Conservatives Criticize Larkin for Not Quitting GOP Committee Post : Politics: A friend of ‘religious right’ candidate Steve Frank contends that the mainstream chairman, vying for the same Assembly seat, has an unfair advantage.

The race for a state Assembly seat representing Simi Valley and Fillmore has dredged up an old rivalry between social conservatives and mainstream Republicans within the local party organization.

The rivalry heated up this week when Matt Noah, a member of the Ventura County Republican Central Committee, called for Chairman Bob Larkin to step down, saying Larkin’s candidacy for the Assembly is in direct conflict with his committee post.

“As chairman of the committee, he has access to resources that other candidates don’t have,” Noah said. “That’s not right.”

Larkin, a Simi Valley insurance agent, dismissed the accusations as preposterous, saying Noah is part of the committee’s “religious right” faction that wants to wrest control of the party organization to advance its anti-abortion agenda.

Larkin said Noah’s comments are simply an attempt to damage his campaign, noting that Noah plans to endorse rival candidate Steve Frank in the race.

“There’s no question this is politically motivated,” Larkin said. “This is just one of many hits I expect in the campaign.”

Noah, a Moorpark resident, said it is possible that he will endorse Frank in the 1996 race to replace Assemblywoman Paula L. Boland (R-Granada Hills) in the 38th District. But he said that his concerns about Larkin’s chairmanship have nothing to do with the Assembly race, and that at least 10 of the 29 committee members share his concern.

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“To me, it’s a sign that an individual realizes he’s wrong when he tries to change the subject,” Noah said. “It’s like he’s confessing that he’s wrong.”

Noah said Larkin, as chairman of the committee, has access to lists of Republican voters and campaign contributors, which he could use to his advantage over other GOP candidates. He also questioned whether Larkin could objectively carry out his duties as committee chairman in assisting “all (GOP) candidates for all offices.”

“It’s purely an ethical issue,” Noah said. “He should step down right now.”

Larkin said he plans to resign his chairmanship next month, but vowed to stay on “as long as possible” if there is an attempt by the religious right to regain control of the committee. Republican voters ousted a conservative Christian majority from the committee in 1992.

“I just want to assure a good transition,” he said, adding that during his 2 1/2 years as chairman, he has managed to boost party membership and donations.

Larkin said the main reason he has held on as committee chairman is because he is overseeing preparations for a large GOP fund-raising dinner in June and is responsible for filing contribution reports to the state Fair Political Practices Commission.

“That’s hogwash,” responded Noah, adding that he will make a formal request for Larkin to step down at the committee’s next meeting April 26.

Paul Leavens, a committee member and Ventura rancher, said he does not believe that Larkin’s chairmanship conflicts with his Assembly campaign.

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“Bob will step down when he feels it’s the right time,” he said.

Leavens said Noah is “just a mouthpiece for Steve Frank,” a Simi Valley government relations consultant who engineered the campaign to stack the committee with conservative Christians in 1990. He said the two share the same socially conservative ideology.

“This is just another indication of the ultra-right-wing trying to take over the Central Committee,” Leavens said.

Frank, who serves as an alternate on the committee for state Sen. Cathie Wright (R-Simi Valley), acknowledged that Noah is a friend but that he had no part in his decision to call for Larkin’s resignation.

“I don’t control my friends,” he said. “I don’t know what all my friends are doing.”

Nonetheless, Frank said he agrees with Noah that Larkin should step down.

“This has nothing to do with the Assembly race,” he said. “This has to do with the ethics and integrity of the Central Committee.”

Larkin maintained that Frank and Noah have their own political agenda. He said he expects Noah to endorse Frank in the race.

He also questioned Noah’s allegiance to the Republican Party. He noted that Noah had run unsuccessfully for the U. S. Senate under the Christian Pro-Life Party when he was living in Colorado in 1992. During that campaign, Noah gained national attention by running graphic anti-abortion TV commercials.