Democrats Target Frizzelle as Vulnerable on Apartheid Issue

Democratic strategists, saying Assemblyman Nolan Frizzelle’s defense of the South African apartheid system has made him vulnerable, have decided to make a major effort next year to topple the Orange County Republican.

“He’s the only elected official in the United States who defends apartheid,” Bill Cavala, a key political strategist for Assembly Democrats, said, adding, “We can beat him.”

But the three-term Huntington Beach lawmaker, noting that he has a safe Republican district, said Thursday he is not worried. If anything, Frizzelle predicted, his efforts to clear up what he called widespread public misconceptions about apartheid will help him.

“If they want to waste their money coming after me, then fine,” Frizzelle said. “I’ll be able to raise more money.”

Frizzelle’s district was added to the Democrats’ “target list” last week after he was interviewed for a story on an opinion poll about apartheid conducted for the Orange County Register. Following that, Register columnist Bob Emmers criticized Frizzelle, saying the lawmaker’s comments had left him “flabbergasted . . . outraged . . . stunned and speechless.”

The interview quoted Frizzelle as saying:

“Apartheid is the device by which the white government in South Africa seeks to gradually educate the black people so they can govern themselves adequately. If the people understand that is what apartheid is, rather than the systematic discrimination that has been painted to them, then they might have a different attitude.”

The newspaper further quoted Frizzelle as saying that “blacks in South Africa have been generally warlike for several generations and quite incapable of governing themselves.”

Frizzelle said Thursday that his quotes had been taken out of context. He said the Register, and particularly Emmers, tried deliberately to distort his viewpoint.

“I tried to emphasize that in no way do I discriminate nor do I approve of discrimination. But that doesn’t mean that there isn’t room for a lot of variations in one part of the world or the other, depending on where they are in the evolutionary process,” Frizzelle said.

“I tried to point out that the slaves were freed in South Africa in the early 1830s, long before the Civil War was fought in this country,” he added.

Possible Uphill Battle

Although Democrats believe they have found a key issue to use against Frizzelle, they may face an uphill battle in trying to defeat him.

Unlike five other Republican-held Assembly seats in districts eyed by Democrats, for example, Frizzelle’s district has a heavy Republican registration and a strong conservative tradition. Republicans outnumber Democrats by nearly 32,000 among registered voters in the district that includes all of Fountain Valley, most of Irvine and parts of Huntington Beach, Costa Mesa, Newport Beach, Tustin, Santa Ana and Westminster.

As of last week, more than 53% of the district voters listed themselves as Republicans while only 40.1% were Democrats, according to Orange County Registrar of Voters Al Olson.

Nevertheless, Democratic strategists think that Frizzelle’s defense of apartheid will spark enough outrage to give them a chance.

“Those people may be conservative, but they don’t want to vote for a bigot,” explained Cavala. “Now, who’s going to give him money?”

A generously financed, well-orchestrated campaign might succeed, agreed Orange County Democratic Chairman Bruce Sumner. Frizzelle’s district might turn out to be “more moderate than you would think,” with a multitude of younger voters and academics at UC Irvine, he said.

No Candidate Yet

So far, the strategists don’t have a candidate in mind. But Cavala said he is confident that a conservative Democrat with a clean image, even an unknown, has a chance. He predicted that contributors offended by Frizzelle’s views on apartheid--both in and out of Orange County--would donate between $500,000 to $700,000 for a credible campaign to defeat him.

While Frizzelle said he doesn’t condone racial separation in general, the lawmaker said it plays a role in maintaining order in South Africa. Most violence in that country--some of which he asserted is Communist inspired--is perpetrated by blacks on other blacks, Frizzelle said.

“If the whites didn’t keep the blacks out of the white areas, the same rioting would be in the white areas,” he said.

Frizzelle added that Emmers has also been critical of other conservative political figures in Orange County including U.S. Reps. Robert K.Dornan (R-Garden Grove) and William E. Dannemeyer (R-Fullerton), and Newport Beach Assemblyman Gil Ferguson.

“I don’t think he likes conservatives too much,” the lawmaker added.

Frizzelle said he has received some outraged letters and telephone calls since his comments appeared. But he noted that the communications, in general, had been running 7 to 1 “in favor of my position.” The most critical letters came from persons who do not live in his district, Frizzelle added.

The 64-year-old lawmaker has a reputation in Sacramento for being outspoken. While he seldoms differs with Republican leaders on major issues, Frizzelle said he takes pride in not being afraid to express himself when he does disagree.

“I’m not marching in lock step with any faction,” he said recently.