Status Quo the Likely Winner in Westside’s Primary Races

People who like the status quo in Westside politics should love the June 7 primary elections.

With the exception of Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Los Angeles), all Democratic incumbents in legislative or congressional races are unchallenged or facing nominal opposition, while most of the Republicans are unknowns.

Political observers say there is little room for newcomers this year because the incumbents seeking reelection are well-entrenched. Kam Kuwata, a veteran Democratic campaign consultant based on the Westside, said the entire slate of officeholders should have clear sailing through November.

‘Have to Have a Lot of Money’

“People are fairly satisfied with who is representing them,” Kuwata said. “And as elections become an increasingly specialized art form, (challengers) have less of a desire to venture out and take risks. You can no longer say you are running an insurgent campaign. You have to have a lot of money.”

The only Westside race that has sparked real interest during the otherwise lackluster political season is the contest that pits Beilenson against Val Marmillion for the Democratic berth in the 23rd Congressional District, which includes West Hollywood, Beverly Hills and Malibu.

Beilenson, a Harvard-educated lawyer known for his liberal stances in Congress, is the favored candidate. But Marmillion, a businessman and political consultant, has made inroads with an aggressive and well-financed campaign.

In recent appearances before 23rd District voters, Marmillion has ripped Beilenson’s record, charging that the congressman has lost touch with his liberal constituents and that he lacks a strong vision for the future.

Marmillion, 38, of West Hollywood has oriented his campaign toward the elderly, feminists, gays, veterans, the disabled and labor groups, promising to support programs that meet their needs instead of military spending. He has raised about $80,000, and has mailed a detailed issue booklet to voters.

Friend to Constituents

Beilenson, 55, counters that during his 12 years in Congress he has been a friend to the groups Marmillion claims to represent. He also has been an outspoken critic of deficit spending for many years and advocates raising the tax rate from 28% to 38.5% for people earning more than $150,000 a year.

Beilenson is a strong environmentalist and is largely credited with creating the Santa Monica Mountains National Recreation Area. He has said that he will raise and spend as much as it takes to answer Marmillion’s charges.

The other 23rd District candidates are unchallenged in the primary. They are businessman Jim Salomon, Republican; businessman John Vernon, Libertarian, and computer programmer John Honigsfeld of the Peace and Freedom party.

In the 24th Congressional District, which includes the Hollywood-Fairfax area, Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles) is unchallenged in the primary. The Republican race, however, has attracted three candidates.

Sol Annenberg, 52, a political analyst who lives in the Wilshire District, said his major concerns are crime, drugs and gangs. Annenberg said he would use federal resources to battle those problems and would encourage gang members to join nonviolent social groups such as the Boy Scouts. He would appoint commissions to seek solutions to the drug epidemic.

John N. Cowles, 38, a manufacturing executive from Hancock Park, said he opposes Waxman’s liberal positions. Cowles calls himself a fiscal conservative who would steer away from expensive programs.

“Government is not here to find the answer to every woe we might have in society,” he said.

Dean DeGruccio, 25, is a law student who lives in Studio City. DeGruccio said his major interest is in advocating a light-rail transit system instead of the Metro Rail subway, which he says is too expensive. DeGruccio said he would also work for higher standards of education.

The other two candidates, who face no primary opposition, are bulk-mailing consultant George Abrahams, a Libertarian, and union organizer James Green of the Peace and Freedom party.

No Opposition

No one is facing primary opposition in the race for the 26th Congressional District, which includes parts of the Hollywood Hills. The candidates are Rep. Howard L. Berman (D-Panorama City) and commercial actor and businessman G. C. “Brodie” Broderson, a Republican.

In the 27th District race, Rep. Mel Levine (D-Santa Monica) faces nominal competition from Ralph Cole, a 38-year-old graduate student and founder of a group called Socially Responsible Singles.

Cole contends that Democrats such as Levine, who represents an area including Santa Monica, Pacific Palisades, Mar Vista and Venice, are not doing enough to support the liberal agenda.

Cole, who has raised a little more than $1,000 in campaign funds, said he would put more federal money into health care, strengthen environmental programs, build more low-cost housing and legalize drugs on an experimental basis.

He said that he considers his quixotic campaign a symbolic quest.

“I am late getting into the race, and I am extremely under-funded,” Cole said. “But my intent here, more than getting elected, is to try to call the Democrats to task for not differentiating themselves from the Republicans, particularly in a district as sophisticated and outspoken as this one.”

Lacking Credibility

Levine, 44, said Cole’s accusations lack credibility. He said he has been an outspoken critic of the Reagan Administration’s Central American policies and has helped lead efforts to protect the California coastline and Santa Monica Bay from the “twin plagues of oil drilling and pollution.”

Levine said he is not campaigning in the primary because he feels that 27th District voters are aware of his stands and achievements.

“That’s one reason I haven’t found it necessary to mount an aggressive campaign,” Levine said. “I don’t think these issues have any substance.”

The other candidates in the race are laborer Dennis Galbraith, Republican, and computer engineer/entrepreneur William J. Fulco, a Libertarian.

Rounding out the Westside Congressional slate is the 28th District primary, in which four people are running unopposed in an area that includes Culver City. They are Rep. Julian C. Dixon (D-Los Angeles); engineer/ businessman George Zaldivar Adams, Republican; attorney Howard Johnson, a Libertarian, and retired cafeteria worker Salomea Honigsfeld of the Peace and Freedom party.

