Vice Mayor Announces Run for Long Beach Mayor

The day after Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster announced he will not seek a third term, Long Beach City Council Member Robert Garcia announced via YouTube Wednesday that he will seek to replace him.

Garcia, 35, has been political since he was in student government at Cal State Long Beach and then worked at the Richard Nixon Library before joining then- Councilman Frank Colonna's staff. He then ran Republican Colonna's unsuccessful bid for mayor, against current Long Beach Mayor Foster, a registered Democrat. Garcia later changed parties and is a registered Democrat, as well as being openly gay.

Garcia is now on the California Coastal Commission and teaches communications and public policy at USC, he said Wednesday. He co-founded local news site LBPost.com, which he stopped running due to the conflicts inherent in owning a website that reports on local government. Watch his YouTube here: http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=lmuYqDjn-dQ#at=16

Fellow Long Beach Council Member Gerrie Schipske has already declared her candidacy for mayor and responded to Garcia's announcement Wednesday:

"I welcome Council member Garcia into what I hope will be a race for Mayor focused on which candidate has the experience and vision needed to improve local neighborhoods and move Long Beach forward."

The Press Telegram's Eric Bradley reported: "Four others have already filed papers to run for mayor: Damon Dunn, a businessman and former NFL player; nonprofit education founder Jana K. Shields, Councilwoman Gerrie Schipske and Long Beach City College Trustee Doug Otto.

"Both Garcia and Schipske are openly gay and arguably the best-known candidates to declare a bid so far.

"Other prospective candidates include Assemblywoman Bonnie Lowenthal, her former daughter-in-law, Councilwoman Suja Lowenthal, and former Councilwoman Rae Gabelich. Councilwoman Suja Lowenthal said she is giving 'serious consideration' to running, and Assemblywoman Bonnie Lowenthal, reached by email while on vacation, did not rule out a campaign for mayor."

Read more of Bradley's story here: http://www.contracostatimes.com/news/ci_23679238/long-beach-vice-mayor-robert-garcia-announce-mayora...