Democratic Party Snubs Reiner, Backs Garcetti

In a blow to to the reelection efforts of Dist. Atty. Ira Reiner, the local Democratic Party leadership has thrown its support behind one his challengers.

The county Democratic Central Committee’s decision to endorse Gil Garcetti, a former chief deputy to Reiner who fell out of favor with his boss, is a “real slap” at Reiner, one political consultant said.

Garcetti, who is now in charge of the district attorney’s Torrance office, said the endorsement was an indication that the party wants a changing of the guard.

“This is systematic of the desire for change in our political leadership,” Garcetti said. “Obviously I’m feeling very good about it.”

But Reiner’s campaign manager, Robert Ellis, discounted the significance of the endorsement, claiming Reiner had not sought partisan support.

“It’s a nonpartisan race and Dist. Atty. Reiner has run it in a way that does not encourage partisan endorsements,” Ellis said.

Nevertheless, Reiner participated in the interview process leading up to the endorsement, which went to Garcetti on Tuesday night after the committee interviewed the three Democrats in the five-candidate race. Facing off in the June 2 primary will be Democrats Reiner, Garcetti and Bob Tannenbaum, a Beverly Hillscouncilman and attorney who formerly worked as a New York City prosecutor. The other two candidates are Sterling Norris, who like Garcetti is a veteran county prosecutor, and Howard Johnson, an immigration lawyer.

To win outright in June, Reiner needs a simple majority. Otherwise, the top two finishers will face each other in a runoff in November.

Ellis contended that the endorsement is the work of Democratic activists who disagree with Reiner’s support of the death penalty.

He hotly denied that the local party’s action represents a rebuke of the district attorney.

“That’s ridiculous,” Ellis said. “Mr. Reiner’s support has never been stronger.”

Bob Farran, chairman of the Central Committee, said Garcetti--even though he is not known as a party activist--”represented the ideals of grass-roots Democrats.”

Reiner, he said, appeared to some to have “strayed from participation in the grass roots.”

“There was a question about his support for individual rights,” Farran said of the district attorney. “Some in the county felt that Mr. Reiner had not come forward and represented their rights.”

Reiner, who has been elected twice before without a runoff, may be vulnerable this year because of a general backlash against incumbents and a perception that his office has failed on some major cases, including the McMartin Pre-School molestation case.

He also must contend with the legacy of his loss in the 1990 Democratic primary to San Francisco Dist. Atty. Arlo Smith in their race for state attorney general.

Joe Cerrell, a Los Angeles-based political consultant, said that ordinarily the endorsement of the local Democratic Party would not mean much, but in Reiner’s case it has significance.

“In 1990, Ira Reiner was (a) standard bearer for the state Democratic Party,” Cerrell said. “And now to be rejected by the official Democratic organ for the county of Los Angeles, that’s a real slap in the face.”

Political analyst Sherry Bebitch Jeffe, however, said Garcetti may not gain much from the endorsement.

“The county committee doesn’t have a lot of resources to put behind the candidate,” she said.