Two school board races top $1 million

The political dynamic of the mayor versus the teachers union -- two supposed allies in school reform -- is playing out in the financial statements of school board candidates, with the price tag on two races sailing past the $1-million mark.

Both money-heavy contests pit an incumbent backed by United Teachers Los Angeles and opposed by Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa. The mayor hopes to emerge with a board majority that will back his schools agenda. The union, meanwhile, wants to reward incumbents who delivered a 6% raise last month, with salary talks upcoming again.

The most direct confrontation has unfolded in District 3, in the west San Fernando Valley, where incumbent Jon Lauritzen, UTLA’s candidate, faces city prosecutor Tamar Galatzan -- backed by the mayor, and underfunded teacher Louis Pugliese.

As of Friday filings, Galatzan had received $807,701 from the Partnership for Better Schools, the Villaraigosa-controlled campaign committee, bringing her total to $915,127.

Lauritzen is second in fundraising, with $509,023, but his supporters point to a potential army of teacher foot soldiers. About $450,000 has come from UTLA, with much of the rest from other unions.

Four years ago, Lauritzen had less money than incumbent Caprice Young when he toppled her. The funding gap will probably be worse for Lauritzen this time. His campaign consultant, John Shallman, says he is planning a $500,000 campaign, about $200,000 less than last time.

The mayor’s committee has reported $1.6 million in donations, with Galatzan as the biggest beneficiary.

The mayor’s war chest relies heavily on large donations from major civic players and interests. They include $500,000 from Univision Chairman A. Jerrold Perenchio (who also gave $500,000 last year to another committee controlled by Villaraigosa); $100,000 from the home healthcare workers union; $100,000 from producer Stephen Bing and $25,000 from the Anschutz Entertainment Group, which owns Staples Center and is building the L.A. Live sports and entertainment complex.

And what happens without the support of either the teachers union or the mayor? Ask Pugliese. The answer would be $140 in contributions, a $6,000 personal loan and about $700 of donated postage. Pugliese has taken advantage of equal time offered at campaign forums, but they’re frequently sparsely attended.

District 1, which ranges westward from South Los Angeles, is the scene of the other big-money contest, pitting incumbent Marguerite Poindexter LaMotte against local charter school operator Johnathan Williams.

Money from the mayor’s committee is being kept out of District 1, with interested donors instructed by the mayor’s allies to give directly to Williams instead.

Sources close to Villaraigosa say the mayor is worried that his committee’s bankroll could backfire in neighborhoods with black voters distrustful of his school intervention efforts.

LaMotte will use her money to portray Williams’ supporters as outsiders, which, by her campaign’s definition, would include former Mayor Richard Riordan, who has donated $80,000 to Williams. Such characterizations helped LaMotte, a retired principal, defeat incumbent Genethia Hudley Hayes four years ago.

Williams’ contributor list is salted heavily with charter school supporters. Leading the way is Reed Hastings, the Netflix founder who once headed the state Board of Education, who donated $100,000. Donations of $100,000 apiece came from Gregory B. Penner and Christy R. Walton, of Bentonville, Ark., both members of the family that owns the Wal-Mart chain.

Among the smaller contributors are Los Angeles charter school operators Roger Lowenstein and Steve Barr.

The $1,000 donors include former board member Young, who heads the California Charter Schools Assn.

She defines Williams’ support as coming from the local and national “education reform community,” while casting LaMotte as propped up almost entirely by a single vested interest: the teachers union.

UTLA has kicked in $450,000 of LaMotte’s $543,639, with other unions filling in much of the rest, although she also has a roster of $100 and $200 contributions from community members and district employees.

Spending in District 1 is expected to surpass that of four years ago.

The two other races -- which lack a teachers union pick -- will be considerably less costly.

Villaraigosa intends to spend just enough to elect his choices. In District 5, which snakes north, east and south of downtown, he supports Yolie Flores Aguilar, chief executive of the county Children’s Planning Council. She has raised $234,898, including $116,765 from the mayor’s committee.

Her opponent, teacher and neighborhood council leader Bennett Kayser, has $23,428.

In the Watts-to-Harbor-area District 7, the mayor went with retired senior school district administrator Richard Vladovic. His total of $154,353 includes $106,131 from the mayor. His opponents are retired principal Neal Kleiner ($22,920) and union organizer Jesus Escandon ($3,548).

howard.blume@latimes.com