Candidates For Influential County Board Seat Explain Why They Are Best For The Job

SAN PEDRO  (CBSLA.com) —   One of LA's most influential and powerful positions is up for grabs.

Several people are vying for a seat on the LA County Board of Supervisors from the 4th district.

Don Knabe  held that seat for two decades.

But now several people are vying to win the spot as Knabe is termed out.

CBS2's Dave Lopez spoke to the possible replacements.

"I don't really know my opponents very well," said Janice Hahn. "Honestly."

"Well, it seems like we're running against Kenny Hahn's memory," says Steve Napolitano, a former Manhattan Beach mayor.

Lopez asked Ralph Pacheco if he was the David fighting two Goliaths?

"Well, I would say there is one Goliath," said Pacheco, "and one staff member."

Hahn told Lopez she is running on her father's name.

"Because it's such a great name," she said. Her father is the late Kenneth Hahn, a legendary LA politician who served on the board for forty years.

The headquarters where supervisors meet and vote is named for Hahn. And her opponents know his legacy could be a factor.

"At the end of the day," says 50-year-old Napolitano, "this is not a job that you inherit. It's one you have to earn."

He's served as Knabe's top deputy for ten years and he has his endorsement.

Lopez asked him why he would be better for the position than Hahn?

"Depth and breadth of experience. Because I've been there, because I've been doing the job, I'm not just talking about it."

The 60-year-old Pacheco is an ordained minister who has served 25 years on the Rio Hondo Community College Board of Trustees.

"I've represented over half a million residents in the 4th district," he said, "So I feel as though I have some name recognition."

Hahn, a former City Council member and current member of Congress, acknowledged that she is tired of Washington politics.

"I know that I can do a lot more for Los Angeles County by coming home and serving in a local, non-partisan governmental body," she said.

If any one of the candidates in next week's primary fails to get 50 percent of the vote, then the top two finishers will face each other again in November.