LOCAL ELECTIONS / BOARD OF SUPERVISORS : New Faces May or May Not Mean New Direction

The last time there was such a sweeping leadership change on the Board of Supervisors, the Rams were happy in Anaheim, county jails had an occasional empty bed and El Toro was a thriving Marine base.

Today, the economic and social climate is much different than it was 13 years ago and so is the board leading Orange County. With Tuesday’s election of Huntington Beach Councilman Jim Silva to the 2nd District seat, who will take office in January, there will be three supervisors with less than 18 months’ experience on the five-member county board.

Many county observers are eagerly waiting to see how this infusion of new blood will change the course of Orange County.

“The county has the opportunity to rethink its mission on a lot of things with the changing of the guard,” said Supervisor William G. Steiner.

The board faces tough challenges ahead as supervisors grapple with the still-evolving future of the El Toro base, search for a solution to the county’s worsening jail overcrowding crisis, look for ways to bring new businesses into the county while keeping the ones already here happy, and address the social and health needs of the county’s diverse population.

Along with Silva, the other fresh faces on the board are Marian Bergeson, a Republican state senator from Newport Beach for 16 years, and Steiner, the former executive director of the Orangewood Children’s Home who was elected in June. He was first appointed to the board after Supervisor Don R. Roth resigned on March 1, 1993.

“This has been a real significant turnover on the board,” said Bill Hodge, executive director of the Orange County division of the League of California Cities.

“You’re going to see some new perspectives and a lot of energy with the new players on the board,” Steiner added.

Some, however, question whether the turnover will make much of a difference.

“I don’t think the ideology of the board changes at all,” said William Mitchell, a spokesman for Orange County Common Cause, noting the entire board is still Republican. “But I think that you will see a more pragmatic and focused board.”

With the retirements of veteran colleagues Thomas F. Riley and Harriett M. Wieder, Supervisor Roger R. Stanton, who was elected as part of the last great leadership change in 1981, will be the most senior board member.

As such, he can be expected to use his experience and knowledge of the county to guide some of the junior members. Stanton may also have an ideological ally in Silva, whose campaign he supported and helped to raise money.

Stanton said Silva and Bergeson each bring valuable new perspectives. “It’s going to be a much more open, problem-solving board,” he said. “We get to wipe the slate clean, in a way, and get rid of some of the things that were not productive for us. . . . I’m very optimistic about the new dynamics.”

Silva’s opponent, Huntington Beach Mayor Linda Moulton Patterson, decried the alliance between Stanton and Silva, accusing Stanton of trying to secure a second vote for his political agenda. Stanton and Silva concede they hold many similar views, but say they will vote their own consciences.

Supervisor Gaddi H. Vasquez, the board’s second most senior member with seven years’ experience, will become the chairman in January.

He is a charismatic leader and speaker whom many political observers have mentioned in the past as a likely candidate for higher office. But there also are some members of the community who have been disappointed by Vasquez’s unwillingness to take stands on controversial issues, such as Proposition 187.

As the county’s highest-ranking elected Latino official, people on both sides of the issues thought Vasquez should have taken a position. Instead, he remained silent. On Wednesday, he did not return calls about how he voted on the measure.

During his relatively short time on the board, Steiner has emerged as a consensus builder on such issues as the controversial expansion of the Theo Lacy Branch Jail in Orange. County officials say he is willing to delve into complex issues and draws on many of the relationships he cultivated as director of the children’s home to reach decisions.

Bergeson, who ran unopposed in June for Riley’s 5th District seat, joins the board in January with a reputation as a savvy and successful legislator. She is expected to step in and become an immediate force in county policy decisions.

On Wednesday, Bergeson said she hoped to use her legislative contacts in Sacramento to help the county, but believes that the board will be most effective if all members work in concert. “Leadership can only be realized if the board works together as an entity,” she said. “You won’t see individuals as much as you see the board working together.”

She predicted that the state will start relinquishing more and more legislative authority to county boards. “There is going to be far more emphasis on local government and Orange County is poised to be at the forefront of that,” Bergeson said. Perhaps the greatest mystery is what role Silva will play in the board’s new cast. On the Huntington Beach City Council, he took decidedly conservative and pro-business stances.

During the recent campaign, however, the schoolteacher offered few specifics for local government, preferring instead to run on his conservative record. Other supervisors say Silva will fit in nicely with the nonpartisan board’s all-Republican makeup.

Late Tuesday night, Silva said he had been so busy campaigning that he hadn’t had time to reflect on what his new role might be, or even who might be on his staff. “I felt it would be bad luck to do that before the election,” Silva said.