LOS ANGELES—Cooper Hefner yesterday launched an exploratory campaign to run as a Democrat for the California Senate in the state's 30th District, which includes much of the western and southern parts of Los Angeles County.
Cooper Hefner, the 28-year-old son of the late Playboy founder Hugh Hefner, told AVN that he has considered a post in politics for some time, but the timing for new leadership in office is right now.
"I am deeply concerned about my community and country,” Hefner said in an interview. “I believe it is essential for new leadership that is committed to public service and lifting up all Californians.”
Hefner held on to the chief creative officer position at Playboy Enterprises Inc. for several years after his father’s death and sale of the company in the last few years of the past decade. After he departed Playboy, he ripped the company for its decision to cut nudity in its U.S. magazine. Nudity was later restored to the magazine when he came back to the adult publisher.
Cooper Hefner said that his pivot to politics is natural and comes on the heels of other public service he's been involved in.
“Whether that's serving as an airman in the U.S. Air Force Reserve or working with various non-governmental groups to develop and implement strategies designed to support the public good, I have been walking down this road for a long time," he said.
Cooper Hefner’s run for the 30th District will have a policy platform that includes dealing with the climate crisis and energy sustainability, addressing the homelessness crisis and delivering police reform. The district represents nearly 1 million residents from Century City to South Los Angeles, including Culver City, Cheviot Hills, the Crenshaw District, USC, Downtown Los Angeles and a portion of Inglewood.
The incumbent in the district, state Sen. Holly Mitchell, is running for the Los Angeles County Board of Supervisors in November. If Mitchell wins her election, Gov. Gavin Newsom will call for a special election in early 2021. If Mitchell loses that race, then the election cycle will move into 2022.
Cooper Hefner told AVN that he’s aiming for wholesale change if all goes as planned. He said that it’s particularly needed during the pandemic.
"Our current public servants have too often fallen short on delivering well defined and comprehensive solutions for problems facing Los Angeles and California as a whole,” he said. “My biggest concern right now is COVID-19 and how it will exacerbate the issues our communities already face.
“Issues like affordable housing, homelessness, and wealth inequality, require local and federal government to work immediately to provide a comprehensive plan for mortgage and rent relief, income replacement and healthcare strategies that are sustainable,” he said.
“This is the crisis of our lifetimes, but I am also dedicated to addressing long term issues like climate change and inequality. Effective action is needed now and well into the future."
Growing up in the Playboy Mansion in Westwood, Calif., Cooper Hefner is the son of Hugh Hefner and Kimberley Conrad, the Playboy founder's second wife.
Hugh Hefner founded Playboy in Chicago in 1953 and died in September 2017.
The Hefner family’s trust sold its last shares in the company in 2018, and the company is now wholly operated by Icon Acquisition Holdings Inc.
Cooper Hefner is married to actress Scarlett Byrne. The pair are expecting a baby next month.
Check out Cooper Hefner’s campaign page here.
