Local Elections : CAMPAIGN SPENDING : Voters, Board Confront Key Choices Today

The four candidates competing for two open seats on the Board of Supervisors have spent more than $300,000 on their campaigns, but Ventura County election officials are predicting that despite such heavy spending, only about 59% of the county’s 351,921 registered voters will cast ballots in today’s election.

The county’s ballot will include more than 100 elective offices, including positions on nine city councils, 17 school boards and 18 special district boards. In addition to the two supervisor races, voters will decide the race for county auditor-controller.

And they will pick three state legislators, a governor, two congressmen and a U.S. senator. Nine other statewide posts are also on the ballot.

Polls open at 7 a.m. around the county and close at 8 p.m. The Election Day forecast calls for mostly sunny and clear skies, with afternoon temperatures ranging in the low to mid-60s.

As voters go to the polls today, the county Board of Supervisors will decide whether to revise the campaign finance rules that govern county races.

All four supervisorial candidates have complained that a 3-year-old ordinance has made it extremely difficult to raise money, especially in tough economic times.

Supervisor Maria VanderKolk, who wrote the 1991 campaign finance ordinance, has proposed changes she hopes will clear up some of the confusion about the law and more accurately reflect the spirit in which she wrote it.

Under the current ordinance, candidates can receive up to $750 from individuals and businesses in primary elections and no more than $250 in general elections. Candidates can accept as much as $1,800 from political action committees in the primary and $600 in the general election.

VanderKolk said she was prompted to revise the ordinance after several candidates approached her about problems they had encountered with the restrictions.

Under her proposal, VanderKolk said, the amount of money candidates could receive during the election cycle would remain the same, but it could be split in any way between the primary and general elections.

For example, a candidate who receives a $100 contribution from an individual in the primary would be able to receive an additional $900 in the general election under VanderKolk’s revised ordinance.

VanderKolk said she believed the change would make it easier for candidates to raise money while keeping a lid on campaign contributions.

“I continue to believe that it is very important to limit the amount of money raised for a campaign,” she said. “I think contribution limits are very important to try to regain some public trust.”

Supervisorial candidate Judy Mikels, who is running against Scott Montgomery in a district that covers Simi Valley and Moorpark, said she welcomed the change. Under the current system, she said, it is difficult for those candidates who actually qualify for the runoff to raise money.

“I think it would be much more clear, and it would accomplish the same thing,” Mikels said of the proposed change in the law.

But Mikels and Frank Schillo, a candidate in the supervisorial district covering most of the Conejo Valley and Port Hueneme, said they would prefer that there be no contribution limits.

Even with the current restrictions, Schillo said, he and opponent Trudi Loh ended up spending more than $100,000 each on their campaigns, making the race one of the most expensive in county history. Each candidate spent more than $30,000 of his or her own money.

“There shouldn’t be any law at all,” Schillo said. “It doesn’t make it any better.”

Meanwhile, supporters of a proposed ballot initiative that would ensure that sales tax dollars from Proposition 172 are spent on public safety programs said they will not gather signatures today at polling stations around the county as initially planned.

Otto Stoll, a member of a group called Citizens for a Safe Ventura County, said the organization believes the measure may no longer be necessary. He noted that Supervisor John K. Flynn and all four supervisorial candidates had already signed a petition in favor of the ballot initiative.

Whatever the outcome of the today’s supervisorial election, Stoll said, there will be three votes on the board to support allocating all Proposition 172 funds to law enforcement and fire service programs.

Today’s election will cost taxpayers about $880,000, or approximately $2.50 per registered voter, said Richard Dean, county clerk and recorder. The state will reimburse the county for a small portion of the cost, he said.