My name is Frederick Sutton. I am running for the Los Angeles City Council seat to serve District 11. Born and raised in West Los Angeles, I attended schools in Pacific Palisades and Brentwood. I filed papers to run for City Council because, like many constituents of our district, I became frustrated with our dysfunctional city government. Currently, one-third of our local officials previously held other elected office before running for city council. Several others have been serving in government in different capacities for many years. Our Los Angeles City Council has become a merry-go-round of lifetime politicians. Often these politicians use their experience as qualifications for elected office. This would be credible except for one thing, it has not worked.
Under our current roster of “experienced politicians†Los Angeles is drowning in debt and the quality of life has gradually deteriorated. Los Angeles faces over a billion dollar deficit over the next four years, a 10% unemployment rate and over 10 billion in unfunded pension liabilities. We face these obstacles despite over a 20% increase in revenue since 2005.
It’s entertaining to read the Los Angeles Times’ investigative articles about LA city corruption and debt; but is this any way to run a city? City government should not function like a soap opera. I do not believe entrenched bureaucrats should represent our district. Our elected officials should be good citizens of the community first and politicians second. These citizen representatives should come from the ranks of your neighbors who will bring with them the immediate concerns of our community and fresh perspective. An experienced staff is needed to help guide them through the city bureaucracy. Our elected officials should be free from special interests. The person elected to represent us should have only the constituents’ best interests in mind.
It is time to get fresh ideas into City Hall. I will come to office with a clean slate. I’m not an entrenched politician nor am I in this race to help green light development projects. I am a regular guy who has held regular jobs and I love this city. I pay my bills on time, live within my means and strive to create an environment to help those around me succeed; I expect no less from my city government.
Feel free to contact me with any ask questions — my door will be open to everyone and I will always work on coming to an understanding with those who don’t see eye to eye.
