The city of Los Angeles Neighborhood Council elections are getting into full swing this week. Tomorrow is the first deadline for people who wish to vote in the first group of NC elections.
This year NC elections are clumped into 12 different regional groupings; the earliest region, number 5, includes:
- Central Hollywood
- East Hollywood
- Greater Wilshire
- Hollywood Hills West
- Hollywood Studio District
- Hollywood United
- Mid-City West, and
- P.I.C.O.
This year's elections are all mail-in ballots. Angelenos must request a ballot online, attesting that they are a stakeholder in a specific NC (note: some councils require submitting a picture of a photo identification and possibly other material.) Stakeholders can include people who live, work, attend religious institutions, or whose family members go to school within a given NC's boundaries. The deadline to request a Region 5 ballot is tomorrow - Tuesday March 9.
Though many neighborhood councils are relatively regressive nimbys, a few have exercised their power positively. Prominent among the progressive councils, the Mid-City West Community Council has championed bikeways, Slow Streets, Park(ing) Day, and walk/bike improvements on Melrose which were canceled by City Councilmember Paul Koretz.
This year, several community groups - including L.A. Forward Action, Democratic Socialists of America, and Streets for All - have been working together to elect progressive NC slates. Streets for All has endorsed for Mid City West, P.I.C.O., East Hollywood, Greater Wilshire, and Hollywood Hills West council races. Additional group endorsements can be found at L.A. Forward Action and Democratic Socialist of America websites.
The Mid-City West progressive slate has created their own website, and a step-by-step instructions handout for 2021 NC election.
If you're not sure what neighborhood council represents you, use the city NC map webpage to locate yours.
Even outside of Region 5, all stakeholders can request your pertinent NC ballot online - again, for some this requires a photo ID and, in some cases, additional documentation.
Find various NC election links at the city's Neighborhood Council election portal.
