Reaction to Court Ruling on Endorsements Is Divided

Reaction Tuesday to the U.S. 9th Circuit Court of Appeals ruling allowing political party endorsements in nonpartisan elections was as wide as the gap between Democrats and Republicans.

The ruling was hailed by Democratic Party Chairman Edmund G. (Jerry) Brown Jr. as the “single most political reform needed today,” even as members of his own party said that increased party involvement in local races “smacks of bossism.”

Republicans agreed that the power of parties could be greatly enhanced, but some prominent GOP officials said that that may not be such a good thing. “If it’s not broken, why fix it,” said Republican Party Chairman Frank Visco, who acknowledged that the party will likely have to make some changes.

The appeals court decided Tuesday that the ban on partisan endorsements by political parties “illegally restricts political speech without being narrowly tailored to serve compelling state interests,” and thereby violates the 1st and 14th Amendments to the U.S. Constitution.

The court decision means there is a new force in local elections that could rank with political action committees, labor unions and other special interests in influencing who runs for office and how successful they may be at the polls, said party officials, consultants and elected officials interviewed Tuesday.

The decision does not turn nonpartisan races into partisan ones, but it does give the party greater involvement in local elections.

In the less visible local elections, such as judicial races, party endorsement could be among the most important factors in winning or losing at the ballot box, agreed Democratic political consultant Joe Cerrell and Republican consultant Allan Hoffenblum.

“Political party (affiliation) is still the biggest single factor in how people vote,” said Cerrell.

If nothing else, said San Diego County Supervisor Susan Golding, “It’s a way to inform the public about a candidate without spending any money.”

If parties make the fullest use of the new powers, they could potentially increase political participation at the grass-roots level and even enhance voter turnout, according to Republican and Democratic party officials alike.

Brown envisions the party “mobilizing the electorate” and acting as a “consensus-building organization” now that it is free to work intimately at the local level in city council, county supervisor, judicial and school board elections.

Golding, who chairs the Republican Local Elected Officials Committee, said, “In most communities there is no significant precinct organization because the party is not involved at the local level. . . . that hurts voter turnout.”

Both Brown and Visco said they are unsure how endorsements will be decided, and both hope to avoid a battle between the party’s state and county organizations.

The Democrats recently began making pre-primary endorsements in partisan races, by having a vote of party officials at a statewide convention. The Republicans have stayed away from pre-primary endorsements because they are too divisive, said Visco.

The results of party endorsements have been mixed.

In the statewide races this year, Democrats were able to agree on endorsements in only two contested races: John K. Van de Kamp for governor and Bill Press for insurance commissioner. Both candidates lost. In 1989, during a stay of one appeals court ruling, Brown endorsed Los Angeles City Council candidate Lyle Hall over incumbent Ernani Bernardi in a runoff election. Hall lost.

There could be some drawbacks to greater party involvement in local elections, elected officials said.

Los Angeles County Supervisor Pete Schabarum said, “Partisanship is not terribly constructive to the governmental process. Look at Congress, all they do is spend their time trying to torpedo the other party’s programs . . . We haven’t done that great, but we could do worse if the Board of Supervisors was partisan.”

Los Angeles City Council President John Ferraro, a Democrat, said he will not seek party endorsement when he runs for office and said he has misgivings about the court ruling.

“We’ve had the best-run city anywhere,” he said, adding that partisan politics can create problems in the running of local government. “I don’t know that this is good in the long run.”

Times staff writer Jane Fritsch contributed to this story.