Candidates Gear Up for Poll Position : Politics: A large field of challengers will tangle April 12 for council seats in a dozen cities.

Colorful campaign signs--the bigger the better--have already started to crop up. Finishing touches are being applied to flyers, mailers and advertisements. Candidate forums have been scheduled and parties are being planned.

It’s election time once again in the Southeast area.

On April 12, voters in 12 cities will head to the polls to fill 30 City Council seats. Most council incumbents are seeking new terms, but seven veterans have opted to step down.

“It’s time to let someone else do it,” said La Mirada Councilman Lou Piltz, who is leaving office after 16 years.

Voters will go to the polls in Artesia, Cerritos, La Habra Heights, La Mirada, Norwalk, Pico Rivera, Santa Fe Springs, Whittier, Lakewood, Paramount, Signal Hill and Bellflower.

The largest field of candidates has filed in Norwalk, where 16 council hopefuls are vying for three seats. Incumbents Robert J. Arthur, Luigi A. Vernola and Gordon Stefenhagen--who was appointed two years ago when Grace F. Napolitano was elected to the state Assembly--are seeking additional terms.

Among the challengers is Jesse Luera, who was fired last year as the city’s director of social services after being accused of sexual harassment. Luera appealed, but a city personnel board last week upheld his dismissal. Luera, who also is president of the Norwalk-La Mirada Unified school board, has denied the allegations.

In Pico Rivera, 11 people are running for three seats, including incumbents John G. Chavez and Richard L. Mercado. Mayor Alberto Natividad is stepping down after 12 years in office.

Chavez and Mercado may come under fire because of their support last year of a failed ballot initiative that would have allowed a card club in the city. Voters narrowly defeated the measure last June, and some council challengers--fearing lingering support of another initiative--are running on an anti-casino platform. They include Elpidio A. “Pete” Ramirez, who is making a bid for the council after losing his seat last November on the El Rancho Unified School District board.

Ten candidates, including three incumbents and seven challengers, are running for the Whittier City Council.

Incumbent Janet R. Henke is seeking to complete the unexpired term of Larry Haendiges, who relinquished his seat after admitting he filed a false police report during the 1992 campaign. The council appointed Henke to serve until this election. She faces one challenger, student Robert A. Canales.

Incumbents Bob Henderson and Helen McKenna Rahder face six challengers for four-year terms. Whittier candidates will face stricter campaign disclosure rules. Spurred by a $40,000 contribution from Chevron in the final weeks of the 1992 election, the City Council passed an ordinance requiring candidates to report all contributions of more than $100 within 48 hours. The ordinance covers the last 16 days before the election.

In Cerritos, councilmen John F. Crawley and Sherman R. Kappe are running for second terms, while Councilwoman Ann B. Joynt will step down after serving eight years. A city charter limits council service to two consecutive terms.

One of the five challengers in Cerritos is Charles J. Kim, who raised eyebrows in 1990 when he spent more than $100,000 in an unsuccessful election bid. Kim said he has raised a mere $2,000 so far this time, and doesn’t plan to approach the spending levels of 1990.

In Bellflower, former City Council members Randy Bomgaars and Joseph E. Cvetko, who were defeated in 1992, are seeking to return to office. Incumbents Bob Stone, Bill Pendleton and John Ansdell are seeking reelection.

Two incumbents in both La Mirada and La Habra Heights have decided to step down. In La Mirada, two-term Councilman Art Leslie joins Piltz in leaving office. Leslie had vowed to serve only two terms when he was elected. Only incumbent Wayne Rew is making a reelection bid.

La Habra Heights council members Diane Kane and Richard Newbre have decided to step down after one term.

Community Correspondents Psyche Pascual and John Pope contributed to this report.