Riverside, Alameda county polling places to get federal monitors

Officials with the U.S. Department of Justice will be monitoring polling places in Riverside and Alameda counties along with nearly 50 other jurisdictions across the nation on Tuesday to ensure that federal voting rights laws are not violated.

The federal government began monitoring polling sites in Riverside County after the agency’s Civil Rights Division filed a complaint against the county for failing to offer election-related information and assistance to Spanish-speaking voters, a violation of the Voting Rights Act.

The county and the Department of Justice reached a settlement in February 2010 that included having federal observers at polling stations.

A similar settlement was reached with Alameda County in 2011 after the federal government accused the county of failing to train an adequate number of poll workers to help Mandarin-, Cantonese- and Spanish-speaking voters on election day.

The Department of Justice will be monitoring polling places in 23 states.

Andre Birotte Jr., the U.S. attorney based in Los Angeles, on Friday also appointed Assistant U.S. Atty. Dennis Mitchell to serve as the department’s official election officer for the Nov. 6 election, to handle all citizen complaints of possible voting rights violations in Los Angeles, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, Ventura, Santa Barbara and San Luis Obispo counties.

“Even a potential violation of voting rights is an extremely serious matter," Birotte said in a statement. “Every citizen is entitled to vote without interference or discrimination. Citizens should not hesitate to report possible violations of voting rights laws.’’

Voters can contact the nustice Deparmtment online, at (213) 894-2484, or at voting.section@usdoj.gov.

-- Phil Willon in Riverside

 Photo: Venice polling place. Source: Al Seib, Los Angeles Times.

Bloomberg's Super-PAC spends $2.35 million to defeat Rep. Baca

New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg’s Super-PAC "Independence USA" poured an additional $2.35 million into a television advertising campaign to defeat Democratic Rep. Joe Baca of Rialto.

Baca is being challenged by fellow Democrat, state Sen. Gloria Negrete McLeod of Chino, in the 35^th Congressional District in San Bernardino County.

Bloomberg, a billionaire political independent who has endorsed Democratic President Barack Obama for president, in October announced that he was forming the Super-PAC to back candidates in either party who support his top causes, including tougher gun laws and same-sex marriage. The Super-PAC is targeting Baca because the mayor believes he is weak on gun control laws, he told the New York Times.

The $2.35 million will support a television ad campaign opposing Baca and supporting McLeod, according to a disclosure filed with the Federal Election Commission. That will be in addition to more than $400,000 spent by Bloomberg’s PAC on the race for mailers and other campaign material.

Baca, in a statement released Thursday, criticized Bloomberg’s campaign as being “full of lies.” Baca, first elected to Congress in 1999, is the only Democrat representing the Inland Empire in Congress.

“It is appalling that an East Coast outsider like Mayor Bloomberg is trying to dictate the outcome of a congressional race thousands of miles away,’’ Baca said.

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-- Phil Willon in Riverside

Photo: New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg. Source: Associated Press.

Latino legislators back illegal immigrant's bid to practice law

California’s Latino state legislators have stepped up to support an illegal immigrant and law school graduate seeking permission to practice law in the state.

The 23-member California Latino Legislative Caucus has submitted a brief to the California Supreme Court urging it to approve Sergio Garcia’s admission to the State Bar of California. The State Bar has certified to the court that Garcia has met all requirements for admission to the State Bar and urged that he be admitted.

 “Any student who has proven their contribution to the public good by earning an education and becoming a productive member of society deserves the opportunity to realize their full potential,’’ said Assemblyman Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens), chairman of the California Latino Legislative Caucus. 

The group of eight state senators and 15 Assembly members filed an amicus brief with the court. Garcia was brought to the U.S. from Mexico as a toddler and, after returning to his home country, came back to the U.S. illegally with family members when he was 17.

“Qualified undocumented students and graduates should be granted a law license so that they can become future leaders in the legal profession,’’ said Assemblyman Luis Alejo (D-Salinas).

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-- Patrick McGreevy in Sacramento

Photo: Mexico-born Sergio Garcia, who was brought to the U.S. illegally when he was a toddler and returned to California again when he was 17, has received support from state lawmakers to practice law in California. Credit: Don Bartletti / Los Angeles Times

 

State Sen. Alex Padilla to head national Latino group

State Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima) is stepping up onto the national stage with his election to head a prominent and powerful Latino advocacy group.

Padilla was elected over the weekend as president of the National Assn. of Latino Elected and Appointed Officials, which represents more than 6,500 Latino officials throughout the United States.

The organization has so much clout that both President Obama and Mitt Romney, the expected Republican challenger for the presidency, addressed NALEO at the convention where Padilla was elected.

"I am humbled and honored that my colleagues have chosen me to lead this organization during such an exciting and historic time for our community," Padilla said in a statement, adding that he takes over "as the Latino community prepares to play a decisive role this November."

The son of immigrant parents from Mexico, Padilla graduated from MIT with a degree in mechanical engineering and served later on the Los Angeles City Council, becoming its first Latino president at the age of 28.

