Council candidate Madison feels ‘ambushed’ by questions about background
Embattled Laguna Beach City Council candidate Jon Madison appeared Tuesday night at a candidates’ forum amid accusations that the restaurateur falsified his age, educational and work histories on his campaign website.
Madison, a crowd favorite and the current leader in campaign contributions, made the rounds from table to table at Neighborhood Congregational Church as guests ate dinner, much as if he were at his downtown Laguna Beach restaurant, Madison Square & Garden Cafe.
“I am who I am,” Madison said in an interview after the forum. “I don’t think my educational history or my age or voter registration has anything to do with what I’m trying to do in this city.”
The Orange County Register reported Sunday that Madison may have lied on his campaign website about degrees he earned from two universities, in addition to apparent discrepancies in his birth date and work history.
Madison’s most recent voter registration information, for the 2013 general election, lists his birth date as Jan. 29, 1953, which would make him 61. Madison told the Coastline Pilot in an interview earlier this year that he was 57.
His campaign website says he was born in New York City, graduated from the Bronx High School of Science and went to Cornell University.
The website says he earned multiple degrees in plant physiology and horticulture, as well as in landscape architecture and urban planning.
Cornell officials told the Coastline Pilot on Tuesday that there was no record of Madison receiving any degree from the university.
Madison, who is involved with several philanthropic organizations, also claimed to have earned a degree from the UCLA School of Law, but university officials said there was no record of a man by that name having attended the school, according to the Register.
The state bar had no record of his law license, according to the report.
When Tuesday’s forum ended, a friend quickly ushered Madison to his car.
“This is my first rodeo, and I’m disappointed that the media are bringing me down,” Madison said, adding that he is confused about why the six other council candidates are not receiving similar media attention. “I feel like I’m being ambushed. Come to my restaurant, even when I’m not there, and ask people what they think of me. They’ll tell you who I am.”
Before the interview was over, Madison and his friend got in the car and drove away.
It is not the first time Madison has avoided answering questions about his elusive background.
According to the Register, the political newcomer ended an interview early when a reporter asked for Madison’s diplomas and degrees, including a bachelor’s of science in landscape architecture and horticulture from Cornell, a master’s of science in botany and horticulture and a doctorate in plant physiology and agriculture.
When a question was posed during the forum about urban gardening, Madison responded that he’s “totally into urban farming” and talked about 500 pounds of produce he grew in containers in the backyard of his Laguna Beach home last year.
He made no mention of any expertise in the field.