Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa’s bid to win more control over the Los Angeles Unified School District cleared a major hurdle on Monday when the state Senate approved enabling legislation over the objections of School District officials.

The Senate voted 23-14 to approve AB 1381, carried by Senate Majority Leader Gloria Romero, D-Los Angeles, that would create a council of mayors to run the Los Angeles Unified School District and give more power to the school superintendent. That would reduce the power of the School Board.

“Today’s historic vote by the California state Senate shows that support for fundamentally changing the Los Angeles School District is broad, bipartisan and strong,” Villaraigosa said at a press conference following Monday’s vote.

The bill now goes to the state Assembly, where it must pass before the current legislative session is set to end at midnight Thursday. Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger has indicated he is likely to sign the bill.

The Senate vote marks a major milestone for the controversial bill to overhaul the governance of the state’s largest school district, which has more than 730,000 students. Villaraigosa campaigned for mayor on a platform of asserting mayoral control over the troubled district, saying the district was incapable or unwilling to tackle problems of high dropout rates and lower-than-average test scores.

But Villaraigosa’s proposal is opposed by the LAUSD and the powerful California Teachers Association.

Superintendent Roy Romer blamed political pressure for forcing through what he termed a bad bill that blurs lines of accountability.

“I have been in politics my whole life and I know what a corner these legislators are being backed into by the party leadership,” Romer said.