MAPPING CALIFORNIA VOTERS

Candidates and their managers speak a new political language today, the language of mass advertising and marketing. It is a natural result of the fact that political candidates deliver their messages through the same media as the advertiser.

Besides looking at a California of 58 counties, each with its own history, political technicians see a state divided into 11 television marketing areas, “areas of dominant influence,” or ADIs, as they are called by Arbitron, the broadcast rating service.

As the map of these marketing areas shows, these are multi-county units, not bound by history but by the happenstance of being served by certain television stations. Orange County, for example, is part of the Los Angeles ADI because it is served by Los Angeles television stations.

The registered voters of these areas are increasingly described in new language that refers to neighborhoods in such terms as “Blue Blood Estates”(rich suburbanite) and “Shotguns & Pickups,” (blue-collar workers who like the outdoors). That system of demographic classification, called PRIZM, was developed in 1978 by the Claritas Corp. and is used by the marketing departments of many companies throughout the nation, including the Los Angeles Times. Similar systems have been developed by other firms. In all of them, neighborhoods with similar characteristics are grouped under the classifications by computer-aided analysis of Census Bureau material.

Ted Leibman of The Times marketing department prepared PRIZM analyses of the state. Prof. Bruce Cain of Caltech and his staff combined past election results and voter registration patterns with the PRIZM demographic analysis.

A glossary was compiled to define the PRIZM classifications that describe California neighborhoods. A GLOSSARY OF PRIZM CATEGORIES

Furs & Station Wagons--Well-educated, affluent, mobile professionals with teen-age children living in suburbs far from city life.

Blue Blood Estates--Wealthiest neighborhoods, populated by top managers, professionals and heirs to “old money” accustomed to privilege and luxury.

Money & Brains--Wealthy singles and many rich childless couples often living in swank town houses, apartments and condos.

God’s Country--Well-educated people who decided to move from metropolitan to scenic mountain and coastal areas.

New Homesteaders--Less affluent but still prosperous versions of God’s Country.

Bohemian Mix--Integrated singles neighborhoods with generally well-fixed residents, heavy with academics, actors, writers and artists.

Urban Gold Coast--Wealthy, employed and generally childless people living in places such as Bunker Hills Towers in downtown Los Angeles.

Black Enterprise--Educated, employed, predominantly black areas, with incomes well above average, except for some poorer single-parent pockets.

Towns & Gowns--College town residents outside metropolitan areas.

New Beginnings--”Archie Bunker’s children” grown up to be largely technical and lower-echelon white-collar workers.

Young Influentials--Young metropolitan area singles or couples with money and no children.

Pools & Patios--Well-educated suburbanites tending to be empty-nesters. Prosperous but less affluent than Furs & Station Wagons.

New Melting Pot--Immigrant urban areas, more affluent than Hispanic Mix, often with Latinos, Asians and Middle Eastern families.

Two More Rungs--Urban dwellers, often professionals, often foreign-born, climbing up the economic ladder.

Shotguns & Pickups--Small-town, outdoors-loving, blue-collar workers with school-age children.

Coalburg & Corntown--Residents of small cities with many blue-collars, surrounded by rich farmland.

Agribusiness--Prosperous farming or lumbering areas marred by rural poverty.

Emergent Minorities--Mostly black, but also Latino, neighborhoods of minorities struggling up from poverty.

Single City Blues--Urban, downscale, singles areas, often near a college, giving neighborhood bohemian air.

Young Suburbia--One of the biggest groups. White-collar families with money and young children.

Blue Chip Blues--High school-educated, blue-collar workers, married with children.

Back-Country Folks--Predominantly white small-town rural population.

Sharecroppers--Old, poor farming areas now attracting light industry.

Levittown, USA--Aging empty-nesters still living in tract homes they bought in the 1950s. (Named for a famous post-World War II housing tract.)

Rank & File--Older blue-collar empty-nesters, with high degree of manufacturing jobs.

Gray Power--Upscale senior citizens, who have pulled up roots and moved among fellow retirees.

