LOCAL ELECTIONS / L.A. MAYOR : Katz Narrows Fund-Raising Gap With $1 Million in Donations

After a sluggish start, state Assemblyman and Los Angeles mayoral candidate Richard Katz is narrowing a campaign fund-raising gap with other top contenders as the primary campaign to succeed Tom Bradley enters a final, feverish six weeks.

Katz’s campaign announced Tuesday that it has received $1 million in contributions, for a total of about $1.3 million when public campaign funds are added.

All together, the major candidates are approaching the $7-million mark in total funds collected in the race, which is expected to set spending records. New, detailed reports on fund raising and spending are due later this week.

Businessman and former City Parks Commissioner Richard Riordan, the only major candidate to reject public campaign funds, leads the money derby after donating $1 million from his large personal fortune. He also has collected about $1 million in donations.

Councilman Michael Woo, who has garnered the strongest support in early polls, has received $1.2 million in contributions, bringing his total to about $1.7 million with public matching funds, an aide said Tuesday.

Previous public reports showed that at year’s end Woo held a nearly 2-1 fund-raising lead over Katz. But Katz has trimmed that margin considerably in recent weeks with stepped-up solicitations through personal phone calls and a series of small fund-raisers.

“A month ago people were writing off this campaign” because of his poor showing in polls, Katz said. “This means . . . voters are responding to my message and that Mike Woo has peaked two months before the election.”

Woo campaign manager Vicky Rideout disagreed, saying she was pleased with the fiscal condition of Woo’s campaign. “And the last I heard about what voters think was in the L.A. Times Poll, which said Richard Katz had about 4% and Mike Woo had about 20%.”

Not yet spending on costly radio and television advertising, Woo this week will report having $1.1 million in cash on hand, his aides said. Katz, after committing $220,000 to his first major media purchase, will report about $530,000 in cash available, he said.

Riordan has invested considerably in commercials, but a spokeswoman said she did not know how much cash his campaign will report having on hand this week.

Councilman Joel Wachs, who has aired a series of radio ads, has collected close to $600,000, a spokesman said. Several other prominent candidates remain well behind, according to records and interviews. Councilman Nate Holden remains in the $300,000 range; transit official Nick Patsaouras has collected more than $200,000, former Deputy Mayor Linda Griego and former City Parks Commissioner J. Stanley Sanders are close to $200,000, while former Deputy Mayor Tom Houston has collected about $100,000. Former U.S. Ambassador to Mexico Julian Nava said he has raised less than $100,000, and Councilman Ernani Bernardi could not be reached for comment.

In other news, Woo campaign officials said they were reviewing the legality of donations received from two foreign-based banks. The United Mizrahi Bank, based in Israel, and P.T. Bank Dagang Nasional Indonesia each has contributed $1,000 to Woo’s campaign, records show. Federal law prohibits donations to any U.S. election by foreign corporations, although local subsidiaries may donate under certain conditions. If any contributions were accepted improperly, it was inadvertent and they would be returned, a Woo aide said.

Woo has sent out several hundred urgent appeals for more money from previous donors after Riordan’s $1-million personal contribution. “Must stay competitive with Riordan on TV--Stop. Your $7,000, $5,000, $3,000 or $1,000 check needed now--Stop,” the letter says. The telegram-like mailer notes that Riordan’s large personal donation has made it legal for donors to other campaigns to give up to $7,000 each.