LA mayoral hopefuls court Asian Americans, the city's fastest-growing ethnic group
LOS ANGELES — In November, Kevin de León convened a press conference for the Korean-language media.
"Annyeonghaseyo" — hello — he greeted the journalists before making the case for why he should be Los Angeles' next mayor. If elected, he will appoint a Korean American deputy mayor, he said.
Last week, another mayoral candidate, Rick Caruso, rolled out Korean-language ads, touting himself as the only one who can "clean up" the city.
Karen Bass has met with Filipino and Korean residents, among others, as her campaign prepares to launch ads in Mandarin, Korean and Vietnamese by the end of the month.
As the June 7 primary approaches, candidates Joe Buscaino and Mike Feuer are also courting Asian American voters through town halls and endorsements.
In past elections, Asian Americans were sometimes considered an afterthought, a source of campaign cash more than votes.
This year's election is different.
Candidates are wooing the city's fastest-growing ethnic group, who make up
