Questions unanswered in Jason Lee's run for south Stockton council seat

If you’ve heard of Jason Lee, it’s likely from his colorful roles on the VH1 shows Love and Hip Hop and Wild ‘n Out, or from his celebrity gossip site Hollywood Unlocked.

But after more than a decade in entertainment — reportedly befriending Cardi B, working for Kanye West and interviewing stars such as Laverne Cox — Lee has joined the race for Stockton City Council.

The Central Valley city of 320,000 is where Lee grew up.

In this week's primary election, Lee came away with the highest percentage of votes — meaning he'll face off against current council member Kimberly Warmsley in November.

But questions about Lee's nonprofit, his residency and his business remain murky.

Perhaps the biggest outstanding question about Lee’s campaign is why a businessman reportedly worth millions believes running for city council is his best shot at effecting change in Stockton.

Through a public relations representative, Lee declined multiple opportunities beginning Feb. 6 to speak with The Record about his campaign.

$1 million denied

Lee announced his run for the District 6 council seat in December, six months after current council members denied his nonprofit Hollywood Cares a $1 million grant in unanimous vote in May.

At the time, City Manager Harry Black said the nonprofit’s plan for the money was too vague. Hollywood Cares also had a roughly $3,000 unpaid debt to the city from a previous project, Black said.

Lee says he paid the bill.

He later criticized Black on the campaign trail.

“The city manager ran the city into the ground,” Lee told voters at a candidates’ forum last month.

If elected, California’s conflict-of-interest laws would prevent Lee from voting on funding to his nonprofit, and from taking part in any other council decision that would benefit him financially.

In an email Tuesday, Lee's spokesman said Lee was unable to respond to a question about whether being denied the city money factored into his decision to run.

Lee's residency has also been called into question by some.

Does Lee live in Stockton?

Roughly a month before the deadline to officially declare his candidacy, Lee said on Facebook he’d been a Stockton resident “for the last few years.”

Candidates must live in Stockton for at least 30 days in the run-up to the deadline.

In campaign finance forms, Lee listed his city of residence as Encino. His spokesman said he was unable to respond to an emailed question about how much time he’d spend in Stockton if elected.

Millionaire credentials

On the campaign trail, Lee has highlighted his credentials as – in his telling – a self-made millionaire.

In Forbes magazine, and multiple times during the campaign, he’s said his business is worth $50 million.

While entertainment and business outlets have spotlighted Lee’s success, his net worth hasn’t been independently confirmed.

In recent weeks, Lee announced he is stepping down as Hollywood Unlocked’s CEO.

The entertainer has also been dogged by lawsuits. Lee has faced 16 suits over alleged copyright infringement since 2018, Stocktonia reported.

Lee was unable to respond to an emailed request to comment on the reported lawsuits, his spokesman said.

Beating the odds

Amid these unanswered questions, Lee has also offered inspiration to voters.

Born in 1977 at San Joaquin General Hospital, Lee grew up on Sutter Street, according to his autobiography, and also on Scribner Street in southeast Stockton, he said on the campaign trail.

Lee endured separation from his mother, who he says struggled with addiction, and lived in foster homes as well as Mary Graham Children’s Shelter and The Children’s Home of Stockton, according to his book.

Neither the shelter nor the Children’s Home could disclose records of his stay, or specific dates, staff said.

Around age 14, Lee left foster care and lived with his mother on Acacia Street in downtown Stockton, he wrote. As a teenager he endured being shot as well as losing his brother in a shooting, he wrote.

The first shooting likely unfolded in June 1994 at a car wash at Ninth Street and Airport Way. Shots rang out and hit a 16-year-old in the leg, The Record reported at the time.

The targets were believed to be the teen, a man in his 30s and a 27-year-old who was uninjured, The Record reported.

The 27-year-old is Lee’s brother, and was a gang member, according to his book.

The June 1994 shooting matches Lee's description in his book of being shot as a teenager. "I was glad that I was going to be able to walk and that I wasn’t going to die,” he said.

In 1997, Lee lost his brother Rodney Townsend amid a shooting at a downtown Stockton bowling alley.

“I was grief-stricken and I was angry,” Lee wrote. “It was like I flipped a switch and became a lot colder to people and a lot less trusting.”

Union activism

Over the years, Lee went on to work jobs at Stagg High School and the Stanislaus County Probation Department, he wrote.

Stanislaus County wouldn’t confirm his time there without authorization, a staffer said.

In the early 2000s, Lee started working for a healthcare workers’ union before leaving around the time Service Employees’ International Union took it over in 2009.

Lee then worked for a competing union, a spokesman for the organization said, well as the California Nurses’ Association, according to Lee’s book.

Friends praised Lee’s organizing efforts at the time. “I believed in you Jason,” one person wrote on a Facebook post about his union work.

Three healthcare workers who said they knew Lee didn't respond to requests to comment about his campaign.

The spokesman for the competing union said he couldn’t find anyone at the organization that would speak about Lee’s time there.

Throughout his career, Lee promoted events and built contacts in Los Angeles, he wrote.

At some point, boxer Floyd Mayweather took Lee under his wing and gave him $42 million to help start Hollywood Unlocked, Lee wrote.

Why now?

While Lee’s personal story is powerful, his campaign has often focused more on attacking his opponents.

Last month, he claimed “all the white developers on the north side” paid Kimberly Warmsley, the current District 6 council member, to be at the forum.

At the same time, Lee proposed bringing developers from Los Angeles, New York and the United Arab Emirates to Stockton, and giving Hollywood businesses tax credits to do business in the city.

Most of Lee’s campaign donations came from himself and donors in Southern California, Stocktonia reported.

Beyond investment, Lee’s proposals include creating neighborhood councils; supporting community organizations; and selling the Adventist Health arena downtown.

A passage in Lee's book may provide a clue about the contentious nature of his campaign.

"One of the most disappointing parts about my industry is that a lot of the conflict I've created with my business has actually been great for my business," he wrote.

"There's not enough material in a day for the amount of scandal and negativity people want to consume, but this is an indictment on the world that we live in, not on me."

This article originally appeared on The Record: Questions remain in Jason Lee's campaign for Stockton city council