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-- Patrick McGreevy in Sacramento

Photo: Sen. Alex Padilla (D-Pacoima), center with his hands up, celebrates passage of a bill last year to streamline review of a football stadium in Los Angeles. Credit: Rich Pedroncelli / Associated Press

Surprises shake up congressional races in the Inland Empire

One of the biggest upsets in Tuesday’s “top two” primary came in a San Bernardino County congressional race where the top Democratic candidate, Redlands Mayor Pete Aguilar, appears to have failed to collect enough votes to make it to the November runoff election, according to the preliminary ballot count.

The top two finishers were Republicans -- Rep. Gary Miller of Diamond Bar and state Sen. Bob Dutton of Rancho Cucamonga.  What makes it so surprising is that Democrats have a five-percentage-point edge in registered voters in the district, which spans from Redlands to Upland.

Democratic leaders in Washington were hoping to pick up the seat, one of a handful in California they consider critical to the party’s effort to recapture control of the U.S. House of Representatives.

INTERACTIVE MAP: California primary results

The race in the 31st Congressional District was tight: Miller nabbed 26.7% of the vote, compared to 24.9% for Dutton and 22.8% for Aguilar.

The remaining votes went to a trio of other Democrats on the ballot: Justin Kim, Rita-Ramirez-Dean and Renea Wickman. Combined, they received a quarter of the votes, siphoning support away from Aguilar, who was backed by the Democratic Party.

The Redlands mayor missed making it to November by slightly more 1,000 votes, according to the state’s preliminary election results. Some votes still need to be counted, however, including provisional and late-arriving mail-in ballots.

That congressional race was among the top targets of "super PACs" and other independent expenditure committees, which spent more than $1 million. The vast majority came from the National Realtors Assn., which backed Miller.

Richard Riordan launches effort to court Latinos for GOP

Former Los Angeles Mayor Richard J. Riordan’s political moderation and penchant for reaching across party lines hasn’t always sat well with many of his fellow California Republicans. They’ve long derided him as a "RINO" (Republican In Name Only) and soundly rejected him for a more conservative pol when he ran for the GOP nomination for governor in 2002.

Now the wealthy businessman and philanthropist is playing the maverick again. He’s launched a campaign aimed at coaxing Latinos into the Republican fold — and he’s doing it without the state party's involvement.

On Memorial Day, Riordan launched a radio ad campaign  under the auspices of Republicans Rebuilding California, a new political action committee he funded. The PAC will neither support specific candidates nor work with the party but is asking Latinos to consider “the Republican values: jobs, education and safety.”

Riordan has spent $43,000 on ads on bilingual and Spanish-language radio stations in areas where Republicans are in competitive races and there are large Spanish-speaking populations. They include Riverside, Ventura and Santa Barbara counties and the Central Valley communities of Modesto, Stockton and Bakersfield, according to a spokeswoman for the new organization.

When he won a second term as L.A. mayor in 1997, Riordan received 60% of the Latino vote in the heavily Democratic city, leading him to believe there is hope for Republicans with this ethnic group.

The Spanish-language ads were read by college senior Ericka Maldonado, daughter of former Lt. Gov. Abel Maldonado, and stockbroker Marilyn Salvador, whose grandparents emigrated from Mexico and worked picking crops in Northern California. 

Riordan is featured in the English version.

“As a Republican, I believe government should bring us jobs, keep us safe and educate our children,”  he said before urging listeners to exercise their right to vote.

California Latinos have been strongly backing Democratic candidates for years and Republican leaders have tried without much success to woo the fast-growing voter group.

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--Jean Merl

Photo: Former Los Angeles Mayor Richard Riordan at an event with charter school parents and teachers last year. Credit: Bret Hartman / For The Times

California Latino caucus chair quits after endorsement dispute

Assemblyman Tony Mendoza (D-Artesia) was replaced Tuesday as chairman of the California Latino Legislative Caucus after he came under fire from members over his political leadership, including a dispute over a hotly contested race in Los Angeles County.

Mendoza said he would step down effective March 9. Assemblyman Ricardo Lara (D-Bell Gardens) was elected Tuesday by a super-majority vote as chairman of the 23-member caucus.

Mendoza said in a statement that he is resigning because he has decided to run for a seat on the Central Basin Municipal Water District, which he accused of "exorbitant" spending.

"As time is short to campaign for this seat, for which the election was recently moved to June, I don’t want to short change the Caucus, the constituents I currently serve or the constituents of the Water District by spreading my time too thin,'' he said to explain his resignation.

But sources familiar with the caucus’ internal discussions said some legislators had voiced concern that Mendoza was not raising enough money for its political action committee and other causes, and that a dispute over a Southern California political race brought the matter to a head.

In a letter to Mendoza last week, state Sen. Ron Calderon (D-Montebello), the caucus’ vice chair,  protested the leader's handling of an endorsement vote regarding the senator’s brother, Tom Calderon, who is running for the 58^th Assembly District seat against Downey Councilman Luis Marquez. Mendoza has endorsed Marquez.

Sen. Calderon wrote that 16 caucus members submitted vote cards favoring an endorsement of Tom Calderon, which met the two-thirds vote threshold, but that Mendoza disallowed the endorsement after ruling they were not submitted in time and in the proper manner.

