listed below are running for neighborhood council seats on slates across LA and have pledged to fight for our democratically-decided socialist values.
Hollywood United
- Bianca Cockrell (Business B)
- Theresa Gio (Renter A)
- Estefany Pereyra (Geo Area 5)
- Shauna Frente (Geo Area 1)
- Michael Bundick (Renter C)
- Caroline Johnson (Geo Area 4)
Hollywood Hills West
- Sara Steffan (Housing Chair)
Hollywood Studio District**
- Laura Graves (Resident 3)**
- Senator Zavala (Resident 7)**
P.I.C.O.
- James Saucedo (At Large)
- Marissa Ayala (At Large)
- Mustafaa Tajuddin (At Large)
Central Hollywood
- Matthew J. Singer (At Large)
East Hollywood
- Christopher Martinez (At Large B)
- Andoni Elias Nava (Tenant Rep)
- Jillian Schultz (Property Owner)
- Nina Suarez (At Large A)
- Skylar Summers (NH 6: Virgil Village)
Greater Wilshire
- Raphie Cantor (Business Rep)
- Bailey Benningfield (Renter Rep)
- Juan Portillo (Area 12)
Mid City West
- Roxanne Arvizu (Zone 7)
- Tee Mitchell (Nonprofit)
- Barbara Gallen (Zone 6)
- Xander Wikstrom (Renters)
- Jenny Morataya (Business)
Westlake South
- Roderick Hall (Resident)
Wilshire Center Koreatown
- Abril Dozal (Community Org)
- Samuel Sukaton (Community)
- David Roud (Community)
- Arun Ravendhran (Community)
- Elizabeth Isralowitz (Community)
- Raquel Martinez (Community)
- Angie Brown (At Large)
- Lilian Ramos (At Large)
- Jose Ruiz (Sub Dist 5)
- Kristina Wong (Sub Dist 5)
- Lynn “Jeong” Stransky (Business)
- Lorenzo De Felitta (Young Adult)
Downtown LA
- Peter Clune (Area Wide)
- Kevin Varzandeh (Area Wide)
- Austin Pryfogle (At Large)
- Kevin Dieterle (Historic Core)
- Michelle Duffie (Center City East)
- Pablo Fontoura (Historic Core Resident)
- Kate Gallagher (Fashion Dist Business)
Olympic Park
- Eddie Robinson (East At Large)
Echo Park
- Mansoor Khan (At Large)
- Jennifer Saparzadeh (At Large)
- Katie Hatlestad (At Large)
- Dan Mancini (At Large)
- Jeremy Bowditch (Dist 1)
- Mark Vigeant (Dist 2)
- Luke McGowan (Dist 4)
- Kirsten Judson (Dist 5)
- Emil DeRosa (Dist 6)
Elysian Valley Riverside
- Christine Louise Mills (At Large)
- Julie Sharron (At Large)
- Edward Shaun Bandrowski (At Large)
Atwater Village
- Spike Friedman (North Atwater)
- Aparna Kumar (Community Group Rep)
- Alexander P. Davis (Central Atwater)
- Sam Alper (At Large)
Silver Lake
- Ben Cassorla (Region 2)
- Maebe A. Girl (At Large)
- Albert Andrade (At Large)
- Andy Tagliasacchi (they/them) (Region 4)
- Arden Grier (At Large)
- Ryan Moore (Region 5)
- Xanthe Scheps (Region 5)
- Carolyn Jiyoung Park (Region 2)
- Ethan McQuerrey (Region 7)
- Dulce Stein (At Large)
- Daniel Weidlein (Region 7)
- Seth Copenhaver (Region 3)
- Seth Gottesdiener (At Large)
Los Feliz
- Anthony Davanzo (Recreation)
- Lane McFaddin (District C)
- Jason Corum (District B)
- Molly Prather (District E)
- Daniel Neilan (District A)
- Danny Rocco (Health and Safety)
Historic Highland Park
- Scott Jackson (At Large)
- Albert Ching (At Large)
- Duncan Gregory (At Large)
- Shanna Oskin (At Large)
- Ramona Mikelson (Arts Director)
- Theresa Saso (Homelessness Director)
- Ghazal Hashemi (Housing Director)
- Samantha McBride (Public Safety Director)
- Cate Roberts (Business Director)
Glassell Park
- Blake Salzman (At Large)
- Jon Jandoc (At Large)
- Sara Reihani (At Large)
Greater Cypress Park
- Mack Hill (At Large)
- Ash Kramer (At Large)
- Bryan Kramer (At Large)
Boyle Heights
- Johnny Echavarria (District 1)
Hermon
