The tussle for campaign endorsements has taken on unusual importance in the Los Angeles mayoral race as incumbent James K. Hahn and challenger Antonio Villaraigosa battle for huge blocs of swing voters in the San Fernando Valley and South L.A.
The two rivals are aggressively -- "frantically," as Villaraigosa put it -- courting public figures whose validation they see as golden assets.
Among the main objects of flattery are Bob Hertzberg, the former Assembly speaker from Sherman Oaks who fell just short of capturing a spot in the May 17 runoff, and former Mayor Richard Riordan. Both are seen as potential lures for Valley residents, Republicans and Jewish voters. Each candidate took Hertzberg to lunch this week at his favorite Studio City deli.
Hahn and Villaraigosa have also cajoled basketball star Earvin "Magic" Johnson, Rep. Maxine Waters (D-Los Angeles) and City Councilman Bernard C. Parks, who came in fourth in the first round of voting for mayor. Each is viewed as key to building support among black voters in South L.A.
In the 2001 mayoral race, Waters put her substantial political operation to work for Hahn. She has endorsed no one so far in the current campaign. But among Los Angeles Democratic operatives this week, there has been rising speculation that she was leaning toward Villaraigosa. Waters did not return a call for comment.
To the big groups of voters who backed neither Hahn nor Villaraigosa in the March 8 balloting, endorsements offer cues about which candidate is "most likely to best represent their interests," said UCLA political science professor Frank Gilliam.
"This is a very interesting strategic chess game being played right now," he said.
Endorsements rarely swing many votes directly, but they can build a sense of momentum behind a candidate. That in turn can spur fundraising and boost the morale of campaign staff. A shortage of marquee supporters can have the opposite effect.
In the first two weeks of the runoff campaign, Villaraigosa has pulled ahead in the endorsement race. The latest was Los Angeles County Supervisor Gloria Molina, who announced Wednesday that she was joining the "ongoing parade" of Villaraigosa backers.
As Villaraigosa's camp seeks to foster that sense of a parade swinging into step behind him, Hahn has begun using the language of an upstart with minimal outside support.
Despite his position as the incumbent mayor, he described himself this week as a "maverick."
