SANTA FE SPRINGS, Calif., April 28, 2022 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- The campaign to re-elect Sheriff Alex Villanueva today was officially endorsed by police organizations ALADS and LAAPOA.
ALADS Board of Directors formally announced the endorsement of incumbent Sheriff Alex Villanueva. In a statement released by ALADS, "The Board's consideration was heavily influenced by the members' input which we believe was largely driven by the Sheriff's support of the deputies throughout the pandemic. ALADS looks forward to working with the Sheriff and all of our community partners as we confront the challenges of 2022 and beyond." ALADS' political endorsement process began in January with a hosted candidates forum, followed by a member survey shared April 14-19, 2022 with the membership. In total, 86% of ALADS members supported endorsing Villanueva, with all other candidates receiving 6% of support or less.
The Los Angeles Airport Peace Officers Association (LAAPOA) Board of Directors unanimously voted to endorse Alex Villanueva for re-election as sheriff of Los Angeles County. "Sheriff Villanueva was voted into office by the citizens of Los Angeles County by an overwhelming margin, and despite the attempts by certain special interest groups, politicians and activists to derail his work, he has been a champion for law and order," said Marshall McClain, LAAPOA President. "He has been more accessible than any previous sheriff, regularly hosting town hall meetings and hearing directly from the people rather than from those groups that do not truly speak for the people. Sheriff Villanueva stands by his convictions and has no problem with speaking truth to power, whether it's by supporting the recall of District Attorney George Gascón or calling out the County Board of Supervisors' defunding of the police and refusal to lift the hiring freeze for deputy sheriffs. The outcome of this race affects all law enforcement in this county and impacts the rest of the state and country. LAAPOA believes Sheriff Villanueva has earned our endorsement and is the only candidate who has proven he is unafraid to stand up for the residents of L.A. County."
During his first term, Sheriff Villanueva has made great strides to ensure the Sheriff's Department is a part of, and reflects, the communities they serve. Some of the changes created in the department by Villanueva during the last few years include: actively recruiting from across all communities within Los Angeles County and banning out of state hires; revised promotion policies, recognizing a broader range of work experiences, ensuring more women move up the ranks; lifting education requirements, ensuring new recruits will first earn college degrees and allowing veteran deputies to earn degrees; and advancing more LGBT deputies into the department's hire ranks including recently announcing the department's first LGBT commander.
In addition, when Sheriff Villanueva took office he took immediate steps to ensure all active deputies were dedicated to a common purpose. Some of these actions included: firing fourteen deputies, including old friends, who no longer shared the values of the department; moving to have every deputy wear body cameras to help restore trust with the community and keep public service ever present in deputies' minds; and adopting the first of its kind, deputy clique policy to ensure any illegal activity by deputies off duty would not be tolerated.
"The support of my fellow deputies and members of the department is the highest honor and validates the work we have done to date and the plan for our future. I look forward to continuing to serve the community and impact positive change," said Sheriff Alex Villanueva.
The next campaign rally will be held at 10am PST on April 30, 2022 at Marketplace Park in Santa Clarita.
For campaign information, visit www.alexvillanueva.org and follow @Alex4Sheriff on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
About ALADS
ALADS was formed in February 1970 by ten Deputies who joined together to collectively resolve a labor dispute and to ensure that the rights of future Deputy Sheriffs would be protected. Today, ALADS is one of the largest and most powerful law enforcement associations in the Western United States. ALADS continues to fight for the best wages, hours, and working conditions for its members alongside working to promote excellent public safety services for the citizens of Los Angeles County. We also work hard to provide the best medical plan benefits through the ALADS Medical Trust and are continuously pushing toward higher standards in legal representation. Learn more: https://alads.org
About LAAPOA
Founded in 1982, the Los Angeles Airport Peace Officers Association (LAAPOA) represents the sworn police officers of the Los Angeles Airport Police, the Los Angeles Municipal Police and the Los Angeles Park Rangers assigned to protect and serve Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), Van Nuys Airport (VNY) and the city of Los Angeles, and provide emergency medical services, law enforcement and wildland firefighting in the open space parks and throughout the city of Los Angeles. Learn more: https://laapoa.com
Press Contact: Jennifer@PressPassLA.com
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