Villaraigosa, Hahn Kick Off Rematch With Sharp Words

Los Angeles Mayor James K. Hahn and Councilman Antonio Villaraigosa kicked off their rematch Wednesday with the incumbent saying he has “the guts to make tough decisions” and his opponent calling the election results “an indictment of the Hahn administration.”

On the first day of the 10-week race to the May 17 runoff election, the two veteran politicians promised to talk about leadership. But their swipes at each other indicated their second showdown could become as contentious as the first.

Their previous face-off came in a hostile runoff in June 2001.

Hahn appeared at a noon news conference at his Miracle Mile campaign headquarters and belittled his opponent as someone who talks in generalities. “I can talk about specific things I want to do,” he said.

Villaraigosa scheduled his first postelection event in the Valley, whose voters are likely to play a crucial role in the runoff. He set a slightly less combative tone at an afternoon news conference in North Hollywood, but repeated his criticism of Hahn’s style of leadership.

“You’ve got to have the energy, the ability to build consensus, the ability to inspire people,” he said, highlighting traits that polls show voters associate with him.The two emerged as the top two finishers after a long night of ballot counting that stretched into Wednesday morning. Because neither won a majority, they will face each other in a runoff election.

With 99% of the precincts reporting, Villaraigosa won 33% of the vote, up from the 30% he won four years ago in the first round of the mayoral election. Hahn had 24% of the vote, down from 25%.

Former Assembly Speaker Bob Hertzberg, who was not widely known when he started but made a vigorous run at Hahn, received 22%. He came within about 5,800 votes of eliminating the mayor.

The two other major challengers -- Councilman Bernard C. Parks, the former police chief whom Hahn ousted three years ago, and state Sen. Richard Alarcon (D-Sun Valley) -- finished farther behind. Parks won 13% and Alarcon 4%.

Both Hahn and Villaraigosa said they would seek the endorsements of the three major candidates who lost. Hertzberg ran strongly among white voters, particularly in the Valley, while Parks won most of the city’s black voters, according to a Times exit poll.

Hertzberg and Parks did not throw their support behind either contender Wednesday, but comments by Hertzberg and Parks’ son suggested the mayor was unlikely to win them over.

Hertzberg, whose contest with Hahn grew increasingly acrimonious, offered a clue to his thinking. “I wouldn’t have run if I felt the city was moving in the right direction,” he said at a morning news conference at which he conceded defeat.

“I ran in this election because I thought that Los Angeles wasn’t living up to its potential,” the Sherman Oaks attorney told reporters at his Encino headquarters, adding that he would not disappear from the political scene.

In the closing days of the campaign, Hahn and his allies launched an all-out assault on Hertzberg, charging him with doing the bidding of disgraced energy trader Enron. Late Tuesday night, Hertzberg responded sharply when asked why Hahn was in the fight of his political life. “Because he took the job of mayor of Los Angeles, and he didn’t do the job. That’s the reason,” he said.

Parks, who also consistently attacked Hahn throughout the campaign, declined interview requests.

On Tuesday night, the councilman lashed out at the Hahn administration, excoriating it for mismanaging city funds and the Police Department, and for allowing infrastructure to deteriorate.

Bernard Parks Jr., who helped manage his father’s campaign, said it was too early to say whether his father would support Villaraigosa.

He said the two councilmen have a warm relationship. But he also noted that Villaraigosa’s politics are to the left of the law-and-order former police chief who campaigned on making Los Angeles more business-friendly.

“That stuff all needs to be considered,” Parks Jr. said. “Although there is that difference, there’s also a need for a leader. Antonio has great qualities in that regard. And so how do you figure that out?”

Alarcon could not be reached for comment.

An upbeat Hahn and a buoyant Villaraigosa both said the upcoming campaign would not be a grudge match. “This isn’t personal at all,” Hahn said.

Nonetheless, the two men, whose frosty relationship has endured since the 2001 contest, pointedly critiqued each other, offering a preview of their runoff strategies.

Hahn, who came closer to elimination Tuesday than any incumbent mayor in 32 years, will probably have to fight hard to overcome Villaraigosa’s advantages.

A Times exit poll showed the mayor is in a substantially weaker position than he was four years ago, when he dispatched Villaraigosa in the runoff by a 7-point margin. Only 48% of voters polled reported having a favorable impression of Hahn, compared with 70% four years ago. Villaraigosa was viewed favorably by 71% of voters, compared with 68% in 2001.