GOP Contest

In the state Senate, 23rd District Sen. David A. Roberti (D-Los Angeles) faces no party opposition. But there are three Republicans vying for a chance to face him in November in a district that includes Hollywood, West Hollywood, Hancock Park and the Melrose-Fairfax area.

Tom Larkin, 48, a one-time candidate for West Hollywood City Council, has charged that Senate leader Roberti is more concerned with Sacramento than problems in the area. With that in mind, Larkin said his primary message to the voters is that he would “bring leadership home to the district.”

Larkin, a commercial real estate specialist, chairs the Save Our Park Alliance, a group that opposes construction of a civic center in West Hollywood Park. His campaign is not well-financed, but Larkin said he has canvassed the district and expects to reach other voters by telephone.

Alannia Elizabeth Michael, a 31-year-old Studio City resident, said she also believes that Roberti has lost touch with the district. Michael said she would fight for tougher laws against crime and would try to find a way to outlaw street gangs. She would also try to eliminate the utility tax.

Michael, an accountant, small-business consultant and part-time music producer, calls herself a conservative. She said she hopes to do a limited campaign mailing and is planning to canvass and phone voters.

Insurgent Campaign

E. Jan Roberts, 70, is running an insurgent campaign against his fellow Republicans. Roberts, who lives in the Atwater area, said he opposes Larkin’s and Michael’s views, but conceded that he has raised no money.

Roberts, a tax consultant, said he considers himself a budget expert. He said he would find better ways to use the state’s money and would put special emphasis on education.

Roberts added, however, that he is satisfied with Roberti. “I don’t want to defeat David Roberti,” Roberts said, adding that his main objection is to his GOP opponents.

The other two candidates in the race are writer Sarah E. Foster, a Libertarian, and social worker Elizabeth Nakano, Peace and Freedom party.

There are four Assembly races on the Westside. In the 43rd District, first-term Assemblyman Terry B. Friedman (D-Tarzana) faces no Democratic opposition in the race for the seat that covers Beverly Hills, Brentwood and Westwood.

Battle of Attorneys

There are two attorneys competing on the Republican side.

Tom Franklin, 29, has served as president of the Beverly Hills Republican Assembly and was a USC recruitment chairman for President Reagan in the 1980 campaign.

Franklin, who calls himself a conservative, said he opposes a Friedman bill that would allow police to electronically monitor calls made by suspected drug dealers. He has raised about $1,300 for the campaign.

His GOP opponent, Edward Brown, 58, recently said he has raised less than $500 and will not accept more than $10 from any single contributor.

Brown, a former Democrat, has unsuccessfully run for Municipal Court judge, Congress and the California Community Colleges Board of Governors.

Protecting Constitutional Rights

One of his main concerns is protecting individual constitutional rights. Brown has also suggested that the National Guard be used against street gangs.

The other candidates are graphic designer Robert Townsend Leet, a Libertarian, and medical assistant Margery Hinds, Peace and Freedom party.

The 44th District Democratic primary race pits three-term Assemblyman Tom Hayden (D-Santa Monica) against perennial challenger Alex Cota and newcomer William J. Kurdi in a district that stretches from Malibu to Century City.

Cota, a 60-year-old real estate investor from Rancho Park, contends that Hayden is unfit for office because of his Vietnam-era anti-war activities. Cota favors campaign finance reform and says he is an environmentalist. He has also helped fight drugs and graffiti in the Oakwood section of Venice.

In past elections Cota has spent as much as $65,000 of his own money in primary campaigns against Hayden, but has garnered only a fraction of the vote. He has also run as a write-in candidate in the last two general elections.

‘Why Should I Quit?’

“Each time I’ve run I’ve gotten a higher percentage,” said Cota, who finished with 23% of the vote in the June 1986 primary, compared to Hayden’s 77%. “It may be slow, but the percentage is going up. So why should I quit?”

Kurdi, 62, a teacher from Westwood, is most concerned about AIDS. Kurdi said he would make it law that anyone who tested positive for the virus must inform his sexual partner.

Kurdi also would seek a 50% insurance rebate each year for motorists who have not been involved in a traffic accident and would limit politicians to eight years in office.

Kurdi has not raised any campaign money. He said he is running against Hayden because he feels that the assemblyman is too liberal.

Meanwhile, Hayden, 48, said he is running on a strong record. He takes credit for initiating concerns about Santa Monica Bay contamination and has been a foe of a county plan for a $60-million to $90-million sewer system in Malibu.

Education Reform

At the statewide level, Hayden said he is introducing a package of reforms that would improve undergraduate education in the University of California system.

Hayden also has sponsored bills that would give tax credits to businesses that improve the skills of their employees and to high-tech industries that lend employees to public schools as teachers.

Hayden, who is considered a shoo-in for reelection, is not spending any money on the primary.

“I am willing to absorb their (his challengers’) criticisms and save my money for initiative campaigns,” Hayden said. “I’ll let the Democratic voters judge my record as they perceive it.”

Unopposed Republican

The only other candidate in the 44th District race is businesswoman Gloria J. Stout, a Republican who is running unopposed. Stout, who owns a camera shop in Pacific Palisades, was the Republican nominee in 1986.

In the 45th District, which includes the Pico-Robertson area, Fairfax and Hollywood, Assemblyman Burt Margolin (D-Los Angeles) has no Democratic opposition. The other candidates, who are also running unopposed, are accountant David Frankel, Republican, and laborer Julie Fausto, Peace and Freedom party.

Finally, there are two unopposed candidates in the 49th District, which covers Culver City, Venice and Marina del Rey. They are Assemblywoman Gwen Moore (D-Los Angeles) and businessman Eric Givens, a Republican.