Los Angeles voters will choose between Jim Hahn and Antonio Villaraigosa for mayor Tuesday, and as they do, they will cast their ballots in a long-running political contest between two of the state's preeminent campaign consultants, Bill Carrick and Parke Skelton.
Carrick, the Southerner with an easy drawl who runs Hahn's campaign, and Skelton, the Los Angeles native with the look of a Berkeley radical who is Villaraigosa's chief advisor--are engaged in an intense behind-the-scenes strategic struggle. The only thing holding them back, associates and others say, may be the candidates themselves.
In their world of Democratic campaign consultants, Carrick and Skelton are considered among the best. They win more often than they lose, even as they rely on different strategies and approaches. Carrick specializes in television. Skelton is known for his use of direct mail. Skelton charges a flat fee, Carrick takes his cut from the television advertising and mail.
Neither has to solicit business. It comes to them.
Today, they are adversaries; tomorrow, as in the past, they may well be allied.
Last year, for instance, they were paired in Adam Schiff's congressional campaign. They also worked together on Genethia Hayes' school board race. The team of Skelton and Carrick won both of those races.
In the more recent round of school board contests, however, they faced off against each other, with Carrick taking a beating along with Mayor Richard Riordan. In one of those races, Skelton steered Julie Korenstein to victory against Tom Riley, a Carrick client.
Despite Carrick's occasional work for Riordan, the two consultants almost exclusively take jobs from Democrats. Still, Skelton's reputation places him to the left of Carrick.
On Tuesday, either Carrick or Skelton will lead his candidate to one of the plum political posts in America.
"Here you're going for the Grammy, the Oscar, the big prize," said Joe Cerrell, a veteran political consultant and chairman emeritus of the American Assn. of Political Consultants. "These are talented guys who know how to do the right things."
Republican media consultant Ray McNally agreed, adding: "They are formidable opponents. They know what they're doing, and that should make for a hard-fought and colorful contest."
Consultants Even Contributed Money