Polls also have shown that voters do not credit Hahn with accomplishing much in his first term. Hahn acknowledged that he would have to do more to tell voters what he has done.

“I understand the message of yesterday’s vote -- that I’ve got to do a better job communicating with people about what we’ve been doing to make this a better city,” he said.

Hahn has tried to sell voters on his success at reducing crime, adding affordable housing and expanding after-school programs.

The mayor said he would continue to talk about his efforts to stop the San Fernando Valley from seceding in 2002 and his move to replace Parks with William J. Bratton, which he has made central to his campaign.

Both actions, while unquestionably decisive, have hurt his standing with voters in the Valley and in South Los Angeles. “People don’t stay angry forever,” said Hahn, expressing optimism about regaining their favor.

But Hahn also made clear that part of his strategy would be to compare his accomplishments with Villaraigosa’s record, which the mayor suggested was less than impressive.

“He can talk about what he’s been doing on citywide issues since he’s been councilman,” said Hahn, adding wryly, “None of those immediately come to mind.”

The mayor suggested he would highlight Villaraigosa’s opposition to a sales tax hike to pay for more police officers, an initiative Hahn unsuccessfully pushed the council to place on the May 17 ballot. Villaraigosa was one of six council members who opposed the measure.

Four years ago, Hahn, who was then the city attorney, repeatedly criticized Villaraigosa’s record as an assemblyman before launching the most controversial attack of the campaign. In a television ad, he highlighted Villaraigosa’s efforts to seek consideration of a presidential pardon for convicted crack cocaine dealer Carlos Vignali.

The ad featured images of a crack pipe and grainy pictures of Villaraigosa, leading to charges of racism, which Hahn has denied.

Villaraigosa has since acknowledged that he did not do enough to counter Hahn’s assault.

On Wednesday, Hahn, who has reprised the Vignali issue in a television ad in this campaign, did not disavow future negative ads. “I can’t predict what will happen,” he said.

Villaraigosa gave indications he is girding for a fight.

In a fundraising plea e-mailed to potential donors Wednesday, Villaraigosa reminded his supporters of the mayor’s attacks. “We’ve seen what Jim Hahn will do when he gets desperate,” Villaraigosa wrote. “Please give us the financial resources we need to fight back.”

In several public appearances, Villaraigosa seemed intent on striking a more positive tone, a common approach for a front-runner.

“The voters responded to our message. It was a message of hope,” Villaraigosa said at North Hollywood High School, where he met with a social studies class Wednesday afternoon.

But the councilman also indicated he would continue to attack the mayor’s leadership style and integrity. Such criticism has been a regular feature of his campaign pitch.

Villaraigosa for months has accused Hahn of presiding over a corrupt administration. In the days before the election, he aired a television ad that featured headlines about subpoenas and resignations tied to the criminal investigation into city contracting and the activities of several Hahn fundraisers.

Villaraigosa said Hahn’s weak showing in the election indicated that voters want “a mayor who can restore trust and confidence in their government, a mayor they can believe in.”

Hahn, as he has throughout the campaign, dismissed the accusation that he would tolerate corruption. “There is no one who holds himself to a higher ethical standard than I do,” he said.

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Breakdown of the mayoral vote

Among the four top finishers in Tuesday’s election, Mayor James K. Hahn won the fewest precincts, according to preliminary results released Wednesday. Antonio Villaraigosa won the most precincts as well as the popular vote.

Percent of vote

33%: Antonio Villaraigosa, who won 825 precincts, dominated the heavily Latino Eastside, the central city and the northeast Valley.

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24%: James K. Hahn, who won 102 precincts, came in first mainly in precincts near his home in San Pedro. He qualified for the runoff by finishing second in many other parts of the city.

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22%: Bob Hertzberg, who won 474 precincts and finished third, did particularly well in heavily Jewish precincts in the Pico-Robertson and Beverly-Fairfax neighborhoods and dominated wealthier parts of the Valley and hillside communities.

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13%: Bernard C. Parks won 185 precincts, mostly those with large numbers of black voters across South Los Angeles and in Pacoima.

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8%: Others

Source: Los Angeles City Clerk. Data analysis by Sandra Poindexter

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Times staff writers Richard Fausset and Jeffrey L. Rabin contributed to this report.