- Courtney Davison (Community Interest)
Arroyo Seco
- Drew Paonessa (At Large)
- Jennifer Bass (Mt. Washington)
- Madeline Vaiden (Sycamore Grove)
- Jessica Brennan (Sycamore Grove)
LA-32
- Yvonne Yen Liu (Corresponding Sec)
- Alexander T. Kirkpatrick (Recording Sec)
- Erika Crenshaw (At Large Regional)
- Graco Hernandez (East Region)
Lincoln Heights
- Vincent “Chente” Montalvo (Sub Area 7)
Sylmar
- Evelyn Jimenez (At Large)
Mission Hills
- Ronnie Veliz (At Large)
Pacoima
- Josue Guajan Orellana (At Large)
Granada Hills South
- George Karam (At Large)
- Chantal Serrano (At Large)
Chatsworth*
Woodland Hills-Warner Center
- Sam Evans (At Large)
- Leslie Simon (Area 6 Resident)
- Kathleen Barth (Area 2 Resident)
West Hills
- Thomas Booth (At Large)
- Justin Herschel (At Large)
- Kayson Verne (At Large)
- Olivia “Julie” Naturman (At Large)
- Robert Naturman (At Large)
- Aveista Helmandi (At Large)
Sherman Oaks
- Ally Castaneda (Area 5 Resident)
Winnetka
- Elizabeth Chapman (At Large)
- Jason Smalls
Reseda
- Anat Indig-Peddicord (At Large)
- Marvin Chowdhury (Business)
NoHo
- Logan Rees (District 1 Resident)
- Catherine Quach (District 4 Resident)
- Adam Goldberg (District 3 At Large)
North Hollywood Northeast
- Will Gaines (Community Org)
Greater Valley Glen
- Rishab Nathan (At Large)
- Skyler Terrebonne (At Large)
- Karli Melder (District 3)
North Westwood
- Andrew Lewis (General Residential)
Studio City
- Shelby Eggers (Residential Renters)
- Griffin Faye (At Large)
- Karen Sarrow (Service Org)
Van Nuys
- Robert Edmiston (Resident Zone 3)
Valley Village
- Mitchell Fiebernitz (Renter Rep)
Greater Toluca Lake
- Brandt Goodman (At Large)
Voices
- Estuardo Mazariegos (Comm Org)
- Sally Embrey (Area 1)
CANNDU
- Davona Watson (Corresp Sec)
Mid City
West Adams
North Area NDC
- Cindy Gaete (At Large)
- Joel Vaca (Area 1)
- Sophia Hernandez (Area 3 Rep)
- Mia Ross (Area 3 Rep)
- Andrew Ryu (Secretary)
- Jonathan Antonio (Vice President)
- Garrett Humble (President)
United Neighborhoods
- Carla Lupita Rowley (Area 1)
- Sarah Lacy (Area 5)
Bel Air-Beverly Crest
Del Rey
- Jasmine Delgado (Secretary)
- Theresa Gamache (Area A)
- Alejandro Arroyo (Communications)
Mar Vista
- Robin Doyno (At Large)
- Derl Claussen (At Large)
- Bitta Sharma (At Large)
- Mary Beth “M.B.” Blakey (At Large)
- Lisabeth Ryder (At Large)
- Francisco Espinosa (At Large)
- Greg Bartlett (At Large)
- Harrison Hopkins (Zone 2)
- Andrew Swindell (Zone 3)
- Ben Warga (Zone 5)
- Faith Myhra (Zone 7)
Palms
South Robertson
- Emilia Barrosse (At Large)
- Jeremy Halpern (At Large)
- Olga Lexell (Zone 1)
- Chad Monk (Zone 7)
Venice
- Dylan Eli Purvis (Community Interest)
- Jake DeFeo (At Large)
- Miguel Bravo (At Large)
- Lisa Redmond (At Large)
- Christopher Lee (At Large)
Westchester/Playa
- Ken Clive (District 8)
- Alfredo Hernandez (At Large Seat 1)
Northwest San Pedro
- Anealia Neal Kortkamp (Averill Rep)
Some DSA members are already serving on councils:
Arroyo Seco
Atwater Village
Boyle Heights
East Hollywood
Echo Park
Empowerment Congress North
Glassell Park
Greater Cypress Park
Harbor Gateway North
Harbor Gateway South
Historic Highland Park
Hollywood Hills West
Hollywood Studio District
Hollywood United
Los Feliz
MacArthur Park
Mid City
North Hollywood West
North Westwood
Reseda
Silver Lake
Voices
- Estuardo Mazariegos (Comm Org)
- Sally Embrey (Area 1)
West Adams
Westlake South
Wilshire Center-Koreatown
- Indicates committee member.