Джоан Милке Флорес: Американский политик и член городского совета Лос-Анджелеса

American politician (1936–2020)

Joan Milke Flores (May 9, 1936 – December 19, 2020) was an American politician, who served as a member of the Los Angeles City Council for the 15th district from 1981 to 1993. A member of the Republican Party in a largely Democratic body, she also served as the first freshman president pro tem in half a century. Milke Flores ran for California Secretary of State in 1990 and for a U. S. House seat in 1992.

Joan Milke was born May 9, 1936, in Sheboygan Falls, Wisconsin, into a family with German and French ancestry. Her father, a welder and machinist, or, as she described him, a jack of all trades, brought the family to Los Angeles when Joan was eight, and they settled in Highland Park, where Joan attended Luther Burbank Junior High School and Franklin High School. Joan had three sisters and a brother.

Milke worked part time in high school and, after she graduated, she went to work in the City Hall in the stenographer's pool. She then became a clerk in the office of District 15 City Councilman John S. Gibson Jr. and worked her way up to become his chief deputy, a job she held for thirteen years. She retained her home in Highland Park until approximately 1979, when she moved into Gibson's district. Flores helped manage Gibson's final election campaign "and ran the office during his final term, when Gibson's health was suffering." It was said that Flores's support in Watts, coupled with endorsements from Gibson and from longtime County Supervisor Kenneth Hahn, was a deciding factor in the race. Though the balloting was nonpartisan, Flores was a Republican and Greenwood a Democrat. In the 1985 race, Flores was reelected without opposition on the ballot, although she did face a write in campaign by Joe E. Collins Jr., a 21 year old computer operator, who said that Flores had "not gone far enough to address tough toxic waste issues and to aid troubled areas like Wilmington and Watts." In 1993, she was defeated in a close race for reelection to the council by Rudy Svorinich.

In the first term of her City Council career, Flores was elected by her colleagues to be president pro tem, a post third in line of importance to the Los Angeles mayor. She was "the first freshman in more than 50 years to be chosen for a council leadership position, and many supporters say the representative from District 15 is bound to go higher." She gained reputation "as one of the powerful and steadying forces on the 15 member council."

Republican Flores ran for California Secretary of State in 1990, losing to March Fong Eu, a Democrat. Flores drew attention when, "Trailing badly and eager to begin her television advertising campaign," she borrowed $275,000 from Ernest (Tom) Papadakis, a "wealthy friend and longtime political supporter" who owned a chain of liquor stores. Eu "accused Flores of deliberately concealing the loan by filing her financial disclosure statement several days late." Flores denied the charge. She was defeated by Eu, 51.7% to 41.6%.

Flores ran in 1992 as the Republican candidate for the U. S. representative from California to represent the 36th district. However, she lost to Jane Harman.

Flores began a lobbying firm that did business at the Los Angeles City Hall and at the State Capitol in Sacramento. In 1995 she was appointed to the Californias Border Environmental Cooperation Committee, an alliance between California and Baja California "to address common environmental issues in the border region." She resided in Penn Valley, California, before her death.

Milke was married for ten years to Sam Flores, a director with the Police Protective League. They had one daughter, Valerie, and were later divorced.