Parties Aim Big Guns at Swing Voters : Bush, Bentsen and Brown Appear at Weekend Rallies

Vice President George Bush is scheduled to rally Republican supporters in Woodland Hills this morning. Lloyd Bentsen fired up the faithful in Burbank on Friday. And former Gov. Edmund G. Brown Jr. addressed volunteers for Michael S. Dukakis in Van Nuys on Saturday as part of an ambitious grass-roots effort to turn out a big Democratic vote in the San Fernando Valley.

As the long presidential race rumbles to a close, the Valley looms as a battleground for the allegiance of many so-called “Reagan Democrats,” who may decide what polls show is a close race in a crucial state.

Bush, his wife, Barbara, and various entertainers are expected to draw a large crowd to what the Republican campaign hailed in newspaper advertisements as “the Rally in the Valley” at Warner Park. Actors Arnold Schwarzenegger and Chuck Norris are to join the Bushes.

“There’s a great source of those swing voters,” said Bush California spokeswoman Donna Lucas. “It’s very important to get in there and make that last appeal.”

Lucas said 3,000 to 5,000 are expected at the 10:30 a.m. rally. Other Bush aides acknowledged privately that the campaign was shooting for 15,000 to 25,000, and police said they were preparing for up to 30,000. In addition to the newspaper advertisements, invitations were mailed to 50,000 GOP supporters, said campaign spokeswoman Christine Samuelian.

Tradition of Late Rallies

The pre-election event continues a tradition of Valley rallies that was begun by Ronald Reagan in 1980 and 1984.

The Dukakis campaign, meanwhile, says it has mobilized 2,000 volunteers throughout the Valley in recent weeks to contact loyal Democratic and “swing voters” about their intentions Tuesday, and to follow up with reminders to vote and assistance in getting to the polls. This is part of a massive $4.5-million statewide field effort.

“We’re confident that we’re going to be able to get out the vote that we want to get out,” said Mark Murphy, the campaign’s regional director for the Valley and West Los Angeles. “Our precinct operation is the most extensive ever.”

The Valley campaign has focused particular attention on 800 precincts dominated by Democratic voters who backed presidential nominee Walter Mondale in 1984 or those who voted for Reagan in 1984 but also for Democratic Sen. Alan Cranston in 1986.

Pacoima and San Fernando, with their large black and Latino populations, blue-collar Van Nuys, and parts of North Hollywood and Studio City are considered Democratic strongholds, Murphy said. Affluent communities with a high proportion of Jewish voters--the “Ventura Boulevard corridor,” extending from North Hollywood to Woodland Hills--are considered swing precincts. Burbank is also up for grabs in the Dukakis calculation.

Final Training Session

More than 700 precinct captains--each responsible for getting out the Dukakis vote in their neighborhoods--gathered at the Carpenters Local Union 209 headquarters in Van Nuys on Saturday for a final training session. Brown, who has said he plans to run for state Democratic Party chairman; Rep. Anthony C. Beilenson (D-Tarzana) and Los Angeles City Councilwoman Joy Picus addressed the troops.

At the congressional and state legislative levels, voters who value continuity should love Tuesday’s tallies. None of the dozen Valley-area incumbents seeking reelection are expected to face a close race after quiet, generally low-profile contests.

In fact, Beilenson, considered one of the few potentially vulnerable local lawmakers, is so confident of victory that he has neither solicited nor spent any money on his fall campaign. His Republican opponent, foreign trade consultant Jim Salomon of Beverly Hills, says he has raised more than $70,000 but appears to have generated little excitement among the GOP.

Salomon, whose goal was to raise $200,000 to $300,000, said last week: “If I get the proper exposure, I’ll win. Period.”

Not all the challengers were taking the electoral bottom line too seriously. Burbank Republican G.C. (Brodie) Broderson, an actor who is opposing three-term Rep. Howard L. Berman (D-Panorama City), said “unless lightning strikes,” his post-election plans will take him to Tokyo as part of a juggling routine.

“Either way, I’m going to be in comedy,” Broderson quipped.

Congressional Races

In the 21st Congressional District, Rep. Elton Gallegly (R-Simi Valley) is opposed by Don Stevens, a Thousand Oaks Democrat, and Robert Jay, a Westlake Village Libertarian. The district includes eastern Ventura County and parts of the northern and western San Fernando Valley.

In the 23rd District, Beilenson faces John Vernon, a Van Nuys Libertarian, and John Honigsfeld, a Los Angeles Peace and Freedom Party candidate, as well as Salomon. The district extends from the West Valley across the Santa Monica Mountains to the Westside of Los Angeles.

In the 24th District, Rep. Henry A. Waxman (D-Los Angeles) faces John N. Cowles, a Los Angeles Republican; George Abrahams, a Los Angeles Libertarian, and James Green, a Los Angeles Peace and Freedom candidate. The district includes the Hollywood-Fairfax area and sections of Studio City, North Hollywood and Sun Valley in the East Valley.

In the 26th District, Berman faces only Broderson. The district includes the East Valley and extends just over the Santa Monica Mountains.

In the state Senate, incumbent Ed Davis (R-Valencia) is opposed by Andrew Martin, a Newhall Democrat, and Aaron Starr, a Simi Valley Libertarian, in the 19th District. The district includes the western San Fernando Valley and the Newhall-western Antelope Valley area in Los Angeles County, the northern and non-coastal sections of Ventura County and most of Santa Barbara County.

Assembly Contests

In Assembly races, incumbent Tom McClintock (R-Thousand Oaks) is opposed by George Webb II, a Moorpark Democrat, and H. Bruce Driscoll, a Thousand Oaks Libertarian, in the 36th District. The district includes the cities of Ventura, Camarillo and Thousand Oaks, and portions of Oxnard and Port Hueneme in Ventura County.

In the 37th District, Assemblywoman Cathie Wright (R-Simi Valley) is being challenged by Jeffrey H. Marcus, a Chatsworth Democrat, and Michael Bachwansky, a Leona Valley Libertarian. The district includes Chatsworth, Newhall and Saugus in Los Angeles County; Simi Valley, Fillmore and Ojai in Ventura County, and Lompoc and Buellton in Santa Barbara County.

In the 38th District, Assemblywoman Marian W. La Follette (R-Northridge) faces Mark Lit, a Northridge Democrat. The district includes the West San Fernando Valley and stretches across to Sunland-Tujunga and part of Burbank.

In the 39th District, Assemblyman Richard Katz (D-Sepulveda) is opposed by Jim Rendleman, a Granada Hills Republican, and Alexander M. Newton, a Sylmar Libertarian. The district includes the northeast Valley.

In the 40th District, Assemblyman Tom Bane (D-Van Nuys) faces Bruce Dahl, a Van Nuys Republican, and Michael Prah, a North Hollywood Libertarian. The district includes Van Nuys and parts of other southern Valley communities.

In the 43rd District, Assemblyman Terry B. Friedman (D-Tarzana) is opposed by Tom Franklin, a Beverly Hills Republican; Robert Townsend Leet, a Tarzana Libertarian, and Margery Hinds, a Los Angeles Peace and Freedom candidate. The district stretches from Studio City to Topanga Canyon and over the Santa Monica Mountains to Beverly Hills, Westwood and Brentwood.

In the 45th District, Assemblyman Burt Margolin (D-Los Angeles) faces David Frankel, a Los Angeles Republican, and Julie Fausto, a Los Angeles Peace and Freedom candidate. The district includes parts of Toluca Lake, Universal City, North Hollywood, Hollywood, West Hollywood and Hancock Park.