Golden Ponds--Retirees, less affluent than “Gray Power,” living in rural areas.

Grain Belt--Resembles Agribusiness but has more working farm owners.

Hispanic Mix--Urban, densely populated bilingual Latino neighborhoods with large families of small children and a high percentage of new immigrants.

Public Assistance--The poorest areas, with high unemployment and welfare levels.

Downtown Dixie Style--Poor areas with whites, blacks and Latinos, mostly native-born. THE STATE (1) EUREKA

Voter Registration: Democrat 55% Republican 33%

New Homesteaders are largest demographic group in this lightly populated far northern timber and fishing area. Unemployment in those industries, plus large numbers of Towns & Gowns from Humboldt State University and coastal environmental opposition to offshore oil drilling make for good Democratic prospects in an area that Bradley carried in 1982.

(2) CHICO-REDDING

Voter Registration: Democrat 48% Republican 41%

Potentially liberal Chico State University Town & Gowners are outnumbered in this rural Northern California territory by incoming New Homesteaders and Golden Ponders who, with Agribusiness, make this good GOP country, as the 1982 vote showed in an ADI where Republicans and declined to state slightly outnumber Democrats.

(3) SACRAMENTO/STOCKTON

Voter Registration: Democrat 54% Republican 35%

This spawling ADI, including old Mother Lode Sierra foothill mining towns filling up with fleeing city dwellers and the fast growing capital metropolis of Sacramento, contains a varied population mix led by New Homesteaders, followed in numbers by Blue Chip Blues, Agribusiness, New Beginnings and Young Influentials. It is solidly Democratic in registration, but its 13 counties tend to desert statewide Democratic candidates.

(4) SAN FRANCISCO

Voter Registration: Democrat 58% Republican 31%

Young Influentials, Young Suburbia, Pools & Patios, New Beginnings and Blue Chip Blues, in that order, are the top classifications in this ADI, reflecting the affluent suburbs of Marin, San Mateo and parts of Contra Costa counties and San Francisco’s upscale neighborhoods, in addition to working class areas. Affluence is usually equated with Republican voting but the Bay Area is unique. The Democratic vote has increased since 1972 in prosperous San Mateo, affluent, once-Republican Marin and increasingly suburbanized Sonoma, which Republican statewide candidates used to carry. All that, combined with the traditionally working class Democrats of Alameda County make this a Democratic stronghold.

(5) FRESNO-VISALIA

Voter Registration: Democrat 55% Republican 37%

Agribusiness is the top group in the farming Central Valley although New Homesteaders have been filling in the foothills and small valley towns and Young Suburbia is moving into developments springing up outside the cities. But despite change, a pattern of Democratic disloyalty has remained about the same from 1960 to 1984 in an area that offers hope to the Republicans this year. Democrats lead in registration but their statewide candidates have polled well below the registration figure.

(6) SALINAS-MONTEREY

Voter Registration: Democrat 53% Republican 34%

Fast-growing subdivisions in Monterey County and the Town & Gowns of the University of California at Santa Cruz, plus an environmental movement, have made a prime Democratic hunting ground of an area that--with the exception of Monterey’s waterfront and old Cannery Row--was once rural and Republican. New Beginnings folks are the top category, followed by New Homesteaders, God’s Country, Agribusiness and Shotguns & Pickups. Since 1974, the average vote of statewide Democratic candidates has been greater than that of GOP candidates.

(7) BAKERSFIELD

Voter Registration: Democrat 51% Republican 41%

This area has been famous for huge farms, gritty oil workers, country and western singers such as Merle Haggard and Buck Owens--and conservative voting. Bradley lost to Deukmejian 57% to 43%. in 1982. The oil business is in trouble, some farmland is giving way to developments, and Young Suburbia and Golden Ponds are the top demographic categories. But Democrats, despite a 51% to 41% registration lead, continue to have difficulty holding the loyalty of voters.

