Alatorre Wins L.A. Council Seat Handily

Assemblyman Richard Alatorre (D-Los Angeles) Tuesday night became the first Latino in more than two decades to be elected to the Los Angeles City Council.

The 13-year legislator won 60% of the vote in the Eastside special election held to replace former Councilman Arthur K. Snyder, who resigned in October. With all but a handful of absentee ballots counted, Alatorre’s closest pursuer was city planner Steve Rodriguez, with 16%.

Alatorre needed only 50% plus one vote to avoid a runoff election. He will assume office as a councilman, and his Assembly seat will become vacant, as soon as the election is officially certified sometime within the next two weeks, City Clerk Elias Martinez said.

At a victory party at the Biltmore, attended by elected officials who had supported him, including Mayor Tom Bradley and Assemblywoman Gloria Molina (D-Los Angeles), Alatorre said he was “grateful.”

“I’m very thankful to the people of the 14th District. . . , “ Alatorre said in an interview.

He attributed his victory to “hard work, a superior campaign organization and, yes, financial resources to deliver our message.”

Alatorre spent approximately $300,000 on his campaign, far outdistancing the spending of his opponents.

Voter turnout was 33%, with about 20,000 ballots cast by the district’s registered voters.

Rodriguez, who had run twice before for council and lost, conceded late Tuesday evening.

“I’m just glad it is coming to an end,” Rodriguez said. “I’ll go back to my job at City Hall. I’ll take the kids to the park. I’ll take the wife to dinner. I’ll take the vacation I haven’t had in three years.”

Noting that he was outspent “probably 5 to 1,” he added, “Steve Rodriguez fought the hardest, worked the longest and sacrificed the most to bring new leadership to the 14th district.”

Alatorre dominated the field of six other candidates, which included Steve Rodriguez; attorney Antonio Rodriguez (no relation); Gilbert Avila, a former aide to Gov. George Deukmejian, and Ross Valencia, a former Snyder aide.

Alatorre had risen to a position of power in the Legislature as one of the lieutenants of Assembly Speaker Willie Brown (D-San Francisco). He gave up that position to run for the City Council, Alatorre said, because he wanted “a day-to-day, hands-on working relationship with the people of my district. . . .”

“That’s what I’m all about,” he said.

However, others close to Alatorre said they saw the visible position of the only Latino on the council as a springboard for him to run for mayor or for Congress later. Alatorre has responded that “there’s nothing wrong with ambition.”

“I’m only seeking one office, the City Council. What happens after that . . . I can’t begin to speculate,” he has said.

The race was fought principally along battle lines of which candidate could best get his message across and make the strongest personal appeal. No issues of districtwide concern emerged in the campaign to separate the candidates.

All candidates agreed that the district needs more jobs, more housing and better police protection, all matters of concern to the mostly Latino district.

The election took on added significance because of its lineup of Latinos as major candidates, virtually assuring at the outset that a Latino would be returning to the City Council, where no Latino had served in 23 years. The last Latino to serve on the council was Edward R. Roybal who left to run successfully for Congress in 1962.

More than 75% of the 14th District’s approximately 200,000 residents are Latino. However, only about half of its 60,000 registered voters are Latino, and historically, voter strength has been based in the district’s mostly Anglo, conservative Eagle Rock area. The other principal neighborhoods of the district are Boyle Heights, Lincoln Heights, El Sereno and Highland Park.

In part due to his strength in Eagle Rock, Snyder, an Anglo, was able to hold onto his Eastside council seat for 18 years, confounding his opponents and consistently defeating Latino challengers. Snyder’s continued dominance in the district was described by one Latino activist as “a thorn in the side” of those anxious to turn Latino population strength into voting strength to elect other Latinos.

Finally, it was family problems, not political reasons, that Snyder cited for his decision to resign in order to practice law and work as a lobbyist. Latino political leaders saw the selection of his successor as crucial.

“The Latino on the City Council of one of the nation’s media centers would become a natural national spokesman,” said Willie Velasquez, executive director of the national Southwest Voter Registration Project.

Like San Antonio Mayor Henry Cisneros and Denver Mayor Federico Pena, a Latino member of the Los Angeles City Council could be expected not only to represent the district but also to take stands on national issues, such as immigration and U.S. policies in Central America.

Ironically, Tuesday’s election took place two weeks after the U.S. Justice Department filed a lawsuit against the City of Los Angeles charging “a history of official discrimination” against Latinos. The suit accuses the city of drawing political boundaries in such a way as to disperse Latinos over several council districts to intentionally splinter their political power.

No matter what the outcome of the suit, the results of Tuesday’s special election will stand, according to federal officials. However, if the federal government prevails in the lawsuit, it will almost certainly mean that more Latino and possibly more Asian members will be added to the City Council in future elections.

On Tuesday, however, hopes for getting a Latino on the City Council focused on the 14th District race. Alatorre, who had risen to powerful positions in the state Assembly and is close to Speaker Brown, announced in January that he would run to replace Snyder.

Alatorre Opts for Vote

The council had two options once Snyder left office: call a special election or appoint a successor to finish Snyder’s term until 1987. Snyder, who endorsed Alatorre, personally lobbied to persuade the council to appoint the assemblyman to the post.

After receiving heavy criticism from the press and some community groups, Alatorre asked that the council not appoint him and called instead for an election.

With the advantage of being a veteran officeholder, Alatorre had no problem raising nearly $300,000 for his campaign. In some of the more talked-about mailers, Alatorre offered a $5,000 scholarship in a lottery open to constituents who filled out “answer cards” about his legislative record. He chalked up one Democratic endorsement after another, including those of Bradley and Roybal.

Steve Rodriguez surprised many when he came within four votes of forcing Snyder into a runoff in 1983. Last year, Rodriguez led a bitter recall campaign against Snyder, which he lost.

This year, he ran a different style of campaign, based less on attacking his opponents and more on his “new vision” of city government. He showcased the endorsement of several clergymen, while declaring that “God is the ultimate campaign manager” and sending mailers with pictures of his smiling family at home. He linked Alatorre to “power-broker” politics.

Antonio Rodriguez was most openly critical of Alatorre, hitting the substantial campaign contributions the assemblyman received from the liquor and horse racing industries. Rodriguez, an attorney and executive director for the Center for Law and Justice, has a background in immigrant rights and spoke out in favor of workers and “corporate responsibility for the unemployed.”

Only Republican

Avila, the only Republican, brought to the race the possibility of a partisan fight. However, it never materialized. Although he had the endorsement of Gov. George Deukmejian and other prominent members of the Republican Party, the GOP did not pour the money into the race that would have sparked a Republican-Democrat struggle.

Valencia, the former Snyder aide, had a small budget and had to rely mostly on volunteers to promote his campaign. The remaining candidates, John Silva and Dorothy Andromidas, did not actively campaign.

Also contributing to election coverage were Rich Connell, Alma Cook, Allan Jalon, Richard Simon, George Stein and Ted Vollmer.

COUNCIL DIST. 14

Bold type indicates winner

102 of 102 Precincts Reporting

Votes % Richard Alatorre 11,928 60 Steve Rodriguez 3,199 16 Gilbert Avila 2,376 12 Antonio Rodriguez 1,166 6 Ross Valencia 872 4 Dorothy Andromidas 231 1 John Silva 156 1