Loraine Lundquist says she will run again for Council District 12 seat

LOS ANGELES — Loraine Lundquist, who lost a special election for the Los Angeles City Council District 12 seat to John Lee by three percentage points in August, announced Tuesday that she will try again in the March 3 primary.

Lundquist likened her campaign to the germination of a seed sprouting anew following her August defeat.

“When the election ended, some of the aspirations of our movement were buried beneath layers of fear and cynicism,” Lundquist stated. “But time and nature have an uncanny way of taking all the filth piled atop a seed and turning it into … well, food, precisely the nourishment and sustenance needed for a movement that continues to grow and flourish.

“Our work is not yet done. So many voices in our community have urged me to continue carrying the Democratic torch,” Lundquist said. “It’s rare in politics to get a do-over. All the work we have put in and everything we have built thus far was for a special election to serve out the remainder of a term that ends in just a few short months, but really, it was more than that: it has prepared the ground for all that is to come.”

Calls to Lee’s office were not immediately returned.

Lee replaced Greig Smith, who had previously served on the City Council and returned for an eight-month stint to represent the northwest San Fernando Valley district after Mitch Englander stepped down late last year. Lee worked as the chief of staff under Englander.

Lundquist is a CSUN research scientist and astrophysicist who supports Mayor Eric Garcetti’s Green New Deal and championed a platform of environmentally based policies during her first campaign.

“… Many in our community have no interest in being represented by an out-of-touch conservative and former lobbyist,” Lundquist said.

Lee outspent Lundquist by about $196,000 in the August election.