THE RACE FOR THE 47th CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

Alex Coolman

John Graham does his best advertising early in the morning.

The Democratic candidate for the 47th Congressional District likes to

take hourlong jogs while wearing a shirt with the Web address of his

campaign site, and he does it right around the peak commute time, so he’s

sure to be seen.

It’s a method of spreading the word about his candidacy that requires

more sweat than other approaches -- like television campaigns or

telemarketing -- but it’s one that’s consistent with Graham’s views about

the way politics should operate.

“I’m trying to run a polite and inexpensive campaign,” the 53-year-old

UC Irvine international business professor said Thursday. “You won’t see

any Graham signs. You won’t be getting any phone calls from me.”

Graham doesn’t only favor the Internet as a campaign mechanism because

it’s cheaper than these alternatives (although that’s certainly part of

its appeal). He said he wants to run a more substantive campaign than

what would be possible through quick, sound-bite ads.

“Television advertising has ruined American politics,” he said. “It’s

dumbing down the electorate.”

Graham’s academic background is in international business and

marketing, a subject he says has made him pay close attention to the

cultural politics and foreign policy strategies of his biggest opponent,

incumbent Christopher Cox (R-Newport Beach).

What he sees, he doesn’t like.

Domestically, he argues, Cox has made political hay out of fostering

xenophobia toward rising immigrant populations. And Graham charges that

Cox’s global strategies -- particularly in his report on China -- are

even worse.

On some local issues, too, the Irvine resident, takes stands that are

likely to be challenging for Newport-Mesa voters. Graham is not a fan of

creating an airport at El Toro, arguing instead that Camp Pendleton needs

to be considered as an alternative site.

“It should be popular” even though it’s not an option that registers

on the current political radar, he said.

Graham says he realizes that the odds are long of his carrying his

district, that his quest to unseat such a popular congressman with a

jogging-and-Internet campaign might seem a little quixotic. He says it’s

not Don Quixote but another character he hopes to emulate.

“I prefer the David and Goliath analogy,” he said. “Quixote didn’t

seem to do too much.”