Bitterness Overflows as Ex-Allies Compete

From the outset, the race to fill the San Gabriel Valley state Senate seat vacated by Rep. Hilda Solis when she left for Congress had the makings of a bitter contest.

But, as Tuesday’s special primary election approaches, few knew it would get this ugly.

Assemblywoman Gloria Romero (D-Los Angeles) and former Assemblyman Martin Gallegos (D-Baldwin Park) are former allies competing for the mostly Democratic district that runs along a southern stretch of the valley into parts of East Los Angeles.

They are on the primary ballot with Republican Vincent F. House and Libertarian Carl M. Swinney in a district that is almost half Latino, 16% Asian American and 2% African American.

Even though a general election in the district will be held May 1, the district is nearly 60% Democratic, all but assuring that the Democratic winner of the primary will take the seat, political observers believe.

Gallegos, who after six years in the Assembly became ineligible in November to seek reelection, assumed that his seniority in the state Democratic Party would put him first in line for Solis’ seat after she defeated former Rep. Matthew G. Martinez last year.

Not so fast, Romero said. Reelected to the Assembly office she first won in 1998, the former college professor saw the departure of Solis as an opportunity to wield more political influence in areas she cares most about, such as education.

From their clashing political interests, vitriol has spewed.

Telephone calls and campaign fliers sent by Romero’s camp to voters in such predominantly middle-class areas as Azusa, La Puente and Hacienda Heights have implied that Gallegos is single-handedly responsible for California’s energy crisis.

Gallegos was among 47 co-authors of the 1996 deregulation law that won unanimous approval in both state houses.

Romero’s camp has also noted that Gallegos--former chairman of the Assembly Health Committee--accepted donations from several tobacco companies while in office, arguing that the money influenced some of his policies. In 1997, he was criticized for supporting a law that allowed smoking to continue in bars.

Gallegos denies that the roughly $10,000 he has received over the years from tobacco firms swayed him in any votes on legislation. He points to his support from local and state health groups as evidence of a strong record on tobacco and other medical issues.

Meanwhile, Gallegos has accused Romero’s campaign of voter fraud, filing a formal complaint and affidavit with the Los Angeles County district attorney’s office alleging that one of her volunteers completed an absentee ballot for an unnamed elderly voter.

Romero’s campaign denies the allegation, and the district attorney’s office said it hasn’t even seen the complaint yet.

The back-and-forth accusations may counter what is expected to be a dismal turnout for the special election in an area of about 273,000 voters. The only other races in the district are for city councils and school boards.

As Tuesday approaches, both candidates are spending 18-hour days and thousands of dollars trying to make themselves better known.

Though Romero has secured strong support from labor groups and a meaningful endorsement from the popular Solis, Gallegos has political backing from Gov. Gray Davis, the California Democratic Party and nearly every member of the state’s powerful Democratic Latino Caucus.

In an area with chronic traffic congestion, an unemployment rate higher than the state average and including one of the largest toxic Superfund sites in the country, the issues are clear for both candidates.

Both have strong records on toxic cleanup and other environmental issues, though Gallegos has tended to be more business-oriented than Romero.

Both support the controversial Long Beach Freeway extension into Pasadena, South Pasadena and El Sereno.

On health care, Gallegos touts his role in creating a new oversight agency for HMO and managed care organizations in California.

On crime, Romero has championed domestic-violence programs in her assembly district and seeks legislation that would make it easier for prison guards to file workers’ compensation claims.

Inevitably, the ongoing energy crisis has also become an issue. Romero, who was not in office when the Legislature agreed to deregulate electricity, paints herself as an outsider who would have fought against that effort.

Gallegos acknowledges that the Legislature made a mistake on energy--deregulation is recognized as one cause of the current crisis--but accuses Romero of “Monday morning quarterbacking.”

She lacks the experience, he adds, to help fix the problem.