Feud Brings Out Support for Challenger

Los Angeles City Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas is the odds-on favorite to win Tuesday’s Democratic primary in the 48th Assembly District, anchored in South Los Angeles.

The 47-year-old councilman, who has served more than a decade, has far more name recognition, endorsements, volunteers and money (more than half a million dollars in contributions) than his rivals.

But that hasn’t stopped several high-profile African American politicians and celebrities from throwing their support to another Democrat, Mike Davis, a senior deputy to county Supervisor Yvonne Brathwaite Burke.

Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles), who has feuded with Ridley-Thomas for a decade, has handed out fruit tree saplings in South Los Angeles to encourage votes for Davis, who once worked for her. And basketball great turned businessman Earvin “Magic” Johnson and his wife, Cookie, held a Davis reception this month at their Beverly Hills home.

It was a reminder of how Ridley-Thomas’ sometimes-abrasive style has cost him support.

Waters and Ridley-Thomas bitterly clashed in 1995 when he supported a townhouse project for first-time buyers in his district.

The project was opposed for years by nearby residents of a middle-class neighborhood--including Waters. Ridley-Thomas won when Mayor Richard Riordan’s veto of the project was overturned by the council.

When Ridley-Thomas first won his council seat in 1991, Waters lined up against him, supporting her longtime deputy, Roderick Wright.

Wright went on to represent the 48th Assembly District, which he is now vacating because of term limits.

Ridley-Thomas, termed out of his council seat, finds himself again facing another former Waters deputy in Davis.

A third Democrat, Roberto Garcia, a graduate student at USC, is also running. Libertarian Nolayan Herdegen, a businessman, and Republican Gerard Robinson, an educator, are running unopposed in their primaries.

Because the district is overwhelmingly Democratic, the winner of the Democratic primary is virtually assured of victory in November.

Councilman Says Colleague Has ‘Grudge’

Ridley-Thomas says he is baffled by Waters’ support of Davis. “It’s a grudge, and it’s personal,” the councilman said. “She has asserted that as far as she is concerned I don’t deserve a free ride. She’s setting herself up to face defeat.”

Waters says Davis, who worked for her for nine years, “is soft-spoken, a humble man, a gentleman to people,” Waters said. “Mark is seen as arrogant, egotistical and disrespectful of folks.”

Even with the support of Waters, Burke and Johnson, most observers give Davis little chance. His campaign has raised only $74,000.

Ridley-Thomas gets high marks in most quarters for bringing in hundreds of millions of dollars in development to his council district and for creating an active “empowerment congress,” a model for the new city charter’s system of neighborhood councils.

He takes credit for supporting the development of seven supermarkets, five senior citizens’ complexes and six child-care centers.

One of those projects, Chesterfield Square, a $53-million shopping center in South-Central Los Angeles, was built by a group that included professional football player Keyshawn Johnson, a Los Angeles native.

Political commentator Kerman Maddox, who also teaches political science at Southwest College, said: “Mark is smart, an intellectual who works hard. He does deliver, but his style can rub people the wrong way.”

Davis also has a reputation as a hard worker. He has been instrumental in helping create the Maxine Waters Employment Preparation Center and the Denzel Washington Pediatric Center at Martin Luther King Jr./Drew Medical Center. More recently, as Burke’s deputy, he helped develop Magic Johnson County Park and he assisted Johnson’s development of a movie theater complex in Baldwin Hills.

Davis Forced to Reject Police Union Support

Both candidates oppose Mayor James K. Hahn in his effort to block the renewal of Police Chief Bernard C. Parks’ contract.

But the issue created a headache for Davis: In a district where support for Parks is high, Davis was forced to reject an endorsement by the Police Protective League--which has led the campaign to oust the chief.

“Who ever heard of the candidate who gets the police union endorsement and can’t use it?” asked Raphael Sonenshein, a political scientist at Cal State Fullerton.

Ridley-Thomas drew criticism when he dropped his support for a group led by Magic Johnson that sought to rebuild the deteriorating Santa Barbara Plaza on Martin Luther King Jr. Boulevard.

Johnson said Ridley-Thomas withdrew his support for the project after Johnson refused to support the councilman’s plan to put a National Football League franchise at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum.

Johnson said Ridley-Thomas acted in retaliation.

“If you’re not on his agenda, he’s going to get you,” Johnson said. “When I went with another proposal for a football team, he took it personal.”

Ridley-Thomas said: “I’m responsible to my constituents and not to any developer, no matter what his status may be, no matter how popular he may be.” He said Johnson wanted more city funds for the Santa Barbara Plaza project than the city could justify.