Name: Herb J. Wesson Jr
DOB: November 11, 1951
Took Office: 2005
Notable Past Roles:
Who does he represent?
Council District 10 includes parks of mid-city and South Central Los Angeles. Neighborhoods include Leimert Park, Crenshaw, Jefferson Park, Country Club Park, Mid City, Pico-Robertson and parts of Koreatown.
Where’s he from?
Herb Wesson is originally from Cleveland. He graduated from Lincoln University in Pennsylvania and sometime after that he moved to LA. He’s been a California resident since the 80s.
How did he get here?
Wesson worked a few jobs before getting into politics but his career really took off when he moved to California. Wesson was Chief of Staff for a City Councilmember (Nate Holden) and a County Supervisor (Yvonne Burke) before running for the State Assembly in 1998.
He was in the Assembly for six years, becoming Speaker for his last two. He’s been on the LA City Council since 2005, serving as president for seven years.
What does he care about?
Wesson is known as a charismatic leader who pushed business out of the daylight in City Hall into back rooms. Under his leadership, City Council began to vote unanimously on nearly everything and if a Councilmember didn’t agree, they just wouldn’t show up.
His stated priorities now are removing racial and socio-economic disparities and improving opportunities for both kids and adults. He did co-author an anti-discrimination ordinance and, along with his colleagues, he helped boosted the minimum wage. He also says he prioritizes ending homelessness but he dragged his feet on producing housing, opening bridge housing and cooling centers in his district until he was running for office again.
According to his website, he’s very proud of his record on potholes and fixing LA’s roads.
