Mayoral Hopefuls Ready for Ad Blitz

By Jeffrey L. Rabin and Michael Finnegan, Times Staff Writers

Los Angeles Mayor James K. Hahn and Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa have enough money to dominate the crucial television ad battle in the final 11 days of the mayor's race as a third contender, former Assembly Speaker Bob Hertzberg, struggles to keep pace, according to finance reports released Thursday.

City Councilman Bernard C. Parks is stuck in a distinct second tier in the race to raise money, but his campaign has enough cash to make him a wild card in the March 8 election.

State Sen. Richard Alarcon (D-Sun Valley), the last of the major candidates, is effectively out of money: He reported outstanding debts that exceed the cash he has in the bank.

For a campaign in which television advertising is the primary means the candidates use to reach voters, the financial ranking shows the ability each candidate will have to get his message across.

"Now is when people are beginning to focus," said Stephen P. Erie, a Los Angeles politics expert who heads the urban studies and planning program at UC San Diego. "This is when it becomes mass entertainment."

All the major candidates except Parks have begun running ads on broadcast television. So far, the TV ads have been free of the harsh attacks that have characterized their public remarks.

Finance reports filed by the campaigns Thursday with the city Ethics Commission show Hahn and Villaraigosa each with about $1.1 million in the bank as of Saturday, followed by Hertzberg with about $779,000 and Parks with about $337,000. Alarcon had just short of $79,000, although he has debts of more than $97,000.

Hahn spokesman Kam Kuwata said television viewers "will be seeing more Hahn" than any other candidate. "The reality is Jim Hahn is going to have the most flexibility," he said.

The reports show the tough challenge ahead for Hertzberg. The Sherman Oaks lawyer is less known to voters than Hahn or Villaraigosa, who gained national attention in his 2001 run for mayor.

Hertzberg has spent his campaign money at a more rapid pace than his rivals. Last week, he was forced to halt his ads on broadcast television for five days to save cash.

Earlier this month, Hertzberg was the first candidate to start TV advertising, a strategy aimed at introducing himself to voters in a positive light before opponents could start tearing him down in attack ads.

The reports show that he spent $556,000 on TV ads before yanking the spot, which shows him as a giant towering over Los Angeles as he recites his campaign pledges.

By contrast, Hahn and Villaraigosa have each spent far more on television advertising â€" and still have more money left to buy more airtime. Both started airing ads last week.

So far, Hahn has spent $1.3 million on his spots. Villaraigosa has spent $766,477.

Hertzberg said he was not concerned that Hahn and Villaraigosa have more in the bank, adding that he intends to use "creative" advertising to capture the public's attention.

"I'll do exactly what I need to do," he said. "I think I can spend the money much more intelligently."

Because the cost of advertising on broadcast television has risen sharply since the mayor's race four years ago, the candidates all face the daunting task of managing their campaign money effectively.

The Los Angeles media market is the nation's second largest after New York City, so TV advertising costs are the biggest expense for the top-tier candidates. A week of ads can cost from $250,000 for a low-level buy to $750,000 or more for saturation coverage, according to campaign consultants.

In a broadcast market that covers a vast swath of Southern California, the candidates must pay for ads that reach millions of people, many of them outside the city limits. But the candidates only need to reach the roughly 500,000 voters expected to cast ballots.

"You're kind of stuck," said Bruce Cain, director of the Institute of Governmental Studies at UC Berkeley, noting the limited effectiveness of other means of advertising, such as campaign mailers. "It's the TV ads that have the most powerful effect."

At the same time, Cain said, the value of TV ads also has steadily dropped in recent years, with viewership fragmenting among a growing number of cable channels â€" and many voters increasingly disengaged from politics.

For Parks, the lack of money to wage a major television campaign could make it hard to broaden his appeal beyond his base of African American voters in South Los Angeles.

"His base can only bring him so many votes," Erie said, adding that it is unlikely to be enough to win him one of the two spots in the likely May 17 runoff election.

A former Los Angeles police chief, Parks also has sought the support of white Republicans and conservatives, mainly in the San Fernando Valley. Among other things, he has stressed his law enforcement background and pro-business leanings.

Parks said his main focus would be "grass-roots" operations, but he also has taken a nontraditional approach to campaign ads, running a movie trailer in theaters throughout the Los Angeles area.

As Parks arrived at a Hollywood Chamber of Commerce reception Thursday, he said he would start running at least two different television ads on broadcast stations this weekend and would stay on the air until the March 8 election.

"Everyone who has gotten their TV ads up has gotten a bump" in the polls, he said. "We're going to get the same thing."

Overall, the reports show that since the mayoral campaign began, the candidates have raised just short of $7.9 million.

Of that, Hahn has collected the most â€" $2.9 million. Hertzberg and Villaraigosa have raised $1.8 million and $1.7 million, respectively. Parks has raised $771,000, and Alarcon trailed the other four with less than $550,000.

Villaraigosa, a former Assembly speaker, was the last of the major candidates to enter the race last year. Since then, he has been raising money at a rapid clip. "We're in a great place," said Ace Smith, Villaraigosa's campaign manager. "We've got momentum. There's nothing more you could ask for."

In the most recent reporting period, Villaraigosa raised far more than his competitors, collecting $360,223. Hertzberg came in second with $229,216. Hahn raised $153,684. Alarcon brought in $103,986 and Parks, who raised the most in the previous reporting period, fell to last, with $80,650.

Villaraigosa contributors who gave $1,000 each include the California Commerce Club casino; Viacom Chairman Jonathan Dolgen; Occidental Petroleum and its chairman, Ray Irani; radio personality Casey Kasem; the L.A. League of Conservation Voters; the Oak Tree Racing Assn.; and USA Petroleum Corp. Actor Jimmy Smits gave $500.

Hertzberg received $1,000 checks from Carlos Alberini, president of Guess Inc.; Polly Anthony, president of Geffen Records; Casino Systems; SBC California Employee PAC; and state Controller Steve Westly.

Hahn donors who gave $1,000 apiece include SunAmerica; the California Assn. of Professional Employees; California Teamsters Public Affairs Council; Clean Power Campaign; Hawaii Laborers PAC; International Brotherhood of Electrical Workers, Local 45; Los Angeles Police Command Officers Assn.; and the Los Angeles/Orange Counties Building and Construction Trade Council PAC.

In addition, Hahn's campaign has been bolstered by more than $250,000 in independent spending by labor unions aimed at Los Angeles voters. The unions also have spent another $101,900 to urge their own members to cast ballots for Hahn.

The largest contributions to Alarcon's campaign include $5,000 checks from Magdalena Beltran-Del Olmo, vice president of the California Wellness Foundation; attorney Paul Rodriguez; and banker Alfred Villalobos.

Parks received $6,000 from billboard company Regency Outdoor Advertising and $1,000 each from SBC California Employee PAC, Los Angeles County Supervisor Mike Antonovich and Pacific Capital Group executive Lodwrick M. Cook. Hollywood Park Casino gave him $500.

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Times staff writers Matea Gold and Patrick McGreevy and Times researcher Maloy Moore contributed to this report.

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