Photo: Jacob Tucker (used with permission)
LOS ANGELES (CNS) - Craig Greiwe, a marketing executive and co-founder of the civic engagement nonprofit Rise Together, announced today that he will run for mayor of Los Angeles.
``L.A. can and should be a city that works for all of its people, instead of at their expense,'' said Greiwe, who will step down from Rise Together's board of directors while he pursues City Hall in the 2022 election.
``I have a real plan to once again create a city we can all dream in.
A city that empowers and lifts people up. The question is not how to solve L.A.'s problems, it's who. Us Angelenos know that we cannot trust the people who created our problems to also be the people who solve them.''
Rise Together was launched in the last year to ``up-end politics as usual in Los Angeles'' and improve civic engagement among Angelenos during the city's 2022 elections, according to its website.
Greiwe joins a mayoral candidate field that includes Rep. Karen Bass, L.A. City Councilmen Joe Buscaino and Kevin de Leon, City Attorney Mike Feuer, business leader Jessica Lall, real estate agent Mel Wilson and entrepreneur Ramit Varma.
Los Angeles Magazine reported that real estate mogul and billionaire Rick Caruso has hired a high-profile political consulting firm, in what could be a sign that he could be planning a run for mayor of Los Angeles.
Like other candidates seeking to lead Los Angeles, Greiwe focused on the city's homelessness crisis in his announcement.
Representatives for his campaign said he is calling for a more aggressive approach to transitional and interim housing options. He said he would pledge to build 400,000 new homes, including 200,000 affordable units, without changing neighborhood character.
He also said he would focus on reducing crime, which has increased in Los Angeles -- and in cities across the U.S. -- during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Greiwe graduated from the University of Southern California and Columbia Law School. He has spent his career doing business strategy and marketing. He has also served on the boards for Christopher Street West and the American Dance Movement.