Geraldine Ferraro Backs Bradley in Reelection Effort

Mayor Tom Bradley on Saturday received the endorsement of Geraldine Ferraro, last year’s Democratic vice presidential candidate.

Calling Bradley a “strong national figure” with “character and classiness,” Ferraro warned Bradley supporters at an afternoon reception not to rely on recent polls showing the mayor would win reelection in the April 9 primary despite an aggressive challenge by Councilman John Ferraro.

“Those of us on the short side of the polls kind of hope for apathy,” she said, recalling the Democratic national ticket’s trouncing last year.

Democratic presidential nominee Walter F. Mondale and Ferraro carried Los Angeles, and Bradley said Geraldine Ferraro’s endorsement was important because “she has great prestige” in the minds of local voters.

As the first woman to be a major party’s vice presidential candidate, Ferraro was part of a “revolutionary change in the political process,” Bradley said.

Ferraro noted that Bradley, too, was considered for the No. 2 spot on the Democratic ticket. “His participation in that process is indicative of how national leaders feel about” the mayor, she said.

Bradley also expressed concern about complacency as a result of his strong showing in the polls. “Election Day is April 9; not tomorrow,” he told the gathering at the Wilshire-Ebell Club.

Talking with reporters, the mayor said keeping his supporters motivated will be a key theme in the closing weeks of the campaign. “When you’re in a contest of this kind . . . people tend to get apathetic,” he said.