Los Angeles City Councilor Nury Martinez stepped down as the council’s president on Oct. 10 after audio recordings of her and two other councilors’ “racist” remarks surfaced the day before, with a wave of politicians—including Mayor Eric Garcetti—calling for them to resign from the council altogether.
After the audio was leaked, a slew of California politicians, including Gov. Gavin Newsom, came forward to condemn her comments. The incident comes just a month away from the Nov. 8 general election, in which Martinez was campaigning for re-election.
The recording, dated October 2021—published by a now-suspended Reddit user and first reported by the Los Angeles Times—included Councilmen Gil Cedillo and Kevin de León, and Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera….