Hire officers? Abolish the police? LA's election reveals deep divisions over the LAPD
LOS ANGELES — When community activist Eunisses Hernandez ran for a seat on the Los Angeles City Council this year, she made clear she thinks L.A. needs fewer police.
The Highland Park resident promised to oppose the hiring of new officers at the LAPD, even to replace those who retire, saying the savings should be redirected into community services. On the issue of policing and prisons, she described herself as an abolitionist.
"I do not believe," Hernandez said in one candidate questionnaire, "that the police should play any role in my community."
Hernandez defeated Councilmember Gil Cedillo in an Eastside district that extends as far as Pico-Union. Since then, she's been promoting her favored candidates in the Nov. 8 election, in hopes of building a bloc of like-minded progressives at City Hall.
Hernandez endorsed Hugo Soto-Martinez, a labor organizer who, like Hernandez, has described himself as an abolitionist. Soto-Martinez is running to unseat Councilmember Mitch O'Farrell in a Hollywood-to-Echo Park district.
Hernandez is also Erin Darling, a civil rights lawyer running to replace Councilmember Mike Bonin on the Westside. And she has neighborhood leader Danielle Sandoval, who is seeking to represent a Watts-to-San Pedro district.
