Bill Clinton Endorses Wendy Greuel For Los Angeles Mayor

Former President Bill Clinton weighed in on the Los Angeles mayoral race Monday with an endorsement for City Controller Wendy Greuel.

Greuel acknowledged the major endorsement in a tweet and linked to Clinton's endorsement letter in full on her site:

Friends --

I'm proud to support Wendy Greuel for Mayor of Los Angeles.

Throughout her career, whether in the public or private sector, Wendy has been a smart, dedicated, and creative problem-solver. She knows how to make government work for ordinary people, and she's been doing it for decades, not only when times are good, but especially during periods of crisis.

I saw this strength of Wendy's first-hand in 1994, when she was a valued member of my administration's Department of Housing and Urban Development. When the Northridge Earthquake struck -- causing so much loss of life and destruction -- Wendy sprang into action. She helped deliver over a billion dollars in federal emergency aid to Los Angeles residents and worked around the clock to assist families who lost their homes.

In her many years of public service in Los Angeles, first in Mayor Bradley's office, through her tenure on the City Council, and now as City Controller, Wendy has personified good, honest, and effective government, improving the lives of countless Angelenos while saving millions of their tax dollars.

And she's not done yet.

Los Angeles is a great city with equally great challenges, so it's vital that Angelenos elect a proven, creative problem solver to lead them. That's Wendy Greuel. I urge you to join me in supporting her for Mayor of Los Angeles.

Sincerely,

Bill Clinton

The Los Angeles Times first reported on the endorsement and notes that the former President is deeply loyal. From the Times' analysis:

Clinton has often endorsed people who have been loyal to his family, either helpful during his time at the White House or supporters of his wife’s unsuccessful 2008 presidential run. Greuel fits both categories -- in addition to being an early and active backer of Hillary Clinton’s presidential campaign, she worked in the Clinton administration at the Department of Housing and Urban Development.

Clinton's endorsement follows a few days of apparent turmoil in the Greuel camp. She recently replaced her campaign manager Rose Kapolczynski with Janelle Erickson, former deputy chief of staff to current LA Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. The shakeup follows the resignation of a director and several staffers over the direction of Greuel's campaign, reports Los Angeles Daily News.

Greuel's opponent, City Councilman Eric Garcetti, supported Barack Obama and appears to be close to the sitting President.

Greuel and Garcetti face off in a run-off election on May 21.