1_LBBJ_Feb18_SectionA_LBBJ MASTER LAYOUT 2/17/14 9:28 AM Page 18
POLITICALWIRE NEWS 18 Long Beach Business Journal
February 18-March 3, 2014
(Continued From Page 1)
before running for the city’s highest office. Dunn moved to Long Beach in 2011 and in late 2012 was the first to announce a run for mayor. Soon after, he began walking the city and, according to him, knocking on thousands of doors – long before any other mayoral candidate began campaigning. Many well-connected members of the community dismissed him because he went from a Democrat to a Republican to an Independent and, despite failing to vote over the years, ran unsuccessfully for secretary of state (which oversees statewide elections). Some people claimed he relocated to Long Beach at the behest of “Long Beach Chamber-types” to specifically run for mayor – a charge both Dunn and the chamber deny. The chamber, however, endorsed him last June, long before the field for mayor had been finalized. Despite all the knocks on him, Dunn is young (born in 1976), well educated (Stanford University grad), athletic (four years on the football team, lettered in track and a short stint in the National Football League) and an articulate speaker with a good story to share (from poverty in Texas to becoming wealthy through real estate). He joined the top ranks of the mayoral candidates because of money. By June 30, 2013, he had accumulated more than $240,000 in campaign contributions, including $125,000 of his own money. By the end of 2013, Dunn, according to city records, had spent
nearly $245,000 on his campaign – more than double that of any other mayoral candidate. An independent expenditure (IE) group formed through the chamber political action committee spent another nearly $40,000 on mailings pushing Dunn. Historically, the firefighters work hard for candidates they endorse. It’s not just writing a check or sending out mailers. They walk the neighborhoods, talk to voters and make the phone calls. The firefighters, along with the Long Beach Police Officers Association (POA), are considered the two most influential organizations in the city come election time, and thus the two most sought-after endorsements. Voters tend to trust an endorsement from “their” police officers and firefighters more than one from a business group, outof-city union or even an elected official. Thus, the backing by Local 372 could prove pivotal. The POA is not, according to its president, Steve James, going to endorse in the April 8 primary.
How They Stand Seven Weeks Out Following is how the Business Journal sees the mayoral race as of mid February. This is based on conversations with dozens of people throughout the city representing a cross section of the community. Up until the firefighters’ endorsement, most political observers seemed to agree that the two candidates with the best chance of making it to a June runoff were Bonnie Lowenthal and Robert Garcia, with Gerrie Schipske an outside shot of passing
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Garcia. Dunn and the other top contender, Doug Otto, were pretty much relegated to finishing no better than third. Why? The Lowenthal name is golden in Long Beach. Many voters who don’t know all the candidates will side with a Lowenthal. Bonnie Lowenthal also has the backing of the California Democratic Party and L.A. County Democratic Party, which is significant in a city heavy with registered Democrats. Garcia gets a runoff nod because he holds the title of vice mayor, is young and energetic, and to many represents the growing creative, tech-savvy, young entrepreneurial sector in Long Beach. While Lowenthal often comes across as drab and boring (watch some of the debates), Garcia is upbeat and enthusiastic. Both have received strong financial support, have plenty of cash on hand and can count on heavy IE spending. One big question that opens the door for the other three is, how well known is Garcia outside of the downtown area? He’s never run for a citywide seat and has been tested only in the 1st Council District, where the most votes he received in two races was 1,168. That fact alone is what gives Schipske a chance, who received four times that many votes winning her district in 2010. Over the years, she’s run in at least a dozen races in the city, has strong name identification, and is well liked in her 5th City Council District – which historically turns out more voters than three other districts combined – although new registration in Long Beach is primarily downtown and the Westside, which helps Garcia. Another edge for her is that her name appears first on the ballot. The problem for Schipske is a lack of money. As of the end of 2013, she had raised less than $60,000 in cash contributions, with about $30,000 cash on hand. While the odds are against her, don’t be too surprised if she beats Garcia in votes. The more money she raises, the better her chances are of passing Garcia. A criticism heard of both Lowenthal and Garcia is that neither has a strong enough personality or take-charge attitude to run the city, and that they could be controlled by other people. Schipske, on the other hand, as she has shown repeatedly during city council meetings, doesn’t back down from a good fight. This assessment of the three, whether accurate or not, is out there in the community – which benefits Otto, a defense attorney by profession, the most. The roadblock for Otto is Dunn. Those who support Dunn would most likely support Otto if Dunn were not in the race. PoliticalWire has spoken with many individuals who back Dunn who admit Otto would otherwise be their clear choice. They cite Otto’s several decades of work in supporting a variety of city issues and needs – from the arts to education to planning to the nonprofit sector and much more. Otto has proven his resourcefulness to residents and elected officials time and again (he’s been the go-to guy for numerous task forces and committees), a fact no one can dispute. The hesitation? His health. Several years ago, Otto beat back cancer. He says he’s in great shape and that his doctors back him up. Still, there are doubters. Otto has probably logged more volunteer hours to help the city than all of the other mayoral candidates combined. That’s why
Upcoming Candidate Forums Mayoral Race • February 19 – 5-6:30 p.m., The Grand, 4101 E. Willow St. Hosts: Junior League of Long Beach and the League of Women Voters. • February 23 – 2-4 p.m., L.B. Museum of Art, 2300 E. Ocean Blvd. Hosts: League of Women Voters and Museum of Art. • February 24 – 6-9 p.m., Bogart & Co. at Pacific Gallery, L.B. Arena. Hosts: Ocean Residents Community Association and Downtown Residential Council. RSVP by email: RSVP@ORCALB.org or call 435-7155 by February 21. • February 25 – 7 p.m., Art Theatre, 2025 E. 4th St. Host: Longbeachize and numerous others, including bicycle groups. • February 27 – 6:30 p.m., The Petroleum Club, 3636 Linden Ave. Host: Los Cerritos Neighborhood Association.
City Council 7th District • March 3 – 7 p.m., Veteran’s Park Social Hall, 101 E. 28th St. Host: The Wrigley Association. LBWrigley@yahoo.com.
City Council 9th District • February 24 – 6-8:30 p.m., American Legion Hall, 1215 Orange Ave. Host: North Long Beach Neighborhood Association. he has raised quadruple the money Schipske has (the other home-town product) and, from a review of contribution statements, appears to have the most “local, homebased” support (money donated by Long Beach residents) of all the candidates. There seems to be agreement that if Lowenthal finishes on top in the primary, Otto would be her toughest opponent in a runoff. The same scenario would not play out for Dunn if Otto were out of the race. Otto supporters are much more diverse (due to Otto’s decades of involvement) and their support would spread equally among the other candidates if Otto were not running. In backing Dunn, Pritchard said, “Damon Dunn is committed to making Long Beach an even safer place to live and work, and understands that restoring staffing levels for police and fire are vital in helping us improve response times. . . . When you listen to Damon Dunn, you learn quickly he fully understands the city’s fiscal situation and has a clear transparent path to move Long Beach forward, while maintaining a balanced budget.” Like many in the community, the firefighters are looking for a new direction. One advantage for Dunn is that he is a fresh face who has not served in a local elected office as have the other four: Garcia and Schipske are current councilmembers; Lowenthal is a member of the state assembly who previously served as a councilmember and school district boardmember; and Otto is on the city college board of trustees, which distances him from being included in “city hall types.” This mayoral election could play out similar to the race of 20 years ago when Beverly O’Neill, the president/superintendent of Long Beach City College, was considered the “fresh face” in the election. Up