Law enforcement veteran and leading Republican candidate, Matt Rodriguez is set to prove his respect for both his community and law enforcement when he participates in CBS L.A.’s special ‘Meet The Candidates: LA County Sheriff’ forum tonight. With the sheriff race being one of California’s most important and talked about elections this year, the broadcast television network will help voters decide who they’ll vote for on the June primary ballot during the hour-long forum.
Rodriguez is one of the eight candidates who are running against the current L.A. County Sheriff, Alex Villanueva, a Democratic who was elected in 2018. Several of Villanueva’s challengers, including Rodriguez, will participate in tonight’s forum, which will begin at 7pm PT on the streaming service, CBS Los Angeles.
Residents of Los Angeles county have expressed their desire to see new leadership in the sheriff’s office and a new vision for public safety. Like Rodriguez, the public is critical of Villanueva’s confrontational style as the leader of the second largest law enforcement organization in the U.S.
The sheriff, who won the election in a stunning upset four years ago, infamously battles with county leaders, supervisors and the L.A. district attorney, George Gascón. Villanueva has never apologized for his actions, however; he instead repeatedly defends his record, despite the crime rate drastically increasing during the past two years.
Rodriguez is the best candidate in this year’s race to become the next L.A. County Sheriff. He’s a government security specialist who once served as Captain in the L.A. County Sheriff’s Department. Having also most recently served as the Interim Chief of Police and Assistant Chief of Police in the City of Santa Paula, he has proven that he believes in respecting people, law enforcement and the rule of law.
The L.A. County Sheriff Republican candidate also possesses four academic degrees, including a Master’s Degree in Executive Leadership from the School of Public Policy at USC; a Master’s of Public Administration from Cal State Long Beach; a Bachelor of Science degree in Political Science from UCLA; and an Associate of Science degree in Administration of Justice from Citrus Community College.
One of Rodriguez’s highest priorities is instating police reform in the LAPD. He wishes to finally stop the corruption that has plagued the department throughout his 32-year career.
Besides police reform, another one of the law enforcement veteran’s top priorities is battling homelessness across L.A. If elected as sheriff, he’ll take a humanistic but realistic approach to homelessness across the county.
If elected as L.A. County Sheriff, Rodriguez will work closely with homeless advocates to provide proper housing, medical and mental health care. For those without a home who are seeking change, he believes rapid rehousing is essential.
Besides supporting police reform and supporting the homeless community, the Republican nominee nominee also favors bringing about changes to the criminal justice system. On his official campaign website, he states that those changes “should include proven evidence based programs with a track record of success. Reform requires a surgical approach to change, widespread community understanding and concurrence. As opposed to the failed reform of our current leadership.”
Rodriguez also feels it’s critical that law enforcement officers form partnerships with their communities in order to ensure public safety. He further believes that the relationship between the two sides is essential to maintaining public trust.
“Public safety is a shared responsibility that requires positive working relations built upon public consent, trust, understanding and innovation,” the L.A. County Sheriff nominee added on his website. As Sheriff, he’ll rally the community to join the department to solve problems and create a safer community for everyone.
