Long Beach mayor says he won’t seek third term
Long Beach Mayor Bob Foster announced Tuesday that he would not seek a third term, leaving the race to new candidates vying to lead the city.
“While I love the office I hold and feel no small sense of obligation to continue, I also need time to pursue private opportunities,” Foster wrote in a statement emailed to the Los Angeles Times. “I would like to have real time to write, study and, most importantly, spend time with my family.”
In his statement, Foster touted “tremendous progress” in Long Beach over the past seven years, citing “the lowest crime rates in a generation” and a budget surplus beginning in October.
He added that his work was not done, with roughly a year left in his mayoral term.
Four people have already filed papers to run in the Long Beach race. In a poll recently commissioned by his campaign committee, Foster was the top pick among likely voters, the Long Beach Press-Telegram reported last week. One of the current candidates was not included in that poll.
Foster was first elected in 2006 and reelected in 2010.
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