Ysabel Jurado celebrates reaching first place in L.A. City Council District 14 race

The rain did not stop the celebration of Ysabel Jurado’s L.A. City Council District 14 campaign. 

Jurado, who currently stands in first place in the District 14 City Council primary over incumbent Kevin de León, hosted her "To the Finish Line” victory celebration on March 23 at Garvanza Park in Highland Park, the community where she was born and raised and where she first launched her campaign last August. 

“We danced in the rain, ate delicious food and celebrated the amazing community that earned us the most votes in the primary and knocked on 85,000+ doors,” Jurado said. “I love you, CD-14.”  

Juardo, 34, who has never held elected office, is a tenant rights attorney and housing rights advocate whose main focus is combating gentrification-driven displacement in Los Angeles. As the daughter of undocumented immigrants, a public transit rider and a former teen mom, Jurado hopes to take the CD-14 community to a better horizon. 

In her candidacy statement, Jurado said issues like the homelessness crisis, dignified housing for all, climate action, safer streets and economic justice are just some of the many things she hopes to tackle if she becomes the councilwoman for CD-14, a district that is home to approximately 265,000 people, 70% of them Latino.

“I’m running to be the first woman and first Filipina to ever represent CD-14. More importantly, I’m running to defend the working families of this community from corporate greed and City Hall corruption,“ Jurado said. “But the only way to get there is by electing council members who will not be swayed by special interests or personal gain and who will unapologetically fight for the constituents they serve. That’s why I’m running. I will bring the institutional knowledge of a legal housing expert and the lived experience of a queer, immigrant-raised, working-class, woman of color – a battle-tested representative for and from the community.” 

Housing insecurity, homelessness and gentrification are some of the biggest issues impacting the 14th District. According to the Homeless Count by City of LA Council District (2015-2020 and 2022) in CD-14, there were more than 9,200 homeless people in the district on a given night, more than any other individual council district in L.A. 

In addition, according to the City Controller’s Office, residents of this district are also evicted more often than residents of any other district. From February through December 2023, there were more than 10,000 eviction notices issued in this district and more than 300 people who were unhoused died in the 14th District in 2022. 

Today, Jurado has 8,611 votes (24.52%), compared to De León's 8,214 (23.39%), according to totals released by the L.A. County Registrar-Recorder/County Clerk. Both Jurado and incumbent De León remain on track for the November runoff elections. 

CALÒ News was the only news outlet present in the casting of Jurado’s vote at the historic Arroyo Seco Library on primary election day earlier this month, where she told CALÒ News she was extremely proud of her grassroots campaign. “We did something completely grassroots and just really rebelled against the systems that don't serve us,” Jurado said.

The celebratory party lasted about two hours with 120 people as guests. The gathering was organized to recognize and celebrate the support from volunteers, allies and community members in helping Juardo’s campaign achieve first place in the primary election. 

Attendees enjoyed live music from local artists and complimentary food from District 14 small businesses. Jurado was also joined by prominent activists, organizers and local elected officials, including L.A. City Council District 1 Councilmember Eunisses Hernandez, L.A. City Controller Kenneth Mejia and LAUSD Board Member Dr. Rocio Rivas, all of whom have been early endorsers of Jurado’s vision and campaign for CD-14. 

“Let's get Jurado over the finish line this November and into city hall this December,” Hernandez said.  

If she wins in November's general election, Jurado will be the first person of Filipino descent on the L.A. City Council and the first non-Latino to represent CD-14 since 1985.