Garcetti adds Kevin James to his endorsement list

Mayoral candidate Eric Garcetti has a 10 a.m. presser scheduled with Kevin James, the former radio talk show host who came in third in the March 5 city primary election. They are doing the deed outside the Van Nuys city hall, officially the Valley Municipal Building, on Sylvan Street. During the primary campaign, James was hard on both Garcetti and rival Wendy Greuel, calling them insiders who were part of the problem at the downtown City Hall. But now James tells the LA Times that "I had to look at both of those candidates and decide which one is best to lead the city forward for the next four years. I think the opportunity for independence is greater with Eric.… The potential for independence he shows in the future I think is significant because of the way labor has lined up for his opponent in this race."

James said that although he doesn't agree with Garcetti on all the issues, Greuel has made moves since the primary that troubled him, such as announcing an endorsement by an SEIU chapter the morning after the election, as well as statements that the city failed to engage in collective bargaining in the decision to roll back retirement benefits for new hires.

He also said he was impressed by the economic revitalization that has occurred in Garcetti's district.

"If I had been able to pick those numbers apart, I would have done so," James said. "We fact-checked them on our own."

Greuel has received the bulk of the blue-chip endorsements since coming in second in the primary, including from former President Clinton, basketball legend Magic Johnson and the county Federation of Labor. But James' decision to back Garcetti puts the councilman in the enviable position of having the unanimous backing of all other major candidates who ran for mayor. James said he anticipated that Garcetti would have the three of them campaign together.

Those other endorsers for Garcetti are Jan Perry and Emanuel Pleitez. So far, Garcetti's endorsements combined with the 33 percent of the vote he got represent about 70 percent of the votes cast.

A James campaign ad in the primary depicted both Garcetti and Greuel as shifty characters driving through the dark streets to bury a dead body on some hillside.

Also in Campaign 2013: Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa defends his record against criticism from Greuel.

Los Angeles Magazine photo