(8) SANTA BARBARA, SANTA MARIA, SAN LUIS OBISPO

Voter Registration: Democrat 43% Republican 44%

Blue Chip Blues, God’s Country and New Beginnings are the top demographic groups in an area that was once mostly rural. It has been a loss for the Republicans. From 1960 to 1972, Republican statewide candidates, on the average, carried Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties. But the area’s rural beauty and calm have drawn more people, and statewide Democratic candidates, generally have carried Santa Barabara County from 1974 to 1984. The two parties have been just about even in San Luis Obispo County.

(9) LOS ANGELES

Voter Registration: Democrat 50% Republican 40%

See Accompanying Map.

(10) SAN DIEGO

Voter Registration: Democrat 40% Republican 46%

The demographic mix of San Diego and the lightly populated area to the east resembles the San Francisco Bay Area, with the exception of having more New Homesteaders and Levittown USA. But, showing the influence of regional and cultural forces, Republicans lead in registration in the ADI 45% to 40% and, since 1960, the area has tended to be a big plus for GOP statewide candidates.

(11) PALM SPRINGS

Voter Registration: Democrat 46% Republican 44%

This is conservative retirement country, with Gray Power, New Homesteaders, Pools & Patios, and Golden Ponds the leading categories, and Sharecroppers 5th. Registration is about even, but Bradley lost here 54% to 36%.

LOS ANGELES & ORANGE COUNTIES (1) NORTHEASTERN SAN FERNANDO VALLEY

This area, diverse as the Valley itself, is no pushover for Democrats despite their registration edge. Blue Chip Blues, Hispanic Mix and Emergent Minorities in the San Fernando and Pacoima areas make up a substantial part of the population. Republican-oriented Furs & Station Wagons, along with upscale New Beginnings, Levittown USA and Young Suburbia predominate in the hills and in some flatland areas.

(2) SUNLAND / TUJUNGA

Republicans are strong in this traditionally conservative San Fernando Valley area dominated by New Beginnings, Pools & Patios and Levittown USA neighborhood types, which in Los Angeles and Orange counties tended to vote for Deukmejian in 1982.

(3) SOUTHEAST SAN FERNANDO VALLEY

Substantial numbers of Democrat-oriented Single City Blues and Two More Rungs make this a swing area. New Beginnings are the biggest single group in an area stretching from the Studio City flatlands through North Hollywood and Burbank.

(4) CENTRAL SAN FERNANDO VALLEY

This Valley area stretches from the affluent hillside subdivisions of Encino and Sherman Oaks north to the Levittown USA neighborhoods of Northridge and Reseda with Young Influentials as its largest neighhborhood group, followed by Two More Rungs, Young Influentials, Blue Blood Estates and Pools & Patios. A substantial Jewish population, historically more Democratic, makes it a land of opportunity for Democrats.

(5) CHATSWORTH / WEST SAN FERNANDO VALLEY

Democratic and Republican registration are just about even, but the area, dominated by affluent Young Influentials, Furs & Station Wagons, Two More Rungs, Blue Blood Estates and Pools & Patios, is considered prime for GOP candidates.

(6) GLENDALE AREA

Single City Blues is coming to be the biggest group in the old Eagle Rock working-class neighborhoods, and the growing number of immigrants provide a substantial number of New Melting Pot areas. But La Crescenta and Glendale, with their GOP tradition, make more affluent New Beginnings, Two More Rungs, Pools & Patios and Furs & Station Wagons the dominant types in the area and the GOP usually the winning party.

(7) PASADENA AREA

Political managers have to aim carefully in these precincts. Democrats need not apply in some areas, such as La Canada and Flintridge, where Furs & Station Wagons and Blue Blood Estates dominate. The same is true in parts of Pasadena. But other areas are prime for Democrats. Pasadena also has a substantial black and Latino population, and Altadena, with a large black population, is a mixture of affluent and those on the lower end of the scale.

(8) ARCADIA / MONROVIA

A solidly Republican area in which Pools & Patios, New Beginnings and Furs & Station Wagons neighborhoods make up the majority of this section of the San Gabriel Valley.

