Election Debate Iffy but Group Pushes Ahead

National League of Women Voters officials were in Torrance this week preparing for a presidential debate that, they admit, may never come off.

“You need more than one candidate to hold a debate,” said Janice Kaplan, public affairs director of the group, which has been planning a debate June 4 between the Republican contenders at El Camino College.

With Vice President George Bush holding a commanding lead over Kansas Sen. Robert Dole and former religious broadcaster Pat Robertson’s campaign foundering, there is a growing sense among debate organizers that the race for the Republican nomination may be over before the campaign moves to California.

“As long as there is a race, we’re hoping there will be a debate,” said Kaplan, who was in Torrance along with other league officials from Washington. “We are going to go ahead with our plans at this point.”

Concern about the Republican debate has not dampened the spirit of an estimated 150 league volunteers who are busily moving ahead with plans for the debate between the remaining Democratic candidates in Torrance on June 5, just two days before the California primary.

Nearly $100,000 in cash and in-kind contributions have been pledged to help the league cover the cost of producing the debates.

The overall fund-raising goal is $250,000, and although the overhead cost will be less if only one debate is held, it will not be sliced in half, Kaplan said.

The Torrance debates are the last in a series sponsored by the league during the presidential primary season. Another set of debates is planned before the general election, including one Nov. 1 in Los Angeles.

Both Republican and Democratic candidates participated in a league debate Feb. 13 and 14 in Manchester, N.H.