Election
Although Yorty was re-elected in 1969, he started to show boredom in his position as Mayor as he had travelled out of the city for most of his tenure. He ran for governor in 1970 and lost to Speaker of the California State Assembly Jesse M. Unruh, later running for the Democratic nomination for President in 1972 before ending his bid before the California primary. Yorty then announced that he was running for Mayor, seeking an unprecedented fourth term in office.
He was again challenged by Councilman Tom Bradley, making his second run for the office, as well as Unruh, LAPD Chief Thomas Reddin, councilmember Joel Wachs, and actor Bob Dornan. [4] [5] Polls frequently had Bradley having a substantial lead over Yorty and the other candidates, although some speculated that Unruh or Reddin could advance to the primary with Bradley instead of Yorty. [6] In the primary, Bradley and Yorty advanced to the runoff election again, setting the stage for a rematch of the 1969 mayoral election. [7] [8]
In the ensuing campaign, Bradley criticized Yorty for visiting convicted income tax evader Josn Alessio alongside Phil Regan, who would later be convicted of bribery; Yorty attacked Bradley for allegedly "accepting loans tied to gambling interests." [9] Polls showed Bradley leading Yorty in the race, although Yorty discounted the polls as he had won the previous election with polls showing the same thing. [10] This time, however, Bradley defeated Yorty to become Mayor, ending Yorty's tenure of 12 years. [11] After his loss, Yorty changed his party affiliation from Democrat to Republican in September 1973. [12]
Samuel William Yorty was an American politician, attorney, and radio host from Los Angeles, California. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives and the California State Assembly, but he is most remembered for his turbulent three terms as the 37th Mayor of Los Angeles from 1961 to 1973. Although Yorty spent almost all of his political career as a Democrat, he became a Republican in 1973.
Thomas Bradley was an American politician, athlete, police officer, and lawyer who served as the 38th Mayor of Los Angeles from 1973 to 1993. Tom Bradley was Los Angeles' first Black mayor, first liberal mayor, and longest-serving mayor. A Democrat, Bradley's multiracial liberal political coalition was a forerunner of future President of the United States Barack Obama's coalition in the 2008 and 2012 presidential elections.
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Edmund D. Edelman was an American attorney and politician. He served as a member of the Los Angeles City Council from 1965 to 1974 and the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors from 1975 to 1994.
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The 1909 Los Angeles mayoral election took place on November 9, 1909, with a run-off election on December 7, 1909. Incumbent George Alexander was re-elected over George A. Smith in the runoff election.
The 1949 Los Angeles mayoral election took place on April 5, 1949, with a run-off election on May 31, 1949. Incumbent Fletcher Bowron was re-elected.
The 1961 Los Angeles mayoral election took place on April 4, 1961, with a runoff election on May 31, 1961. Incumbent Norris Poulson was defeated by Sam Yorty, a former U.S. Representative.
The 1965 Los Angeles mayoral election took place on April 6, 1965. Incumbent Sam Yorty was re-elected over James Roosevelt and six other candidates in the primary election.
The 1969 Los Angeles mayoral election took place on April 1, 1969, with a run-off election on May 27, 1969. Incumbent Sam Yorty was re-elected over councilmember Tom Bradley, a win that had a record-breaking turnout. Yorty used race against Bradley to paint him as a mayor who would be open to Black Nationalism and that he was inefficient against fighting crime, both were denied by Bradley as he was a police officer in the Los Angeles Police Department before his election to the council.
The 1977 Los Angeles mayoral election took place on April 5, 1977. Incumbent Tom Bradley was re-elected over nine other candidates. He was mainly challenged by State Senator Alan Robbins and tax policy activist Howard Jarvis, with Robbins campaigning on his opposition to busing in the city. Bradley was widely expected to easily win re-election, and on election day, Bradley won by a landslide against the other candidates.
The 1981 Los Angeles mayoral election took place on April 7, 1981. Incumbent Tom Bradley was re-elected over former Mayor Sam Yorty. The election was a third rematch between Bradley and Yorty, the other two being in 1969 and 1973. It would be the last time a Mayor would be elected to a third term, as voters amended the city charter in 1993 to implement a two-term limit for the office of Mayor.
The 1985 Los Angeles mayoral election took place on April 9, 1985. Incumbent Tom Bradley was re-elected over councilmember John Ferraro. Bradley's re-election would give him a fourth term, an unprecedented feat in the office as no mayor except for James R. Toberman had been re-elected to a fourth consecutive term.
The 1989 Los Angeles mayoral election took place on April 11, 1989. Incumbent Tom Bradley was re-elected over ten candidates in the primary election. It would be the last time Bradley ran for mayor, as he chose to retire after his fifth term.
