Nestor Valencia hopes to reform the once-corrupt institution that he helped bring down.

Valencia, 44, had previously lost elections in 2007 and 2009.  The losses, however, didn’t discourage Valencia, but prompted him to take matters into his own hands when he founded the Bell Resident Club in 2007.  

“The Bell Resident Club was founded because there was no other organization where we could be active citizens,” said Valencia, “It had a mission of volunteerism and a mission of civic responsibility that led to us having meetings to inform and educate our citizens.” 

These meetings brought out a lot of questions from the public and from Valencia himself.  Valencia grew suspicious of City Council after being denied city documents, including the salary figures for councilmembers in 2008.  Still, Valencia found little help from the city officials until the Los Angeles Times started investigating.   

“I can’t take credit for bringing these people down, although the media likes to say that,” said Valencia.

Valencia has lived in Bell his entire life and attended San Jose State University and now works as a health care administrator. He has been actively involved in the Los Angeles Unified School District and both of his daughters attend school in Bell. 

Valencia is running on the “Justice For Bell” slate alongside his friends, Mario Rivas and Miguel Sanchez.  His main focus is restoring trust in the citizens of Bell and encouraging their involvement in how the city is run.  

“I want government transparency,” said Valencia. “Specifically, I want open meetings and I want the minutes accessible online for anyone to see.”

To restore the public’s trust, Valencia wants to bring in outside law enforcement to Bell.  He speaks out against the Bell Association to Stop the Abuse (BASTA), which heavily promotes the Bell Police Department.  Valencia is suspicious that police officers may still be receiving inflated salaries.  He says that outside law enforcement is necessary to really regain the trust of residents. 

Valencia hopes that the upcoming elections will bring peace and encouragement to the citizens of Bell.  “It’s going to take a lot of time and hard work,” said Valencia, “but I believe that the public’s trust in the city council can rebuild and be stronger than ever.”