In Race Under National Scrutiny, Kuykendall Seeks TV Boost

Rep. Steven T. Kuykendall (R-Rancho Palos Verdes), fighting for reelection in one of the nation’s key congressional races, has turned to television advertising in his South Bay 36th District for the first time in his political career.

The commercials, which began running Monday on cable systems from Venice to San Pedro, emphasize Kuykendall’s deep roots in the politically moderate coastal district and use testimonials from local, mostly Republican, elected officials. The ads also try to portray his main opponent, former Democratic Rep. Jane Harman--who held the seat for three terms but gave it up two years ago in an unsuccessful bid for governor--as an opportunist who cares little about district concerns.

The Harman campaign blasted the ads, saying Kuykendall’s reliance on testimonials sidesteps key issues that separate the two competitors. Harman’s aides would not say whether she would run cable and broadcast television ads.

The race is one of a handful in hotly contested districts around the country that will determine which party controls the House of Representatives next year. Democratic House leaders, who need a net gain of seven seats to win the majority, targeted the 36th District and recruited Harman. Analysts in Washington and California are calling the contest a tossup.

Kuykendall in the past, including his two state Assembly races, has relied largely on targeted mail. But campaign advisors felt he needed to add television this time to compete with Harman, who first won the seat in 1992 by spending heavily, using her family’s personal wealth, on broadcast television.

“We fully anticipate, with our opponent’s vast amount of personal wealth, that television will be a major component of the campaign,” Kuykendall campaign spokesman Adam Mendelsohn said Tuesday.

Saying he did not want to reveal strategy, Mendelsohn declined to disclose how much the campaign is spending on the commercials or how long they will run. He also declined to comment on whether Kuykendall would advertise on the much more expensive broadcast television stations in the last weeks before the Nov. 7 election.

Four different versions of the ad are running in various parts of the district, each featuring two or three civic leaders talking about Kuykendall, then either directly or by implication about Harman. All but one of the 10 speakers is a Republican, according to voter registration rolls.

For example, Councilwoman Linda Wilson of Manhattan Beach says of Kuykendall, “He’s had so much involvement in local community activities for over 20 years. That’s something no amount of money can buy.” Later in the 30-second spot, Wilson says, “When you vote for Steve, he’s not going to disappear. He’s not going to take something else when a better offer comes by.”

Mendelsohn said the ads’ theme echoes one of the campaign’s main messages--that Kuykendall, a former youth soccer coach and local city councilman who has lived in the district for 25 years--is a better fit than Harman.

“There is no question there is a contrast between Jane Harman and Steve Kuykendall on specific policy issues, but there is no bigger contrast than the difference between the two in their relationship to the community,” Mendelsohn said.

Roy Behr, Harman’s campaign consultant, said:

“I think it is very telling that, in fact, these ads don’t talk about issues, and the reason is that he knows he is on the wrong side of every major issue--prescription drugs, Social Security, education.

“So all that is left for his campaign to do is to bring out a few Republican elected officials to help prop him up.”

Behr also criticized the implication that Harman has no real ties to the district, pointing out she has lived in Rolling Hills for eight years and grew up on Los Angeles’ Westside.

“She is a prominent and productive and valuable member of the community and has been for years,” Behr said.

While Kuykendall is the first of the district candidates to put his own commercials on television, at least two outside interest groups began running cable ads in the district several weeks ago. Technically, these groups operate independently of the campaigns they intend to help.

The AFL-CIO and the Democratic Party ran commercials critical of Kuykendall’s positions on such key issues as prescription drug coverage. The Republican Party and a group funded by the pharmaceuticals industry have sponsored ads aimed at boosting Kuykendall.