"It is of great concern that for Tuesday's endorsement vote you required members to be in attendance to vote --as opposed to sending in a vote card as has been the past practice -- required that they travel five city blocks to vote and finally restricting their ability to vote to a forty-five minute window," Sen. Calderon wrote. "The precedence of this action can only be interpreted as an attempt to limit the voting wishes of the caucus membership."

Mendoza's statement on his decision to step down made no mention of the endorsement dispute.

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-- Patrick McGreevy in Sacramento

Mitt Romney touts endorsement by former Gov. Pete Wilson

 

Mitt Romney on Monday announced his endorsement by former California Gov. Pete Wilson, who became both honorary chairman of Romney's campaign in California and a quick target of immigrant rights groups.

In a statement released by the Romney campaign, Wilson said: "Mitt Romney is an enthusiastic believer in American exceptionalism and has been a spectacular example of it." Wilson cited Romney's record in business, his management of the 2002 Winter Olympics and his governorship in Massachusetts.

Romney, who has been rolling out endorsements to build momentum after his back-to-back wins in Nevada and Florida, called Wilson "one of California's most accomplished leaders."

But immigrant rights groups were quick to pounce on the association. Wilson has become a boogeyman in California politics due to his backing of Proposition 187, the 1994 ballot measure targeting illegal immigrants that many analysts believe chased California Latinos into the Democratic party and lost the state for the GOP.

Romney has staked out an increasingly tough stance on illegal immigration during the Republican primaries this year to differentiate himself from former House Speaker Newt Gingrich and Texas Gov. Rick Perry.

"Romney can’t seem to stop himself from digging deeper and deeper into his hole with Latino voters," said Eliseo Medina of the Service Employees International Union in a statement. "Here is what Pete Wilson accomplished: He turned Latino voters against the GOP brand."

Medina and other immigrant groups were quick to note that Romney is also being advised by Kansas Secretary of State Kris Kobach, who helped write controversial laws against illegal immigration in Alabama and Arizona.

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--Nicholas Riccardi in Sacramento

File photo: Former California Gov. Pete Wilson, who Monday endorsed former Massachusetts Gov. Mitt Romney for the GOP presidential nomination. Credit: Rick Meyer / Los Angeles Times

Effort to repeal California Dream Act comes up short

Critics of illegal immigration announced Friday that they were unable to obtain the needed 500,000 petition signatures to ask voters to repeal the California Dream Act signed into law last year by Gov. Jerry Brown.

In an email to supporters, Assemblyman Tim Donnelly (R-San Bernardino), the public face of the initiative drive, said petitioners had netted only 447,514 signatures to submit to the secretary of state by the deadline on Friday. They would have needed to submit well above the 504,760 threshold because some signatures are inevitably found to be invalid.

The law allows illegal immigrants to qualify for taxpayer-funded scholarships at California's public university systems.

"This is disappointing news," Donnelly said in his email, but he added: "It is no less of a warning to Governor Brown, and every Democrat legislator who voted to create a new entitlement program for illegals while the state still has a budget deficit over $9 billion, and cannot even meet it's obligation to legal California students."

It's been a rough week for Donnelly, the Assembly's only tea party legislator. On Wednesday, he was detained by police for trying to board a plane with a loaded handgun in his briefcase. Donnelly said he forgot the weapon was there.

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-- Nicholas Riccardi in Sacramento

Photo: Two California Dream Act supporters, Myra Ortiz and Ana Cid, hug at a July rally for the measure in Lynwood. Credit: Mark Boster / Los Angeles Times

Voters hesitant on farmworker proposal, poll finds

California voters are split over a proposal to make it easier for farmworkers to unionize, according to a new poll.

Last month, the Legislature passed a bill that would have given farmworkers the option of organizing without the usual petition, followed by a secret election. Instead, they could submit to state labor officials cards signed by a majority of workers saying they want representation.

The United Farm Workers hoped to have an ally in Gov. Jerry Brown, who gave agricultural laborers the right to organize by secret ballot when he was first governor more than three decades ago. But Brown vetoed the legislation.

In the poll, by The Times and the USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences, respondents were nearly evenly divided on the proposal: 45% opposed such a measure and 42% supported it.

The survey suggested labor leaders need to refine their message. Pollsters asked voters to reconsider the matter after hearing both sides’ arguments:

Supporters, they said, contend that such a measure would prevent corporations from controlling the information workers receive and intimidating or firing those trying to vote for a union. Opponents argued that it would eliminate workers’ right to privacy and raise the risk of intimidation and coercion if they were forced to sign a card in public.

After hearing both pitches, voters opposed the bill 48% to 39%, although Latino sentiment held steady at 44% in favor and 44% opposed.

The Times/USC Dornsife College of Letters, Arts and Sciences surveyed 1,507 registered voters from July 6 to 17. The poll was conducted by a bipartisan team of polling companies based in the Washington, D.C., area: Greenberg Quinlan Rosner, a Democratic firm, and American Viewpoint, a Republican firm. The margin of error is plus or minus 2.52 percentage points.

More poll findings to come.

-- Michael J. Mishak in Sacramento