Issues May Be Scarce, but Passion and Politics Aren’t

In a way, this spring’s City Council elections couldn’t have come at a worse time: Residents are mostly satisfied with Los Angeles’ life, leadership and economy.

Crime is at its lowest levels in 30 years. Development is rebounding, as well as jobs, some paying a city-mandated living wage. Hollywood--the neighborhood, not the industry--is even slowly coming back.

Outsiders again are looking positively at the city: The Democratic National Committee selected Los Angeles to hold its presidential nominating convention next summer, and the city may well win a professional football franchise.

So pity the candidates in Tuesday’s eight council primary races, who couldn’t rely on traditional campaign themes. (Incumbent Nate Holden did strike a somewhat traditional note by insisting that he was endorsed by former Mayor Tom Bradley on his deathbed, but that’s another matter.)

Candidates in the wide-open races on the Eastside and in the northeast San Fernando Valley have had an even harder time because they had little name recognition. As a result, they have focused on personalities and territorial concerns, such as carpetbagging on the Eastside and secession and securing a fair share of services in the Valley.

In those races, where the campaign consultants were known better than the candidates, the trick has been to tap into issues that will motivate a generally contented public.

“There haven’t been any significant, major, major problems,” said political consultant Rick Taylor, who is managing three council races this season. “Things seem to be pretty good. There hasn’t been that major issue that has crystallized in any district.”

Steve Afriat, another campaign consultant who is managing Alvin Parra’s Eastside race, said: “Despite all the politics and feuding between the mayor and the council . . . there are more cops, the crime rate is down, more people are working. Metro Rail hasn’t exploded recently. There’s no reason to think the city’s screwed up.”

So when it seems as if more people attend a Clippers game than turn out to vote, candidates are desperate to distinguish themselves. Elected officials haven’t helped. Their endorsements were split among several candidates, as was organized labor’s backing on the Eastside.

Incumbents Doing Little Campaigning

For most of the incumbents, including Hal Bernson, John Ferraro, Ruth Galanter, Mark Ridley-Thomas and Joel Wachs, it has been hard to tell it’s election season. A few more news releases from some offices, a couple of candidate forums, maybe. But overall, term limits appear to have given these incumbents a free ride for their last four years on the council.

“Most of what I’m doing,” said Galanter, “is the job of a council member. Talking to my constituents. Listening to my constituents. Trying to make sure my staff is responsive and knowledgeable.”

Ferraro, among others, doesn’t even have a campaign office, though he has sent out several pieces of mail. The 74-year-old council president, who has served on the council for 33 years, is running more of a public service campaign: He is urging voters to endorse Proposition 1, the $744-million police and fire bond issue that also appears on Tuesday’s city ballot. And he has sent out a mailer to residents listing city services with City Hall phone numbers.

On the Eastside, where 13 candidates and a write-in are attempting to win the seat being vacated by council power Richard Alatorre, candidates probably could have used that mailer themselves.

At an unprecedented number of candidate forums, they often nodded their heads in agreement with each other when discussing the need for better, basic city services such as trash pickups and street repair.

But they clashed over carpetbagging. Three candidates--Luis Cetina, Victor Griego and Armando Hernandez--were accused of having moved into the district solely to run for office. Cetina, however, says he made a mistake on a city form and has lived in the district for more than a couple years; Griego and Hernandez did move in, but both have strong ties to the 14th District.

Last-Minute Attempts to Turn Out Voters

With such a crowded field, many of the candidates are relying on last-minute ads and precinct walks to help turn out voters. For the most part, the glossy mail has been more sophisticated than the level of face-to-face debate.

But perhaps that’s because the 14th District race became a kind of full employment act for the city’s political consultants. Many local consultants are taking part in the election, in some cases pitting friends against each other.

Griego, himself a community and political organizer, was asked early on to manage a couple of these campaigns; that is, before he decided to seek the seat himself. He attempted to distinguish himself by holding weekend trash pickups throughout the neighborhoods.

Some candidates, such as Cathy Molina and Sylvia Robledo, tried to separate themselves by gender. One particularly arresting mailer for Robledo said: “Eleven Empty Suits vs. a Fresh Start.”

Others are using their endorsements to try to sway voters. Nick Pacheco received the backing of Mayor Richard Riordan as well as Rep. Xavier Becerra (D-Los Angeles); Griego got Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa (D-Los Angeles) and state Senate Majority Leader Richard Polanco (D-Los Angeles). Cetina is the favorite of Alatorre, and Parra received the Los Angeles County Democratic Party’s backing.

Although the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor is playing an enormous role in the San Fernando Valley race, it stayed out of the Eastside primary, allowing local unions to support individual candidates. To that end, Cetina scored the largest city union, the Service Employees International Union.

The others in the race are: Jim Beckham, Juan Jose Gutierrez, Juan Jimenez, Ramiro Moseley, Zeke Quezada, Juan Marcos Tirado and write-in Yolanda Gonzales.

Traditional allies chose opposite sides in the Valley’s 7th District race as well. Richard Alarcon’s win of a state Senate seat in November triggered a rush of candidates, including Alex Padilla, a legislative aide to Assemblyman Tony Cardenas (D-Sylmar), and Sanchez, a 52-year-old attorney and president of the health service agency El Proyecto del Barrio.

Although Sanchez and Padilla are spending more than $200,000 each, none of the other candidates--Ollie McCaulley, Raul Godinez II, Barbara Perkins and Tony Lopez--has raised more than $60,000.

The result of all the cash has been a heavy load of mail from Padilla and Sanchez, including attack pieces in which Sanchez has charged that her 26-year-old opponent lacks experience. Padilla has called Sanchez an outsider who grew up in San Bernardino and moved into the district to run.

At a series of forums, the candidates have all staked a claim to what has become the central question of the campaign: Who will be the most effective at getting City Hall to increase city services to a working-class district traditionally neglected by local government?

In the mid-city 10th District, where incumbent Holden faces challengers Marsha Brown, Madison T. Shockley and Scott Suh, the main issue has been whether candidates can build coalitions of voters. To be sure, the challengers also have attacked Holden’s record in the district as well as citing the sexual harassment charges filed against him. Holden has responded by showing the positive side of the district: new major developments and timely city services.

The 10th District is where Tom Bradley began a coalition-based political career that led to his election as the first African American mayor of a big city with a majority of white voters.

Holden surprised quite a few of his challengers, and others around the city, when he announced last week his endorsement by Bradley. The former mayor “made a commitment” that he would support Holden’s reelection, according to a letter to voters from former Bradley assistant Bill Elkins.

The endorsement was surprising not only because Bradley died in September, but also because Bradley fought a bitter mayoral battle with Holden in 1989 and twice endorsed Holden’s opponent for his council seat.

For the candidates in that race, as well as the others, a runoff in June will be their best hope.

Times staff writers Peter Hong and Patrick McGreevy contributed to this article.

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Election:

Los Angeles residents will go to the polls Tuesday to vote on eight City Council and four school board seats, along with other ballot measures.