O.C. IN BANKRUPTCY: THE MEASURE R ELECTION : Campaign Galvanized Voters on Both Sides : Strategy: Volunteers turned out in force and emotions were stirred to a degree rare in O.C. politics.

Whether it was the anger of No supporters or the fierce determination of believers in the Yes camp, Measure R galvanized Orange County voters like few issues have in recent years.

The bitter campaign mobilized volunteers from all walks of life, some of whom made phone calls or canvassed door-to-door for the first time ever. Bolstered by cadres of volunteers, such efforts by both sides intensified sharply as the campaign for the Bankruptcy Recovery Tax was put to the test of the ballot box.

Supporters considered the tax increase a critical element to quick recovery from the largest municipal bankruptcy in U.S. history, a matter of the county’s very survival. The sales tax measure, which backers say would have cost the average resident about $50 a year, was expected to raise an estimated $130 million annually over the next 10 years.

Opponents, however, say the county had other options available to overcome the nearly $1.7-billion investment fund loss that sparked the bankruptcy.

Citizens Against the Tax Increase was one such group spearheading opposition, pursuing what it called a less-tax-is-less-government campaign. One of the more passionate No voices belonged to Briana Nelson, a 12-year-old Fountain Valley girl, who campaigned against Measure R, fearing it might jeopardize her allowance.

But then no one expressed the anger felt by No voters better than Roberta Gaul, a 56-year-old office worker, who cast a vote Tuesday at Paularino Elementary School in Costa Mesa.

“I’m angry,” Gaul said. “I think [the Orange County Board of Supervisors] should give up their paychecks to pay the money back.”

Gaul’s anger symbolized the fervor of both sides, which responded to Tuesday’s referendum with a kind of passion rarely seen at the ballot box.

For instance, the No campaign depended heavily on volunteers.

Mark Thompson, consultant to the campaign, said opponents benefited from phone banks and dozens of volunteers provided by Orange County Republicans.

“If I had to purchase [volunteers] as a consultant, it would have cost $40,000 to $50,000,” Thompson said.

Proponents included the League of Women Voters, the California Teachers Assn., and the Orange County Employees Assn., all of which spent hundreds of hours staffing phone banks in an effort to reach voters and get them to cast ballots by mail or in person.

Both sides agreed that absentee votes were crucial. Early in the strategizing, both sides decided to spend most of their campaign funds to win over the absentee vote, presuming it would be a crucial part of the electorate. Even so, both sides were stunned by the heavy tide of mail-in voters, which set records in Orange County.

And, as it turned out, Yes proponents actually fared far better in absentee ballots than they did in the walk-in vote. Having spent more than $1 million on currying the absentee vote, they were greeted with little more than an 11% defeat in those ballots, compared with a much wider margin in walk-in votes.

From the outset, the sales tax backers knew they had to fight for increased voter turnout both among absentees and at the polls.

But even though turnout was high for a special election, the No side won going away.

Unlike their counterparts on the No side, who waxed passionately on the issue all day Tuesday, Yes proponents admitted to giving the issue considerable thought--and even then, casting their ballots reluctantly.

“I went back and forth about 99 times and didn’t make up my mind until I was in the voting booth,” said Carol Boraird, a 60-year-old secretary for the Newport-Mesa Unified School District.

Unlike No voters, who took up anger as a guiding principle, Boraird said it did no good to blame county officials for a failure that has to be fixed anyway.

“I think there are a lot of people who are angry and say, ‘Why should we bear the brunt and pull the county out?’ ” Boraird said. “I went through that myself, then said, ‘Hey, somebody’s got to do something.’ ”

Times staff writers H.G. Reza and Lee Romney and Times correspondents Frank Messina and Jeff Kass contributed to this report.