Riordan Friend to Run Hahn’s Mayoral Race

Bill Wardlaw, an investment banker who is Mayor Richard Riordan’s best friend and one of Los Angeles’ most influential political insiders, has agreed to lead the mayoral campaign of City Atty. James Hahn, a move thick with implications for the mayor’s race and local politics.

That decision solidifies Hahn’s place as the early favorite by giving him new leverage to raise money and the potential benefit of Wardlaw’s strong ties to labor and the city’s Latino leadership.

At the same time, the move may portend deep trouble for the possible candidacy of County Supervisor Zev Yaroslavsky, a longtime friend of Wardlaw’s. It also fuels a growing feud between Wardlaw and mayoral candidate Steve Soboroff and threatens to drive a wedge through the coalition that came together to elect Riordan in 1993 and again in 1997.

On a personal level, it also represents an extraordinary example of the strange bedfellows that politics can make--and of the friendships it can test. Just two years ago, Wardlaw chaired the campaign of lawyer Ted Stein, who then was seeking to knock Hahn out of the city attorney’s office. Now, Wardlaw is taking the side of his former adversary and squaring off against Soboroff, the civically active commercial real estate broker whom Riordan believes should succeed him as Los Angeles’ next mayor in 2001.

“Rarely do Dick Riordan and I come to different conclusions. I love Dick Riordan,” said Wardlaw, who agreed to run Hahn’s campaign 10 days ago but did not inform Riordan of his decision until Sunday. “But we have come to different conclusions here.”

When reached Sunday night, a spokeswoman for the mayor said he had just learned of the development and was “very surprised because he didn’t know that Bill had a high opinion of Jim Hahn.” Soboroff and Yaroslavsky were unavailable to comment.

Reached Sunday, Hahn welcomed Wardlaw to his camp and said there were no hard feelings from the last campaign.

“To be successful in politics, you have to know it’s not about holding grudges,” he said. “Bill Wardlaw knows what it takes to win. . . . He’s been very involved in turning this city around.”

According to Hahn, Wardlaw will be responsible for coordinating his growing campaign team, which also includes consultant Bill Carrick, a long-standing friend and ally of Wardlaw. Among other duties, Wardlaw, whose title will be campaign chairman and who will not be paid for his work, will be responsible for broad strategy decisions and for organizing a fund-raising team. The latter is an especially high priority because Hahn is said to be trailing Soboroff in raising cash. Wardlaw’s presence will undoubtedly help in that area because it will signal to many potential donors that the city attorney is a front-runner and a sound investment.

Wardlaw also delivers an element of toughness to Hahn’s campaign. Where Hahn is liked by many people, he does not inspire much fear. By contrast, Wardlaw, who operates out of the limelight, brings muscle and mystery, making him a worrisome person to have as an opponent.

Although never a candidate himself, Wardlaw has been involved in politics at all levels for decades. He has run statewide campaigns for Alan Cranston, Dianne Feinstein and Bill Clinton, among others. Locally, he and his wife, U.S. District Judge Kim Wardlaw, were instrumental in persuading Riordan to run for mayor in 1993, and Bill Wardlaw ran that campaign as well. Riordan has called Wardlaw his best and most loyal friend, and within Los Angeles politics, Wardlaw’s standing approaches--some say exceeds--that of the mayor himself.

Wardlaw also has cultivated close ties to labor, a potential bonus to Hahn, whose standing with unions is fair but nowhere near as solid as that of Assembly Speaker Antonio Villaraigosa, another mayoral candidate. Once a protege of Jim Wood, who ran the county labor federation, Wardlaw’s politics are centrist and working class. He is friendly with Miguel Contreras, current head of the labor federation, and has joined with labor in helping to back council candidates and in shoring up Riordan’s union support.

Wardlaw said his decision to back Hahn grew out of a series of meetings the two have been having for six to nine months. Over that time, Wardlaw said he has been impressed by the city attorney’s plans for building on Riordan’s legacy and accomplishments.

“I have been talking to Jim Hahn quite regularly about the issues that are important to this city,” he said. “I’ve come to the conclusion that his candidacy is the best opportunity to continue our prosperity and the sense of security that Dick Riordan has brought to Los Angeles.”

At the same time, Wardlaw’s move to the Hahn camp reflects his deepening unhappiness with Soboroff, a little-known contender, but one who is proving to be an energetic candidate and who is making the most out of his endorsement by the popular Riordan.

Riordan Allies’ Feud Escalates

The differences between Wardlaw and Soboroff include Wardlaw’s unhappiness with the way Soboroff uses Riordan’s legacy--in the view of some Riordan supporters, Soboroff takes credit for things he only played a small role in--and Soboroff’s frustration with Wardlaw’s behind-the-scenes influence. Although simmering for some time, the dispute erupted in recent weeks when Soboroff accused Wardlaw of meddling in school district politics. Wardlaw sternly retorted, and then Soboroff backed off.

So sharp has their break become that their feud rapidly is becoming a central fact of Los Angeles politics, though Riordan continues to downplay it.

Because their conflict is widely known, Wardlaw’s decision to back a different candidate will not surprise many people. What will is the fact that he chose Hahn rather than waiting for his friend Yaroslavsky. Wardlaw will not comment on that aspect of his decision, but many of the supervisor’s supporters have grown tired of waiting for Yaroslavsky to make up his mind.

Time and again, sources close to Yaroslavsky have said he seemed poised to make an announcement, only to have the expected day come and go without word from him. In recent weeks, some of Yaroslavsky’s associates have reported that the supervisor will decide on a possible run early next year.

Yaroslavsky--who, as a county supervisor, already has an important, well-paid job without the problem of any term limit--steadfastly refuses to comment on the likelihood of him running.

Meanwhile, the field is taking shape. In addition to Hahn, who was the earliest official candidate, Villaraigosa announced his candidacy in October and has been running hard. Soboroff is impressing political insiders with his devotion to the effort and prodigious fund-raising. City Councilman Joel Wachs is forcefully making the case that he is the best candidate to protect the public treasury and recently attracted notice with his low-key disclosure that he is gay.

Still in the wings contemplating the race are state Controller Kathleen Connell and U.S. Congressman Xavier Becerra.

With so many candidates gathering so early for the race, some Yaroslavsky supporters have grown anxious about his dawdling, and some have become convinced that the supervisor will not decide to run.

In addition to the sense that Yaroslavsky may pass on the race, there may be another reason for Wardlaw’s decision to pick Hahn over his old friend.

According to sources close to the mayor, Riordan has made it clear that while he could tolerate his friends supporting some challengers to Soboroff, backing Yaroslavsky would infuriate him. The supervisor has never been Riordan’s biggest fan, and over the past year or two, their differences appear to have grown.

Yaroslavsky has never shown much enthusiasm for city charter reform, which Riordan sees as one of his most important accomplishments. The two also have disagreed publicly and repeatedly on issues related to the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, where both serve as board members, and they privately clashed in the campaign to bring a professional football team to Los Angeles.

All of that, some suggest, may have made it easier for Wardlaw to support Hahn than Yaroslavsky and still maintain his deeply held friendship with Riordan.