CELEBRITY FRIDAY: Bill Rosendahl, Openly Gay LA City Councilman, Dead At Age 70

Bill Rosendahl, the first openly gay man elected to the Los Angeles City Council, died this week (Wednesday March 30th) at age 70 after a long battle with cancer. Rosendahl was a host of a local public affairs cable television show before entering politics, and was succeeded by his chief of staff Mike Bonin, who wrote the following obituary for his former boss:

Widely known for his beaming smile and a booming voice, Rosendahl befriended both the powerful and the downtrodden throughout his lifetime and during his eight-year stint representing the Westside on the City Council. 

Often called the “Conscience of the City Council,” Rosendahl focused on seeking solutions to the problem of homelessness, promoting mass transit, curbing overdevelopment, and giving neighborhoods a greater voice in city decision-making. He was the first openly gay man elected to the Los Angeles City Council, and served from 2005 to 2013, when he retired to battle a stage four cancer that was diagnosed in the summer of 2012. Toward the end of his tenure in office, he became an outspoken advocate for medical marijuana, which he used to combat the side effects of cancer treatments. 

He will be missed!

2013 L.A. Municipal Election: Analyzing The Results

The results of yesterday's Los Angeles Municipal elections are in and it looks like Eric Garcetti and Wendy Greuel will be competing in the May 21 runoff (on my birthday!) The Los Angeles Times (and MadProfessah) had endorsed Garcetti, so we are happy about this result. Even if he loses and Greuel is Mayor, history would be made in having the first female Mayor of one of the Big 3 cities (New York, Los Angeles, Chicago), so as a feminist I would not be totally displeased with the result. Surprisingly, an openly gay candidate (who also happens to be a Republican) Kevin James looks to be placing third, which must be somewhat embarrassing for Jan Perry who seems to be coming in fourth place.

Here's what the results look like so far:

Garcetti is firstwith 32.9% of the vote, which is pretty good in basically a 5-person feel, more than 10,000 votes ahead of Greuel with 29.2% which is not too shabby either. James and Perry are just over 1,000 votes apart so its possible that margin could tighten.

In other important news, Mike Bonin was able to win his former boss's City Council District 11 seat, ensuring that the body will continue to have an openly gay member on it with an overwhelming 62% of the vote. In fact, it is likely that the 15-member body may have two openly gay members. In Garcetti's City Council District 13, openly gay Mitch O'Farrell (18.6%, 3535 votes) is a few hundred votes ahead of John Choi (16.4%, 3158 votes) while two other openly gay candidates Matt Szabo and Alexander Cruz de Ocampo failed to make the run-off. This was a disappointing result for Szabo, who was a Deputy Mayor in the Villaraigosa regime.

Openly gay candidate Ron Galperin (37.1%) is just squeaking ahead of City Councilman Dennis Zine (37.0%) to replace Greuel as Los Angeles City Controller.

In West Hollywood, openly gay members Jeffrey Prang and John Duran won re-election to the 5-member council, which will maintain its longtime openly gay majority.

Celebrity Friday: Bill Rosendahl, L.A. Councilmember

Some sad news this week when Los Angeles's only openly gay City Councilmember announced that he would not seek re-election in March 2013 in order to focus on his ongoing fight with cancer. Bill Rosendahl was well-known as a host of a local public-access community affairs show on cable in the 1990s when he came out of the closet and ran for the Los Angeles City Council in 2005 and won. He became the first person to run and win as an openly gay person in the history of the Los Angeles City Council. Jackie Goldberg had been an openly gay member of the L.A. City Council before Rosendahl (serving in the 13th district that includes Eagle Rock and Occidental College) but she came out after she was elected.

Rosendahl publicized his decision not to run in a blog post:

When I took my oath of office on July 1^st, 2005, I gave you my heartfelt commitment that I would fight the good fights with you. Together, we made Los Angeles stronger and our communities safer by putting people first. We jump-started modernization at LAX, creating thousands of jobs for our city, while protecting local residents from excessive airport impacts. We laid the groundwork for a 21^stCentury public transit system that will end historic LA gridlock by getting us out of our cars and reconnected to our neighbors in other parts of the city. We funded and built permanent supportive housing and moved more than 100 people from streets to homes. That’s real progress!

There is no question that we still face plenty of big issues, but we are doing better by thinking outside of the box and coming up with new approaches to tackle difficult problems. I promise you that I won’t stop getting things accomplished for you, for our neighborhoods, and for our city as long as I remain in office.

It is because of these accomplishments and the promise of many more to be realized that I have decided not to seek a third term as your councilman.

When I first ran for office my goal was to rebuild our local democracy by putting the PEOPLE back at the forefront of local government, and raising the voices of community residents above the big bucks of lobbyists and special interests. I sought to empower neighborhoods by returning control over local decisions. For seven and a half years, that philosophy has been the cornerstone of how I approach my responsibility as your councilman.

While this style of leadership isn’t nearly as common as it should be, I know that I share it with my dear friend and top adviser – Mike Bonin. Mike has served as my chief deputy from the day I took office. He has been a loyal public servant to the residents and businesses in CD 11 for over 16 years. That is why I’m endorsing Mike Bonin as Council District 11’s next Los Angeles City Councilmember.

I have known Mike Bonin for years in Los Angeles and I'm sure that he will make an excellent Los Angeles City Councilmember representing the 11th Council District, which covers large swaths of the Westside of Los Angeles.

But for today I want to call attention to the public service of Bill Rosendahl. He is today's subject of Celebrity Friday.