(9) COVINA AREA

Democrats hold a narrow registration edge, but it was not enough to prevent Deukmejian from a substantial victory here four years ago. Blue Chip Blues are the largest neighborhood group followed by New Beginnings in area that includes Glendora, Baldwin Park and Asuza. A large Hispanic Mix segment is evidence of the substantial Latino presence in the San Gabriel Valley.

(10) POMONA AREA

An area with a Republican history, but with enough population change and diversity to make parts of it Democratic targets. New Beginnings are the largest group in an area that includes college towns Claremont and La Verne. The next largest group is Hispanic Mix, reflecting eastward movement of upwardly mobile Latinos toward Diamond Bar. Furs & Station Wagons and Pools & Patios, both tending toward voting Republican, are the next category, followed by Blue Chip Blues.

(11) LA PUENTE AREA

This is an area that tends to forget its Democratic registration on Election Day. Blue Chip Blues are the largest group in La Puente, Young Suburbia in Rowland Heights and Walnut and Furs & Station Wagons in Hacienda Heights.

(12) EL MONTE This working class San Gabriel Valley area is 63% Hispanic Mix, and Democratic candidates are winners (13) SAN GABRIEL AREA

This upscale affluent area, including South Pasadena, Monterey Park and Alhambra, is becoming more ethnically diverse as Asians join Latinos and Anglos. New Beginnings, Pools & Patios, Single City Blues, Young Influentials and Hispanic Mix are the top groups. Deukmejian was this area’s choice for governor four years ago.

(14) NORTHEAST LOS ANGELES

Hispanic Mix is the majority in an area that extends from Dodger Stadium into East Los Angeles, followed by Single City Blues and New Beginnings, the result of gentrifying yuppies moving into old neighborhoods. It adds up to a strong Democratic area.

(15) EAST LOS ANGELES The barrio from downtown Los Angeles to beyond the Long Beach Freeway is 95% Hispanic Mix and when Bradley ran for governor four years ago, 85% of its voters supported him. Solidly Democratic.

(16) CENTRAL LOS ANGELES

A solidly Democratic area, with low turnout. Hispanic Mix is the biggest group by far in downtown and in the overcrowded apartments on its fringes. Public Assistance is the second-largest group and, despite the efforts of the City Redevelopment Agency to upgrade downtown, Urban Gold Coast constitutes just 1% of the residents.

(17) WILSHIRE AREA

A strong Democratic area extending from Pico Boulevard to Beverly Boulevard and from Vermont Avenue to La Cienega Boulevard. New Melting Pot, Single City Blues, Hispanic Mix, Gray Power, Emergent Minorities and Black Enterprise, in that order, are the top groups.

(18) HOLLYWOOD AREA

This area, extending from Melrose Avenue north over the crest of the Santa Monica Mountains and from Vermont Avenue to Robertson Boulevard has New Melting Pot, Single City Blues and Hispanic Mix as its top groups. The next group, Bohemian Mix, reflects Hollywood, and affluent Money and Brains and Young Influentials pick up the hillside crowd, but it still makes for solid Democratic country.

(19) BEVERLY HILLS / WESTWOOD

Part of the loyally Democratic Westside, these neighborhoods, extending from the canyons above Beverly Hills down through Century City, are dominated by Two More Rungs, Money & Brains, Blue Blood Estates, Young Influentials and Bohemian Mix.

(20) PACIFIC PALISADES

BRENTWOOD

Not all the Westside is firmly Democratic. Blue Blood Estates constitute about three-quarters of this area, followed by Money & Brains. Registration is just about evenly split between Democrats and Republicans, and Bradley led Deukmejian by a fairly small margin in 1982. And that was before his Pacific Palisades oil drilling decision.

(21) SANTA MONICA

MARINA DEL REY

Another Westside Democratic enclave. Bohemian Mix, Young Influentials, New Melting Pot and New Beginnings are most of the neighborhood types in an area that extends from the beach to the San Diego Freeway.

