Austin Dragon

A debate among candidates seeking the Los Angeles school board's 1st District seat erupted into shouted exchanges Friday night among the panelists and audience over what it would take to improve student achievement.

A debate among candidates seeking the Los Angeles school board's 1st District seat erupted into shouted exchanges Friday night among the panelists and audience over what it would take to improve student achievement.

Thirteen candidates met the filing deadline Tuesday to enter the races for four seats on the Los Angeles Board of Education. Incumbents Barbara M. Boudreaux, Jeff Horton, George Kiriyama and David Tokofsky all are seeking reelection. The races promise to be unusually competitive because Mayor Richard Riordan has endorsed four candidates and has pledged to help them raise campaign funds. The mayor is supporting challengers seeking to unseat Boudreaux, Horton and Kiriyama.

Los Angeles City Council District 2 100% Precincts Reporting: votes (%) Joel Wachs*: 10,745 (67%) John Spishak: 2,371 (15%) Kathy P.

An angry and disappointed audience booed loudly Thursday night at what was to have been a Los Angeles school board candidates' debate, when incumbent George Kiriyama abruptly read a 15-minute speech and then strode from the stage and out the door. Some of the 120 people who had braved pouring rain to attend what they expected would be a spirited exchange of ideas between Kiriyama and his challenger for the 7th District seat, Mike Lansing, shouted "Go home, George!"

In approaching next month's city elections, we have considered our endorsements with certain concerns in mind: Los Angeles is in bad shape, facing budget shortfalls of historic proportions. Some of those troubles are the result of a weak economy, but others are the result of poor decisions by city leaders ? to reject needed revenue, to dole out excessive raises and pension benefits, and to seek to avoid accountability for those actions. As a consequence, we're in search of change. That said, not all leaders are equally culpable, and we don't want to reject all incumbents out of frustration.

Mayor Richard Riordan's fund-raising clout has yet to make an appearance in the races for four seats on the Los Angeles Board of Education, early campaign contribution reports show. Although the mayor has promised to pump as much as $1 million into the election in an attempt to shake up the board, the three challengers and one incumbent he is supporting have yet to see more than a dribble. But the reports reflect only contributions raised as of the end of the year.

It's been the loudest and most costly election season ever for the Los Angeles Board of Education, a supercharged assault on the status quo led by Mayor Richard Riordan and $2 million he raised from the city's business interests.

Moved by widespread dissatisfaction with the course of public education, a lineup of challengers came forward this week with the will and resources to turn the campaign for Los Angeles Board of Education into the most tumultuous since the anti-busing days of the late 1970s. The field of 13 candidates for four seats includes contenders in every race who may match the incumbents in spending.

Dorothy Andrews will never forget the December day in 1947 that singer Lena Horne helped her register to vote in South-Central Los Angeles. "I turned 21 that day, and I've been voting regularly ever since," Andrews, 72, said. "I cast my first ballot for Harry S. Truman when he was running for president."

The real battle for control of the Los Angeles schools began Saturday -- almost unnoticed -- as the one-week filing period closed for candidates to enter next year's school board elections. And the biggest news isn't who signed up, but a possible rift between two powerhouse allies that could affect the path of future reforms. If Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and the teachers union -- steadfast fellow travelers for years -- endorsed all the same candidates, their slate would be seemingly unbeatable.