Taking Local Values to State Level

On a sleepy, overcast morning, Manhattan Beach Mayor Mitch Ward stopped across the street from his house to grab coffee at one of his favorite local cafés, Manhattan Bread & Bagel. Owner Michael Keegan came over to greet him. "Don't get too wrapped up in the little things," said Keegan. "Stay focused on the bigger picture."

"I'm focused on everything," replied Ward with a smile.

Ward is working double time to manage city affairs as well as his own campaign for state Assembly. The 53rd District seat is being vacated by Assemblyman Ted Lieu (D-Torrance), who will have served the maximum term allowed in the legislature of six years.

Although Ward may need to catch up on his sleep, the Manhattan Beach mayor is racing ahead, according to a recent poll. A telephone survey conducted by Goodwin Simon Strategic Research in February shows support of between 13 and 32 percent, with Ward's closest competitors lagging at 4 percent.

However, candidate Betsy Butler claims to have raised more money for her campaign than other candidates—a total of around $350,000—and candidate James Lau dominated a recent pre-endorsement conference held by local Democrats.

"The endorsement of the party can be very valuable," said Dan Schnur, director of the Jesse M. Unruh Institute of Politics at USC. "It's helpful, but it's not decisive."

Butler's extra funds could also prove to be an asset, according to Schnur, but aren't necessarily indicative of a campaign lead. Neither is the recent poll putting Ward ahead.

"A poll commissioned by a campaign is always going to be somewhat suspect," said Schnur. "They'll ask questions in such a way as to pump up their candidate."

The race is far from won, and Ward says he still has a lot of work to do.

"We feel very confident that the polls are in our favor," said Ward. "But we have to get out there and try to get the message out to the people that there is an election on June 8."

Money is also a pressing issue. The Ward campaign has raised around $240,000 over the course of a year, according to Ward, but still needs more. "The race is going to cost about $350,000," he said. "April is going to be critical for us."

Having served on the Manhattan Beach City Council for almost eight years, Ward says he is proud of the city's progress and local ideals. "I feel pretty good about what we're leaving behind as I try to go up to the state Assembly," he said. "It's about trying to take that pragmatism and deploy it a little bit further beyond the borders of the city of Manhattan Beach."

The New York native says he was drawn to Manhattan Beach for the name and the history. As soon as he arrived, Ward says, he became involved in the community. "There's nothing more honorable than public service, in my opinion," he said. "I come from a family of caregivers. It's always about giving back: to make the lives of individuals better off than when you came."

Ward served as one of the city's first Cultural Arts commissioners, helping to develop what he calls a "stellar public arts program." Next, he moved to the Planning Commission, where he oversaw the establishment of the Metlox Plaza, as well as the Police and Fire Safety Facility. But most importantly, said Ward, he has honed the skills of a local elected official, including the ability to deal with a large budget. Since Ward started serving on the council in 2003, the city's budget has swelled to $82 million. "And we've balanced it every year with a surplus," said Ward.

Last year, part of that surplus was donated to local schools. Impassioned by pleas from students and teachers, Ward and the city council donated $1.3 million to the school district.

"I don't believe any American citizen should have to beg to be educated," said Ward. "I want to do all that is within my power to make sure that our children are properly educated. We are a globally competitive society and we can't do it with an uneducated populous."

This year, the school district suffered similar financial burdens. The city, however, restrained by its own budget deficit, was unable to offer a second donation. Fortunately, the gap was alleviated by the Manhattan Beach Education Foundation, which raised $4.1 million to help balance the district's budget.  

"The public are very supportive of the school district," said Ward. That community mentality of mutual responsibility is something Ward says he hopes to foster at state level.

"I'm not trying to be a big leader out there in front of everyone," he said. "I'm just trying to work with other pragmatic leaders to change the discourse at the state capitol to one that's going to be more focused on doing the public's business."

And the top order of business is exactly that, says Ward: business. Creating new jobs is essential to California's recovery.

"We need to get families moving again back into the job market," said Ward. "Unemployment is 12 percent in California and in some communities it's 30 percent. That's a staggering number."

Small businesses like Manhattan Bread & Bagel, said Ward as he sipped his coffee during a recent interview, are the surest hope for California's economic recovery. "Eighty-eight percent of all the new jobs in this decade will be created through small businesses," he said. "This business here—Manhattan Bread & Bagel—if they are able to put two or three additional employees on the payroll, that translates to two or three additional families that will have possibly a better way of life and move into a more stable middle class."

Ward's own family is a large one. As one of nine children, the environment was often competitive growing up, he says. His father is a minister, which meant a conservative upbringing that was also somewhat emotionally detached. "I do recall a day a long time ago when it was a very foreign thing for someone in my family to say 'I love you,'" said Ward. "Now everyone is very open about how much we care about one another. As people get older I think they just start to appreciate one another more."

Throughout his life, Ward says, he has been sought to lead. "People have always asked me to step up to represent them," said Ward. He was student body president in high school and fraternity president at college. Now, 50 South Bay elected officials have endorsed his candidacy for state Assembly.  

Meanwhile, publications advocating gay rights such as EqualJunction.com and the Bay Area Reporter are touting Ward as a social first. If he wins the Assembly seat, Ward will be the first openly gay black leader to reach such a level. But neither race nor sexuality has anything to do with the campaign or his ability as a politician, says Ward, who is married to his partner of 21 years, Bruce Siebs.

"People are always very proud when someone's the first anything," said Ward, who added that he has often been "a first," including being the first African American to be elected in the city of Manhattan Beach. "These are wonderful firsts and people like to refer to them and it gives them a sense of pride and encouragement, and for that I am happy to be first to set an example."