Rick Caruso announces candidacy for Los Angeles mayor


By
 in , ,

Rick Caruso, billionaire businessman and current chair of the USC Board of Trustees, announced his candidacy for mayor of Los Angeles on Friday.

“I believe in the LA dream — and I know that we can end homelessness, crime, and corruption. But the politicians can’t,” Caruso wrote in a Twitter post. “That’s why today I formally began the process of running for Mayor of Los Angeles.”

Caruso — an independent since 2012 — registered as a Democrat Jan. 24.

“I won’t be a typical Democrat, that’s for sure,” wrote Caruso in a letter posted to Twitter following the registration. “I will be a pro-centrist, pro-jobs, pro-public safety Democrat.”

The City Clerk’s office confirmed to the Los Angeles Times Wednesday of Caruso’s intent to file paperwork Friday and declare his candidacy. He will join 16 other candidates in this year’s mayoral election, including USC alumna Karen Bass and city councilmember Kevin de León.

Caruso was elected chair of USC’s Board of Trustees in 2018, a week following former University President Max Nikias’s resignation following sexual assault allegations against former USC gynecologist George Tyndall. In March 2021, the University reached an $852 million settlement with more than 700 survivors — the largest sexual abuse settlement filed against any university.

After being elected, Caruso pledged greater University accountability and headed the Special Committee of the Board of Trustees, promising to conduct an independent investigation into Tyndall’s misconduct and a subsequent report.

But during a March 2021 student media briefing, Caruso said a formal report was never created, citing it would cause “more pain and suffering to the victim” by releasing them.

Olivia Jade was aboard Caruso’s yacht in 2019 when she learned the federal government indicted her mother, actress Lori Loughlin, for bribing the University to admit Jade. Jade and her sister, Isabella Rose, disenrolled from USC in October later that year.

After graduating from USC in 1980, Caruso founded and became CEO of real estate development company Caruso. In 2001, Caruso was elected the president of the Los Angeles Police Commission, where he oversaw the rejection of former LAPD Chief Bernard C. Parks’ bid for a second term and the selection of Parks’ replacement, former New York City Police Commissioner William J. Bratton. 

Caruso has since served as a Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Commission member and founded the Caruso Family Foundation, a philanthropic organization dedicated to providing “high quality educational opportunities and access to superior healthcare” to underserved families in L.A.

Caruso also owns The Grove and The Americana at Brand, among other widely successful retail centers in the United States.

Caruso and his wife Tina made multiple donations to the University, including $6 million in 2006 to redesign and rename the USC Catholic Community Center, and another $25 million in 2015 to endow the USC Tina and Rick Caruso Department of Otolaryngology. 

All four of Caruso’s children attended USC.

USC declined to comment on Caruso’s candidacy. 

Caruso first expressed interest in running for mayor in 2010. A 2019 New York Times profile of Caruso was the first to mention his interest for running in the 2022 election cycle.

Primary elections for L.A. mayor will be held June 7.

This is a developing story and will be updated.