Outside groups shatter spending record in L.A. City Council race

from the LA Times
by Maeve Reston

Unions and other groups inject nearly $1 million into the San Fernando Valley contest for the seat once held by Wendy Greuel. More than 90% of that amount is aimed at helping Christine Essel.

As the Los Angeles City Council race between Assemblyman Paul Krekorian and former film executive Christine Essel drew to a close, outside groups shattered the record for independent spending in a non-citywide election since ethics officials began tracking those figures two decades ago.

By Sunday evening, independent groups, including some of the city's most powerful unions, had poured nearly $1 million into the contest for the San Fernando Valley seat formerly held by Wendy Greuel. More than 90% of that money has been devoted to boosting Essel's bid. Heading into Tuesday's runoff, Essel's campaign outspent Krekorian by nearly two to one.

So-called independent expenditure committees are not subject to the same city contribution limits as individual candidates, but they cannot coordinate with the candidates they support.

Faced with a constant stream of mailings and commercials on Essel's behalf by the political committees of the Police Protective League ($403,733) and unions representing the construction trade and electric workers, Krekorian has tried to turn Essel's financial advantage into a vulnerability in the final weeks.

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