Pratt Hoping to Turn Balky Start for Council Slot Into Beneficial Fall

Like many of Wes Pratt’s supporters, Michel Anderson believed that Pratt’s campaign for the San Diego City Council’s 4th District seat ended July 20 when he was disqualified for failing to secure enough signatures on his nominating petitions.

But--less than a week after Superior Court Judge Richard Huffman ordered that Pratt’s name be placed on the Sept. 15 primary ballot--Anderson has changed his mind.

“I was one who not only had nailed the coffin shut but had thrown some dirt on top of it,” said Anderson, a politically prominent businessman. “But I believe in the Resurrection. Wes is back, and he’s back strong.”

‘Jump-Starting the Campaign’

Hoping to regain the front-runner status that he enjoyed before being disqualified, Pratt has spent the past six days feverishly trying, in his own words, to “jump-start the campaign” that he put on hold last month after the city clerk ruled he had fallen short of the 200-signature requirement.

And, though Pratt concedes that the three-week hiatus left him with “a little rust to shake off,” many community leaders believe that he is showing signs of successfully rebounding from the temporary setback to again take his place among the race’s major figures.

Vernon Sukuma, executive director of the Black Federation, said, “If you’re worth your political salt, you’re supposed to turn these adversities into positives. That’s what he seems to be doing.”

Since Huffman’s ruling last Friday, Pratt and his backers have resumed their campaign with renewed vigor--walking precincts, meeting with community leaders, putting up yard signs, soliciting contributions--in an effort to communicate Pratt’s simple message: “I didn’t fight and win this legal battle just to lose the council campaign.”

Indeed, Pratt argues that his temporary disqualification--and, more importantly, his subsequent legal victory--could prove to be an asset by Election Day. In his decision, Huffman ruled that Pratt had “substantially complied with the intent” behind the nominating petitions, despite the fact that only 179 of the 238 signatures he submitted were validated as being those of registered 4th District voters by the registrar of voters.

“It demonstrates that Wes Pratt is the sort of person who can make the system work for him and for the district,” said Pratt, on leave from his position as administrative assistant to county Supervisor Leon Williams. “A lot of the people I’ve talked to during the last few days see it that way. I never would have planned it this way, but now I’m sort of glad it happened. I think I’ve gained strength from it.”

Marva Mohr-Davis, Pratt’s campaign coordinator, said Pratt’s list of volunteers has grown, giving the campaign “more people on board with more enthusiasm” than before his disqualification.

‘More Venom and Fight’

“This whole thing has put more venom and fight into the campaign,” Mohr-Davis said. “In a way, it’s just what was needed. It’s been a shot in the arm.”

Though that attitude may be partly wishful thinking on the part of the Pratt camp, other community activists share the sentiment.

The Rev. George Walker Smith, one of the black community’s leading political activists, said, “I thought before, and still do, that it’s going to be tough for Pratt to pick up the momentum he had. But Pratt’s out there working real hard and has surprised some folks who thought he was done for.

“Now, who knows? Sometimes, politics is the art of impossible solutions. Wes just might prove that.”

Shifting from his death-resurrection metaphor to a nautical theme, Anderson seconded Smith’s comments. “Thanks to Judge Huffman, the wind is back in Wes’ sails. The wind is strong, and Wes is beginning to tack. What this has done is given Wes a chance to prove that he’s a real fighter. He can use that to his advantage.”

His protracted battle to be reinstated on the ballot, however, left Pratt with some logistical problems to overcome.

Williams noted that the petition error diverted Pratt’s attention, forcing him to “fight just to get his name on the ballot when he should have been trying to get votes.”

Mohr-Davis pointed out that the three-week interruption compelled Pratt’s strategists to “collapse and compress the timetable” for fund raising, precinct walking and other nuts-and-bolts components of the campaign.

While Pratt dismisses those obstacles as minor ones, others predict that, after the initial euphoria of his legal victory dissipates, Pratt may find that the damage to his candidacy is more serious and lasting than he now believes--or hopes.

‘Long Time to Lose’

“Three weeks is a long time to lose,” said Marla Marshall, another leading 4th District candidate.

Another Southeast San Diego leader, who asked not to be identified, added: “He shot himself in the foot, and the wound doesn’t heal that quickly.”

Much of the skepticism about Pratt’s chances, however, comes from either other 4th District candidates or supporters of those candidates--a fact that gives Pratt considerable comfort.

“The only ones expressing doubts or who aren’t very excited about how things have worked out are my opponents,” Pratt said. “And they have a very good reason for not being excited. They’re worried, and they should be.”