Los Angeles Elections 1995

The battle to lay claim to the title of top law-and-order candidate in the 5th District City Council race heated up Thursday when Mike Feuer won the support of the city's police and firefighter unions while Barbara Yaroslavsky was endorsed by Sheriff Sherman Block. Both candidates immediately sought to use the endorsements as evidence that they are the most qualified to take a leadership post in a city where crime is a critical issue in the minds of voters.

Los Angeles City Councilman Nate Holden has agreed to pay the largest fine ever levied by the city Ethics Commission for violating campaign finance laws during his 1995 reelection race. The $27,500 fine is part of a settlement approved by the commission Wednesday. Holden said he agreed to the settlement to avoid the public release of the commission staff's findings before the June 8 runoff election, which he won handily.

Ask most political consultants to comment on the hottest campaign so far this year and it's understood you're talking about the race for the 5th District City Council seat, the only campaign in which the candidates are expected to raise more than $1 million collectively.

Los Angeles City Councilman Nate Holden is facing up to $30,000 in fines stemming from allegations that he repeatedly violated contribution limits during his 1995 reelection campaign, according to Los Angeles Ethics Commission documents and interviews. A commission audit, released in September, alleges that in dozens of instances, the councilman's campaign committee did not report multiple donations from individuals.

A microcosm of battles being fought in school districts across the nation is unfolding in the Los Angeles Unified School District, where debate over AIDS and homosexuality is dominating a school board race in what could be a test case for conservative Christian forays into the generally liberal district. The target is 3rd District incumbent Jeff Horton, an outspoken advocate of AIDS education and support services for gay and lesbian teen-agers.

Politics: Reelected councilman says he'll block legislative efforts of colleagues who he believes aided his opponent. Some might have seen it as a time for reconciliation, but for newly reelected Los Angeles City Councilman Nate Holden, Wednesday was pay-back time. The day after winning a third term, Holden promised to retaliate against colleagues he believes secretly supported his foe, attorney J. Stanley Sanders.

In the end, history was its undoing. Proposition 1, the $171-million bond issue to pay for police facilities, could not completely overcome the stigma attached to a similar ballot measure in 1989, which won over the public but then produced only a handful of the new buildings it promised.

Los Angeles voters today will decide the outcome of two hard-fought City Council races and a ballot measure to raise property taxes to pay for a pair of new police stations. Election officials expect an 18% turnout citywide, with a larger showing in the districts with council races on the ballot. In the 5th District City Council race, Barbara Yaroslavsky, a 47-year-old community activist, is trying to gain the council seat last held by her husband, Los Angeles County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky.

Q: What ethics reforms do you support? A: We have very good ethics laws in place. Five hundred dollars is the maximum contribution that any one contributor can give to a City Council race. Voters elect a representative they feel is honest. I would hope anyone that has contributed to my campaign realizes I am an ethical [and] moral person, that conflict of interest is something I've dealt with for over 20 years in different organizations I've worked with.

Q: Explain what kind of ethics reforms you support and what you personally are willing to do. A: I don't think a City Council member should be able to accept a campaign contribution and then be able to vote to enhance the interests of that contributor at City Hall. Six months before and six months after that kind of action, I might be receiving a contribution and then voting in that manner. I also think it's important to send a message to residents . . .

Marshall High School teacher David Tokofsky was declared the winner Monday of a close Los Angeles Unified school board race, beating his opponent by 72 votes. The results of the Eastside-San Fernando Valley race certified by Los Angeles City Clerk Elias Martinez showed Tokofsky with 11,390 votes and Eagle Rock High School parent liaison Lucia Rivera with 11,318.

In one of the closest elections in Los Angeles history, a place on the school board evidently will go to high school teacher David Tokofsky, who has apparently won by just 72 votes in a Los Angeles Unified school board district crafted to favor Latino candidates. Although the results are not yet official, Tokofsky's Latina opponent, parent-school liaison Lucia Rivera, was notified of her loss by the Los Angeles City Election Division late Friday, her campaign consultant confirmed Sunday.

Though he won a third term Tuesday, City Councilman Nate Holden said that being forced into a runoff with Stan Sanders was a sign that he needs to improve his relationship with residents of the 10th District. Holden said that during his door-to-door campaign visits, many residents told him they voted against him in the April primary and would vote against him again in the runoff because he didn't attend their block club meetings.

Though he won a third term Tuesday, City Councilman Nate Holden said that being forced into a runoff with Stan Sanders was a sign that he needs to improve his relationship with residents of the 10th District. Holden said that during door-to-door visits during the campaign, many residents told him they voted against him in the April primary and would vote against him again in the runoff because he didn't attend their block club meetings.

Politics: Reelected councilman says he'll block legislative efforts of colleagues who he believes aided his opponent. Some might have seen it as a time for reconciliation, but for newly reelected Los Angeles City Councilman Nate Holden, Wednesday was pay-back time. The day after winning a third term, Holden promised to retaliate against colleagues he believes secretly supported his foe, attorney J. Stanley Sanders.

In the end, history was its undoing. Proposition 1, the $171-million bond issue to pay for police facilities, could not completely overcome the stigma attached to a similar ballot measure in 1989, which won over the public but then produced only a handful of the new buildings it promised.

One is a Mid-City district emblematic of Los Angeles as the Melting Pot of the '90s. The other, to the west and north, is about as white as one could imagine in a polyglot metropolis. Despite these striking demographic distinctions, there are profound similarities in the voters who will determine the outcome of Los Angeles' two City Council races Tuesday.

For the past few years, Los Angeles residents and politicians have concentrated on public safety as one of the top issues facing the city, pushing for a beefed-up police force to deal with urban crime. Proposition 1, the $171-million police facilities bond measure on Tuesday's ballot, now shifts attention toward how to house the expanding force, including 600 new officers police expect to hire this year.

In the end, history was its undoing. Proposition 1, the $171-million bond issue to pay for police facilities, could not completely overcome the stigma attached to a similar ballot measure in 1989 that won over the public but then produced only a handful of the new buildings it promised.

Key to Election Tables An asterisk (*) denotes an incumbent candidate. Elected candidates and approved measures--or those leading with 99% of precincts reporting-are with double asterisk (**) and in bold type. Results are not official and could be affected by absentee ballots. Party affiliation is indicated in parentheses: (D) Democratic (R) Republican 0% indicates returns were unavailable at edition time or only absentee ballots have been counted.