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American Morning

City Attorney James Hahn Elected Mayor of Los Angeles

Aired June 06, 2001 - 09:31   ET

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.

THIS IS A RUSH TRANSCRIPT. THIS COPY MAY NOT BE IN ITS FINAL FORM AND MAY BE UPDATED.
LEON HARRIS, CNN ANCHOR: As we said, Los Angeles voters have picked a new mayor. City attorney James Hahn was elected last night after a sometimes bitter battle against former assembly speaker Antonio Villaraigosa. The two Democrats waged one of the fiercest mayoral campaigns in the history of the city.

CNN's Thelma Gutierrez takes a look.

(BEGIN VIDEOTAPE)

THELMA GUTIERREZ, CNN CORRESPONDENT (voice-over): With the weight of the city's Republican mayor, the state's Democratic governor, and hundreds of supporters cheering him on, Antonio Villaraigosa's block party had the look and feel of victory. But at the end of the day, at the end of a hard-fought campaign, it was Jim Hahn, a man who has spent 20 years in city politics, who as able to declare victory as L.A.'s next mayor.

JAMES HAHN (D), LOS ANGELES MAYOR-ELECT: Thank you for the vote of confidence over and over again in what I've been trying to do to make sure that we make Los Angeles the greatest city on Earth. I love L.A. Thank you.

GUTIERREZ: With that, Villaraigosa conceded.

ANTONIO VILLARAIGOSA (D), LOS ANGELES MAYORAL CANDIDATE: I love this city, Jim, and I know you do as well, I wish you the best of luck.

GUTIERREZ: At the Hahn party, the 51-year-old city attorney thanked his supporters.

HAHN: I've always been committed to bringing the people in this city together because I'm committed to keeping the city of Los Angeles together.

GUTIERREZ: It was a Los Angeles first: a neck-and-neck mayoral race between two liberal Democrats, one that turned bitter during the home stretch.

VILLARAIGOSA: My opponent is running a campaign of fear.

GUTIERREZ: But in the end, even their tones toward one another softened. HAHN: I want to honor my opponent, Antonio Villaraigosa, who brought such excitement and energy and ideas into this race.

VILLARAIGOSA: Jim, congratulations. I look forward to working with you for the great city of Los Angeles.

GUTIERREZ: With Congresswoman Maxine Waters, basketball legend Magic Johnson and his family at his side, it was a moment to savor. The race was over, with Jim Hahn the next city boss of a city that's the second largest in the nation.

Thelma Gutierrez, CNN, Los Angeles.

(END VIDEOTAPE)

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