(22) AIRPORT SOUTH TO ORANGE COUNTY

Democratic strength dwindles in the South Bay, where registration is about even, Republicans run strong and Bradley, despite a strong showing in many California coastal areas, lost to Deukmejian 58% to 42% in 1982. Young Influentials, New Beginnings, Money & Brains and Pools & Patios make up most of the population.

(23) ADAMS

Extending from near Watts to affluent Windsor Hills, this area contains some of the city’s richest and poorest blacks. But the overwhelming Democratic registration and vote is evidence of black loyalty to the Democratic Party, despite voters’ economic status. Public Assistance, Downtown Dixie Style, Emerging Minorities, Black Enterprise, Hispanic Mix, Money & Brains, Bohemian Mix and New Melting Pot, in that order, are the major neighborhood groups.

(24) INGLEWOOD / GARDENA

A diverse, ethnically changing area, this part of the basin remains in the Democratic column. The ranking of neighborhood types--New Beginnings, Emergent Minorities, Downtown Dixie Style, New Melting Pot, Hispanic Mix, Young Influentials and Pools & Patios--testify to the diversity.

(25) SOUTHEAST AREA

From the Harbor Freeway to the Long Beach Freeway, and from Imperial Highway to Washington Avenue are found the poor and working-class communities of the Southeast, once the heavy-industry heartland of Los Angeles. The auto and tire plants have gone, and Hispanic Mix is the largest group by far, moving into what were once Anglo and black communities. Democrats are firmly in control.

(26)COMPTON

Emergent Minorities, Downtown Dixie Style, Hispanic Mix, Public Assistance and Black Enterprise are the major neighborhood types in this Democratic section, centered on predominantly black Compton.

(27) WHITTIER / LA MIRADA

This is a good Republican target area. Blue Chip Blues constitute almost half the residents in an area with a large blue- collar population, many of them Republican-voting Democrats. The other leading neighborhood types--Pools & Patios, Single City Blues and New Beginnings--are affluent.

(28) DOWNEY AREA

Rank and File, New Beginnings, Pool & Patios, Blue Chip Blues and Hispanic Mix are the dominant neighborhood types in another area where Democrats lead in registration but must struggle for victory.

(29) PALOS VERDES

With Blue Blood Estates, New Beginnings, and Pools & Patios being the dominant groups, this is Republican country.

(30) SAN PEDRO / WILMINGTON

Democratic territory. Blue Chip Blues, Hispanic Mix and New Beginnings constitute the majority around the harbor, where affluent professional newcomers mix with longtime working- class families.

(31) LONG BEACH / LAKEWOOD

Deukmejian comes from this swing area where thousands of suburbanites have always been friendly to conservatives. Rank & File, New Beginnings, Pools & Patios, Blue Chip Blues and Hispanic Mix are the leading neighborhood types.

(32) NO. ORANGE COUNTY

Affluent to working-class neighborhoods are found in this area, which includes La Habra, Brea, Fullerton, Buena Park, Cypress, Anaheim, Stanton and Garden Grove. New Beginnings is the largest group, evidence of the suburban style of life, followed by Young Suburbia, Blue-Chip Blues, Pools & Patios and Furs & Station Wagons. Registration is about even, Democrats have to scramble for votes even in working-class areas, and it all adds up to a good area for the GOP to target.

(33) SANTA ANA / ORANGE

A Republican area where New Beginnings, Hispanic Mix, Single City Blues, Young Suburbia and Pools & Patios are the top groups.

(34) COASTAL

From Seal Beach to the San Diego County line are affluent types--New Beginnings, Young Suburbia, Furs & Station Wagons, Pools & Patios, Money & Brains, Gray Power, God’s Country and Blue Blood Estates. Mark it Republican.

(35) FOOTHILLS

Another Orange County Republican enclave with Furs & Station Wagons, Young Suburbia, Young Influentials, Money & Brains and Pools & Patios dominating in an area stretching from Mission Viejo to Yorba Linda.