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P&F 2006 Campaign News Coverage

From the 4 May 2006 Sacramento Bee, original version no longer available there:

Many local primary races shaping up as no contest

By Terri Hardy -- Bee Staff Writer

Published 2:15 am PDT Thursday, May 4, 2006

Steve Cohn's re-election headquarters stands ready for action: inspirational bunting ("Vote Cohn"), a sea of tables brandishing telephones for voter outreach, lots of room for eager volunteers.

But drive by the I Street storefront in midtown Sacramento and you'll often find it empty. Since challenger Bruce Pomer in April pulled out of active campaigning because of a death in the family, what promised to be the city's most vigorous race has become a case study in going through the motions.

The lack of a competitive June 6 primary for Cohn's council seat has played itself over and over this year - not just in most other city races, but in Sacramento County primary races as well.

Incumbent Councilmen Ray Tretheway and Robbie Waters are unchallenged, and Councilwoman Lauren Hammond is the overwhelming favorite in her race. Meanwhile, incumbent County Supervisors Roger Dickinson and Don Nottoli were given byes, and District Attorney Jan Scully is unopposed, as is County Assessor Kenneth Stieger. Candidates in two of three county Board of Education races face no competition. And 17 Sacramento Superior Court judges up for election have won by default.

It's not unusual for council races in Sacramento to go unopposed. Since 1987 only three elections have had challengers for every race.

But Sacramento County voter registrar Jill LaVine said many of this year's races do seem especially sleepy.

"I was surprised," LaVine said. "I don't know if people are absolutely happy or if they just don't care. I'm hoping they're happy."

Political observers and academics have different takes on why the City Council elections this year have drawn so few takers.

Former Sacramento Mayor Phil Isenberg said the absence of challengers means "no big controversial issue wracking the body politic."

Or, it could mean it's too difficult and costly to run against an incumbent, said Ted Lascher, chair of the public policy and administration department at California State University.

In 2005, Lascher published a study in an academic journal in which he studied county supervisor races throughout California over several years. He found that in one-third of the races supervisors faced no challenger.

"People often act strategically, biding their time until a seat comes open with no incumbent," Lascher said.

Councilman Cohn said he and his team of volunteers are still walking precincts and talking about issues.

But he admits that election fervor has cooled in District 3,made up of neighborhoods including midtown, east Sacramento and Campus Commons.

"People aren't as motivated, that's true," Cohn said. "I won't be doing any more major fundraisers. My constituents will benefit because they won't get bombarded with campaign mail."

The four city elections in 2006 have turned out to be nearly a non-event. No races are in Tretheway's District 1, which includes Natomas and downtown, or in Waters' District 7, which takes in the Pocket area.

In District 5, which contains Oak Park and Curtis Park, activist Linda "LR" Roberts is facing Councilwoman Lauren Hammond, who's occupied the seat since 1997. Roberts has yet to mount a serious campaign, raising only $258 and gathering little in the way of an organized volunteer base.

She isn't likely to qualify for the city's public financing program, designed to help fund challengers' campaigns.

Kris Greenlee, vice chairman of California Common Cause, calls the program "the best kept secret in Sacramento."

Roberts, the contender in District 5, said the financial match requires the challenger to first raise $7,000, a goal she isn't close to making. "It's a way to weed out poor people," Roberts said.

But the incumbents haven't had problems raising money. In a 14-month period ending March 11, city records show Waters leading the pack with $142,091, followed by Cohn with $89,841, Tretheway with $65,213 and Hammond with $45,223.

Compare that to Pomer's $3,297 and Roberts' $258.

Winners can keep the funds as part of a city "office holder account" to pay for things such as cell phone bills or myriad dinners they are expected to attend. Losers, after paying any debts, must donate the surplus funds to a charity or another political action committee. Or, in either case, the money can be transferred to the candidate's own future election committee.

Roberts said her race with Hammond is likely to be difficult, but she thinks she's beatable.

Although she said she's not running an "anti-Lauren" campaign, she was prompted to enter the fray because of her frustrations with how the city has dealt with absentee slumlords, and because of the city's decision to aggressively fight demands by the disabled community to make sidewalks accessible.

Roberts said the city charter needs to be changed from a strong city manager municipality to one with a strong council. She would look to change the district boundaries so Tahoe Park was not split between two council members, and she would push for more public transportation in her district.

Hammond's top priorities include more affordable housing and economic development, particularly boosting small businesses.

"In some neighborhoods, incomes have improved while in others people are underemployed," Hammond said. "Economic help should not just be directed to big business, and not all of it should go downtown."

A crime spate in Oak Park has concerned Hammond and she said she is working with police about different law enforcement strategies. Still, she said, she believes people think she's done a good job.

"Looking around my district, it's better, there's no doubt about it," Hammond said. "There are new streetscapes and new businesses. Home prices have increased."

East Sacramento resident Marilynn Mackey said the lack of competition in the District 3 race will be a detriment to voters.

She's particularly concerned about the planned expansion of Sutter Hospital and another proposal to add on to Mercy General Hospital.

"If there's no opposition there's no reason to confront difficult issues," Mackey said. "It's all going to be swept under the rug."

Cohn disagrees, saying campaigns rarely delve into serious issues.

"It's all sound bites and slogans," Cohn said. "Having elections keep representatives accountable and listening to their constituents. But if people think the only way to have good dialogue is during an election, they're mistaken."

The Bee's Terri Hardy can be reached at (916) 321-1073 or thardy@sacbee.com