L.A. Weekly endorsements for next Tuesday’s primary
Wednesday, May 31, 2006 - 6:00 pm

In this era of campaigns by TV commercial, we have a duty to meet and question the men and women who want our votes. Which is exactly why so many of our sessions with candidates are not polite inquiries, but robust and often blunt interrogations. “Why are your TV commercials so terrible?” one writer asked Steve Westly. “Aren’t you being disingenuous by saying you were duped by bad intelligence on the war with Iraq?” another pressed Jane Harman. At times we were surprised to find we liked the answers we got from candidates we were prepared to dismiss, and other times we were profoundly disappointed in the candidates many felt we were supposed to support. We saw both genuine and crocodile tears as many of the candidates told us their often incredible life stories, and we witnessed one candidate apologize for an errant foul word only to get so comfortable she was letting the expletives fly by the end of the interview. We even heard a candidate push for secession as a way to get California its fair share of taxes. We heard too many candidates talk about fixing our state’s schools without having any real idea where they’d get the money to accomplish that goal. And we felt the curse of term limits as we met young, smart candidates with so little political experience we knew they’d be eaten alive by lobbyists and special interests as soon as they got into office. Finding a candidate who hasn’t been corrupted by the system but knows how to work it isn’t easy. But we did find a few candidates who raised our hopes for the future. Some, like Jerry Brown, who is promising Eliot Spitzer–style results as attorney general, were expected; others, like Orange County state controller candidate Joe Dunn, who has initiated several tough, no-nonsense investigations as state senator in Republican country, had been flying under the radar.

The unexpected is what we value most in our endorsement interviews. We don’t like consultants and party insiders determining our votes. We suspect you don’t either. This is why we know you won’t blindly accept our choices. We’ve tried to include plenty of information about the candidates we didn’t choose, especially in the close races, so that you can make up your own mind.

45TH ASSEMBLY: ELENA POPP

First, a word about Christine Chavez. Chavez, an organizer with United Farm Workers and the granddaughter of Cesar Chavez, tells us she is a fighter. And on some level, we suppose she must be. But what could have possessed her to avoid eight candidate debates in her run for the 45th Assembly District? Why would she skip one forum sponsored by KPCC-FM, and another broadcast on KPFK? We can only conclude that Chavez is running a stealth campaign, one that is supremely disrespectful of the voters, that trades shamelessly on her family name. We don’t care how many campaign mailers, paperback books, English-Spanish dictionaries or photos of her grandfather that she sends to the voters if she can’t be bothered to engage her opponents. And it’s hard to believe Chavez will, as she says ad nauseam, pose a vigorous challenge to Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger when she can’t even show up to discuss her political views with the editorial board of the L.A. Weekly. As she does her best to avoid answering difficult questions, we can’t help but be reminded by the childhood photograph Chavez placed on her mailer — the one in which she is tethered to her famous grandfather at a famous point in history, yet looking like a timid little girl.

That leaves voters with three substantive choices in the 45th Assembly District, a hive of progressive political activism: renters advocate Elena Popp, political organizer Kevin de León and college teacher Gabriel Buelna. Buelna has been an intriguing candidate, doggedly making his way through the district as he hears constituent complaints about traffic, public safety and other neighborhood-level issues. But his frequent mention of speed bumps, traffic signals and bus routes makes him seem like a better fit for a city council race. De León has an entirely different set of problems. As a seven-year organizer of the California Teachers Association, it’s hard to see how he developed much of a tie to the district, which stretches from Hollywood on the west to El Sereno on the east. De León certainly benefited from an avalanche of money and logistical support pouring in from Sacramento — thanks in part to his childhood friend and political patron, Assembly Speaker Fabian Núñez. But de León has sent few signals that he will be his own man.

The one candidate who offers strong convictions, an extensive record of activism and a degree of independence is Popp, who spent her earliest years in Mexico and speaks fluent Spanish. Popp, who is backed by departing Assemblywoman Jackie Goldberg, has a keen understanding of the work needed to pass health care legislation, fund public education and protect vulnerable housing units. Popp also has a strong understanding of the district. Our only reservation is whether she is too naive to survive Sacramento. If nothing else, Popp has learned some unpleasant truths during the 2006 campaign, ones we hope she will be able to apply in the Capitol.