Bradley for Mayor--Again

According to a recent Times poll, a solid majority of Los Angeles residents have a favorable impression of Mayor Tom Bradley, and approve his quest for reelection because they value his experience.

So do we. That is why we believe that, when they go to the polls April 11, the voters of Los Angeles should give the mayor an unprecedented fifth term.

Bradley’s two serious challengers--City Councilman Nate Holden and former County Supervisor Baxter Ward--are both politicians of conviction, but they lack the mayor’s steadiness and standing. Those qualities, which are hallmarks of Bradley’s long service to this community, have helped transform the racially divided, rather provincial city that first elected him into a diverse, cosmopolitan metropolis, whose economic productivity rivals that of nations.

The mayor is able to express and reconcile the often conflicting aspirations and anxieties of blacks, whites, Latinos and Asian Angelenos. For the city’s many new immigrants, his rise from modest beginnings in the face pervasive racial bigotry symbolizes the enduring promise of opportunity that drew them here. The esteem in which the 71-year-old Bradley is held by the community at large was demonstrated by The Times Poll, which found that 78% of the Latinos responding, 70% of the whites and 68% of the blacks had a favorable impression of the mayor.

That is the sort of political capital on which Bradley will have to draw if he is to deal with the complex and pressing problems whose aggregate impact also was dramatically expressed in the survey: 65% of those polled said they felt life in Los Angeles has changed for the worst over the past 15 years.

In fact, it sometimes seems that Los Angeles is choking on the consequences of its--and the mayor’s--success. Justifiably proud of his accomplishments and secure in his city’s regard, Bradley has been too slow to come to grips with the social and economic impact of explosive growth. He has engaged the critical problems of air pollution, waste disposal and efficient transit only under duress. He has been insufficiently attentive to the dangers presented by gang violence and other forms of drug-related crime. The city’s housing policy is an inexcusable shambles. Most recently, the mayor has displayed a disturbing insensitivity to the apparent conflicts of interest created by his private business dealings.

It is a daunting list of problems, but Los Angeles has the human and economic resources in which solutions can be found. Tom Bradley has the experience and influence to lead that search.