City Officials Are Off--and Running : Politics: Three of four recalled council members will seek to regain seats one month after they leave office.

In a move that has critics outraged, two more of the four City Council members who recently were recalled from office announced this week that they will try to recapture their seats in the April municipal election.

Council members Letha Viles and Douglas O’Leary join Councilman Allen Shelby in what, even some supporters say, is a foolhardy attempt to stay in power.

The three, and Mayor Robert Cunningham, were recalled Dec. 10 after more than a year of fighting over zoning changes that critics said would run the poor, mostly Latino residents out of town.

All four council members will be replaced in a March 10 special election, but three of those council seats will be on the ballot again April 14 in the regular municipal election. At a news conference Monday outside City Hall, Viles and O’Leary said they took out candidate papers for the April election. Councilman Shelby, who did not attend, last week announced his decision to run again. Cunningham has said he will not run.

Viles and O’Leary told reporters Monday that “outside interests” and people who did not care about Bell Gardens residents wanted to “take control of the city.”

“The people were happy with our leadership,” Viles said.

As she spoke, about two dozen recall supporters surrounded her and O’Leary and silently held up posters that read: “We the people of Bell Gardens don’t want you anymore. We, the voters, recalled you: Comprende? “

The three council members’ decision to run for office incensed recall leaders.

“It’s a disgrace,” said Marie Chacon, a campaign manager for recall committee candidates Josefina Macias, George Deitch, Frank Duran and Rodolfo Garcia. “They have no respect for the voters. Once again they have shown that they don’t understand the community. They think the people are playing. They don’t care about the community or what the people say.”

She added: “We beat them once. We can beat them twice.”

During the news conference, Viles and O’Leary repeated charges that the recall was organized by absentee landlords who feared the city’s restrictive zoning and housing codes. They said that although 61% of the voters supported their recall Dec. 10, they felt that they still had a chance to win in April.

“There has been so much turmoil and so many lies spread through the community,” O’Leary said. “A lot of (our supporters) were apathetic. They said, ‘Oh, it’s (the recall) not gonna happen to you.’ A lot of those people are scared now. They are scared of the candidates (running in the special election).”

Viles and O’Leary said that although they are filing their candidate papers, they will actively campaign only if a candidate sponsored by the recall committee is elected in March. Of the 10 candidates who qualified to run in March, four have been endorsed by the recall committee.

Viles and O’Leary said that if a recall committee member does not win in March, they will drop their campaigns. However, their names will remain on the ballot. Shelby said that he will actively campaign in April no matter what. None of the three said they plan to endorse candidates in the March special election.

Several supporters, including Councilwoman Rosa Hernandez--the only council member not recalled--also questioned the three council members’ decision.

“The recall committee won, and I don’t think our council stands a chance,” said Basil Sugden, a prominent Bell Gardens businessman who was one of the council’s chief supporters during the recall campaign. “I say, ‘What the heck, let’s get on with business.’ ”

Another supporter, who asked not to be identified, added: “Why are they doing this? Can’t they see the handwriting on the wall? It’s over already. All they are going to do now is split the vote and hurt the candidates who could get elected (in April).”

Councilwoman Hernandez, clearly upset, said that none of the three council members told her they were planning to run again.

“I’m disappointed. I thought they would at least communicate with me,” Hernandez said. “Why are they wasting their time on this? I just don’t think they can do it.”

However, Hernandez said that if her colleagues come up with a strong platform that will benefit the community, she might support them.

The three ousted council members said they still have the blessing of many supporters. O’Leary and Shelby said they have received numerous telephone calls from residents urging them not to give up.

Max Graves, a 37-year resident of Bell Gardens, cheered the trio’s decision.

“I absolutely support them,” he said. “They are still the most qualified people to sit on the council.”

Graves said he believes that many of the people who voted in the last election were not citizens or residents. City Clerk Leanna Keltner said she submitted to the county registrar’s office the names of about 20 voters who were not city residents.

Keltner also said many residents complained during the campaign that recall committee members were threatening or otherwise coercing people to support the recall. Recall committee members have denied the charges, saying that people were flocking to their headquarters to help oust the council.

The four City Council members were defeated at the polls by a small margin, but it was a well-orchestrated absentee ballot campaign that ensured their ouster. About 800 absentee ballots were cast--almost eight times as many as in previous elections. About 80% of the absentee vote favored the council’s recall.

Viles said that with all the confusion and the reports of threats surrounding the campaign, she does not consider December’s vote a “popular vote.”

“When you go out and register people to vote, and then tell them how to vote and hand-deliver their ballot, that’s not the voice of the people, that’s the voice of the people who collected the absentee ballots,” she said.

The city was forced to hold a special election in March to replace the four council members because of deadlines imposed by state law after recall election results are certified. When a majority of the City Council is recalled, a special election must be held within 89 days of the date of certification, City Clerk Keltner said. The results were certified on Dec. 17, Keltner said.

The filing period for the regular April 14 election closes Feb. 6. In order to qualify for the election, all candidates must have at least 20 signatures from registered Bell Gardens voters.