Weho Democrats Endorse Land, Heilman and Horvath

 incumbents , and  received the endorsement of the West Hollywood-Beverly Hills Democratic Club on Monday night. The membership approved the moves by a 48-10 vote.

A month earlier, the club had met to vote on its endorsements, but adjourned without supporting any West Hollywood candidates when no one received a majority vote. Club bylaws state that 60 percent of the members must vote in favor before a candidate receives its endorsement.

Mito Aviles was the only non-incumbent council candidate to come to Monday’s meeting in an effort to earn the club’s endorsement.

Land and Heilman easily won their endorsements. However, the endorsement of Horvath, who was appointed to the West Hollywood City Council in May 2009 upon the death of longtime Councilman Sal Guariello, was .

A decade ago while in college, Horvath was active in Republican politics and is reported to have supported George W. Bush for president. Horvath addressed that past in her speech to the club before its endorsement vote, saying, “I joined the West Hollywood Democratic Club because I support and believe in the values of the Democratic Club. I regret nothing more than supporting another party in the past.” Horvath also said she has worked hard to overcome her Republican affiliation and added, “I now support progressive values.”

Despite that concession, several members spoke against Horvath’s endorsement. Longtime West Hollywood resident and active Democrat told the members that she supported Land and Heilman, but objected strenuously to Horvath.

“I think [Horvath] should be public information officer because that’s all she talks about in City Council meetings,” Dobrin said. “She’s in the city.”

Member Ed Buck also objected to the endorsements, calling for the club to vote on each candidate individually rather than as a slate. “This three-way endorsement is an abomination. Each individual should stand on their own,” Buck told the crowd of 58 credentialed club members.

Buck went on to note that the issues discussed in the recent LA Weekly cover story about the West Hollywood City Council election needed to be addressed. “The charges in LA Weekly are out there. These candidates are not addressing those charges,” Buck said.

The LA Weekly story also brought condemnation from Eric Bauman, chair of the Los Angeles County Democratic Party, who called the story “yellow journalism.” “LA Weekly is trash,” Bauman said. “This is not journalism, this is trash.”

In another apparent journalism-related incident, three Los Angeles police officers appeared in the lobby of the National Council of Jewish Women building on Fairfax Avenue, where the meeting was being held, shortly before the meeting convened. Rumors quickly spread that the police were there because WehoNews.com editor Ryan Gierach was covering the endorsement vote.

On Saturday at the , Gierach tried to question Horvath about her , a recently signed federal bill, in West Hollywood. Rather than answer Gierach’s questions, Horvath dashed away. When Gierach pursued her trying to get an answer, Horvath darted through the crowd and bushes trying to avoid him. Gierach posted a video of his pursuit on the WehoNews.com website.

Gierach told Weho Patch that he went up to the police officers, handed them his business card and asked why they were there. When they said they were there in response to a call, he told them he wanted to make sure they weren’t there trying to “prevent a reporter from doing his First Amendment right.” The police left shortly after conversing with Gierach, who stayed to cover the endorsement vote. 

The elections will take place on March 8 and the .