On Tuesday, the Los Angeles City Council voted 14-0 to confirm the nomination of President Pro Tem Marqueece Harris-Dawson as the next council president, with Councilmember Monica Rodriguez absent from the vote.

Council members Katy Yaroslavsky and Heather Hutt previously nominated Harris-Dawson, who currently chairs the Planning and Land Use Management Committee, and is Vice Chair of the Budget Committee, last month.

Harris-Dawson will assume office on September 20, when current Council President Paul Krekorian steps down to help transition to new leadership. Krekorian is leaving City Hall at the end of the year due to term limits.

He is expected to serve as council president through the middle of December following November’s election.  Once new council members assume their respective offices, another election will take place to elect a council president for a new term. While president, Harris-Dawson will preside as chair of council meetings and have the power to assign council committees.

“Thank you so much council president, thank you all members of the council, and everybody that was advised, pushed, cajoled, and struggled with us over the past few months to get to this particular day,” Harris-Dawson said after the vote. “A special thank you to Council President Krekorian who’s made every resource available so we could have as smooth a transition as possible.”

He added, “You’ll hear from us later, and until September, expect to see me with my head down and studying as hard as I can so that we can be as prepared as possible when I take leadership of this council.”

Mayor Karen Bass issued a statement congratulating Harris-Dawson.

“I want to congratulate Council President-elect Marqueece Harris-Dawson on being elected to serve as the next Council President. Councilman Harris-Dawson has a long history in City Hall and beyond of bringing people of all backgrounds and across all sectors together.

She also thanked Krekorian for his service to the city.

“President Krekorian stepped in at a time of tumult and turmoil for Los Angeles and for the Council itself. With a steady hand, he guided the Council during a challenging time while continuing his push to advance good governance reforms that contribute to President Krekorian’s long legacy of exceptional service here in City Hall,” Bass said.

Councilmember Katy Yaroslavsky previously said that Harris-Dawson’s leadership, vision, and temperament have consistently stood out in his tenure on the council.

“He doesn’t just come to you and ask for a vote when he needs it. He takes the time to ask what you need, how he can be helpful,” Yaroslavsky said in a post on X. “Then he actually follows through. With so many big, important challenges on the horizon for Los Angeles, I cannot think of a better person to lead the City Council.”

Photo by Creative Commons Attribution 2.0 in Wiki Commons.