Herschel Rosenthal

After 18 years in the Legislature, state Sen. Herschel Rosenthal is, for the first time, facing serious opposition. Because of reapportionment, the mostly Westside district in which he was elected to a four-year term in 1990 will cease to exist in two years, so he is seeking election in the newly drawn 23rd Senate District, which includes most of the Westside north of the Santa Monica Freeway (10) and the southern San Fernando Valley.

It is my hope that all who are cynical about politics and politicians had the chance to read state Sen. Herschel Rosenthal's recent opinion piece ("24 Years of Change, Not All for the Better," Sept. 6) about public service then and now. From 1976-1979, I was privileged to serve then-Assemblyman Rosenthal as a student intern, then as a staff and legislative aide. Unlike most, I still have a great deal of respect for those, like Hersch Rosenthal, who engage in true public service. I'm certainly no saint, and as a trial lawyer since 1981, I'm sure I've fallen victim more than a few times to the type of discourse and lack of civility that so saddens the senator.

State Senate candidates Tom Hayden and Catherine O'Neill have accused Sen. Herschel Rosenthal of hiding from voters by canceling all joint appearances in the district last week, including a cable television debate that had been arranged to fit his schedule. A spokeswoman for Rosenthal insisted that the cancellations stemmed from the press of legislative business in Sacramento during the period that the annual state budget is prepared.

Former Assemblyman Richard Katz won a key endorsement Wednesday in his bid to return to Sacramento by securing the support of the man he hopes to replace, state Sen. Herschel Rosenthal. Katz will face off against Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alarcon to represent Rosenthal's ethnically diverse district in the northeast San Fernando Valley, in what is expected to be this year's hottest legislative race.

A San Fernando Valley lawmaker on Monday unexpectedly dropped a bill designed to slow down development in parts of the Santa Monica Mountains. The measure would have temporarily blocked the practice of upzoning--easing zoning restrictions to allow more houses on a tract of land--pending completion of a study on how to preserve wildlife habitat in Los Angeles County. The measure, by state Sen.

Bowing to political pressure, state Sen. Herschel Rosenthal (D-Los Angeles) has asked that his name be removed from a measure specially crafted to protect Fox Studio's planned $200-million expansion from future lawsuits. But an aide to the senator said this week that Rosenthal may yet vote to support the much-criticized special legislation, despite having disavowed co-authorship. "He's weighing what to do on that," said Lynette Stevens, Rosenthal's chief of staff.

After 10 years on the inside, Assemblyman Tom Hayden is running another insurgent campaign, this time for the state Senate. At stake in a bitter Democratic primary firefight is nothing less than the former anti-war activist's political future. Stripped of a safe Assembly seat by redistricting, the Santa Monica Democrat opted to run for the upper house. Now, nine days before the June 2 election, Hayden is locked in a very expensive three-way battle against two liberal Democrats--veteran Sen.

Democrat Catherine O'Neill, a leader in the successful fight to overturn the Metro Green Line rail car contract that had been awarded to Sumitomo Corp., announced Wednesday that she is running against veteran state Sen. Herschel Rosenthal in a West Los Angeles-San Fernando Valley district. O'Neill, who lost a bid for the state Senate in 1972, joins what could become a crowded field of Democratic candidates.

I am extremely alarmed over the recent unauthorized release of 17 million gallons of sewage from the Hyperion Plant into Santa Monica Bay, and the subsequent lack of proper public notification of the incident. I would like to clarify a comment made by a spokesperson for the Los Angeles city attorney in a June 18 article in the Los Angeles Times on this issue. The city attorney's spokesperson indicated that he felt no criminal statute had been violated by the employees who failed to give the appropriate notice of the release.

State Senator Herschel Rosenthal (D-Los Angeles), 76, is seeking his fourth term in the senate. A partner in a printing company who was in the state assembly from 1974 to 1982, Rosenthal is married and has two children. Republican challenger Dolores White, 59, is running for the seat for the third time. A real estate broker from Reseda who formerly taught college-level business classes, White is married and has five children. This is the seat with a Byzantine history.

Next year's hottest political race in the San Fernando Valley pits a savvy veteran with strong Sacramento connections against an ambitious local lawmaker to represent the heart of the Valley in the state Senate. Traditional wisdom would favor former Assembly minority leader Richard Katz over Los Angeles City Councilman Richard Alarcon because of Katz's proven ability to raise money through his connections to labor unions and lobbyists. After all, Katz raised nearly $1.

The court ruling that set aside term limits Tuesday prompted state Sen. Herschel Rosenthal (D-Los Angeles), who would have been forced from office next year, to immediately announce reelection plans--raising the stakes in an already intense San Fernando Valley state Senate race. "I'm very happy about this decision," Rosenthal said. "All systems are go now."

The insurance industry drew a sharp legislative rebuke Monday for changes it recently sought in the proposed California Earthquake Authority, notably its desire to make participation voluntary in the privately financed, publicly managed agency.

State Senator Herschel Rosenthal (D-Los Angeles), 76, is seeking his fourth term in the senate. A partner in a printing company who was in the state assembly from 1974 to 1982, Rosenthal is married and has two children. Republican challenger Dolores White, 59, is running for the seat for the third time. A real estate broker from Reseda who formerly taught college-level business classes, White is married and has five children. This is the seat with a Byzantine history.

State Sen. David A. Roberti (D-Van Nuys), who will be forced to leave office later this year, denied this week that he has endorsed his Westside-based colleague, Sen. Herschel Rosenthal (D-Los Angeles), to replace him. When Rosenthal made the surprise announcement Monday that he would run for Roberti's 20th District seat, he named Roberti in writing as one of two dozen elected officials who were backing his candidacy. But Roberti's office said Rosenthal was mistaken about the endorsement.

State Sen. Herschel Rosenthal, a Democrat who has represented a mostly Westside district for two decades, announced Monday that he will run this spring for the Van Nuys-based Senate seat now held by David Roberti. Rosenthal's decision was quickly endorsed by a long list of elected officials, including Roberti himself, but also damned as a galling example of political imperialism by others who cited the senator's lack of experience in the Valley.

At a time when many Democrats are attempting to redefine their political philosophies, state Sen. Herschel Rosenthal (D-Los Angeles) has no problem referring to himself as a liberal. He was a liberal before the conservative tide swept President Reagan into the White House and Gov. George Deukmejian into the top elective post in California. And, thanks to the political makeup of his district, Rosenthal remains a liberal.

State Sen. David A. Roberti (D-Van Nuys), who will be forced to leave office later this year, denied this week that he has endorsed his Westside-based colleague, Sen. Herschel Rosenthal (D-Los Angeles), to replace him. When Rosenthal made the surprise announcement Monday that he would run for Roberti's 20th District seat, he named Roberti in writing as one of two dozen elected officials who were backing his candidacy. But Roberti's office said Rosenthal was mistaken about the endorsement.

Bowing to political pressure, state Sen. Herschel Rosenthal (D-Los Angeles) has asked that his name be removed from a measure specially crafted to protect Fox Studio's planned $200-million expansion from future lawsuits. But an aide to the senator said this week that Rosenthal may yet vote to support the much-criticized special legislation, despite having disavowed co-authorship. "He's weighing what to do on that," said Lynette Stevens, Rosenthal's chief of staff.

A San Fernando Valley lawmaker on Monday unexpectedly dropped a bill designed to slow down development in parts of the Santa Monica Mountains. The measure would have temporarily blocked the practice of upzoning--easing zoning restrictions to allow more houses on a tract of land--pending completion of a study on how to preserve wildlife habitat in Los Angeles County. The measure, by state Sen.