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Antonio Villaraigosa (born Antonio Villar in Los Angeles, California) is a California politician and attorney. Born in East Los Angeles of Mexican-American parentage, Villaraigosa rose up from a poor, unstable childhood and unsettled young adulthood to become a labor lawyer and California State Assemblyman and Assembly Speaker, and one of the leading liberal and Hispanic voices in the state. He ran for mayor of Los Angeles in 2001 but was defeated by 9% by fellow Democrat James Hahn in a run-off election. In 2003, Villaraigosa defeated incumbent Councilman Nick Pacheco, a fellow Latino, to win a seat on the Los Angeles City Council representing the 14th District.
As of December, 2004, Antonio Villaraigosa has declared his intention to run in the 2005 Los Angeles Mayoral Election as a member of the Democratic Party, having participated in at least one debate.
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