Two victories and weeks and months of waiting

Lolita Harper

NEWPORT-MESA -- Three Newport-Mesa judgeship candidates were groggy,

tired and even hoarse Wednesday after late, election-night celebrations.

But a little fatigue is a small price to pay for the thrill of victory,

they say.

Newport Heights resident Vickie Ann Bridgman triumphed Tuesday,

gaining 46.2% of the votes for Superior Court Judge Office No. 22.

Bridgman, whose son was killed in a tragic automobile accident on

Irvine Avenue in May 1997, works in the district attorney’s office. She

will run again in November against Kelly Mac Eachern, the second-highest

vote-getter with 36.1% of the vote.

Costa Mesa residents Karen Robinson and Gay Sandoval are equally as

pleased with the results of the write-in campaign to unseat besieged

Judge Ronald C. Kline, who is under house arrest pertaining to child

molestation and child pornography charges.

Robinson -- a Costa Mesa councilwoman -- and Sandoval -- a former

Daily Pilot columnist -- waged independent campaigns for the seat on the

bench but contributed to a team effort to inform Orange County voters

about the legal trouble Kline faces.

The people responded, casting 67% of the votes for one of 11 write-in

candidates. The Orange County registrar of voters expects to release the

individual tallies March 26.

“It’s absolutely amazing that a quarter of a million people went out

there and bothered to write in someone else’s name. It’s unprecedented,”

said Cindy Brenneman, Robinson’s campaign manager. “He was outvoted 2 to

1.”

Robinson said she was proud of the Orange County electorate for

informing themselves about an often neglected race. She also tipped her

hat to her opponents -- or teammates, depending on how one looks at it --

saying it took a group effort to get the word out.

Sandoval was the first to challenge Kline, who was slated to run

unchallenged and subsequently would not even have his name on the ballot.

In other words, he had his reelection in the bag.

Political pundits said it was impossible, but the Davids in this

campaign proceeded to sling rocks at Goliath, ultimately toppling the

giant.

Sandoval, a Costa Mesa resident who prosecuted child molesters and

others while she was a deputy district attorney, lobbied to get Kline’s

name on the ballot and then gathered the required signatures to allow for

write-in candidates. Once that door was opened, Robinson and 10 others

quickly waged their own write-in campaigns.

It appears the two top vote-getters will compete in a runoff in

November, unless one write-in candidate gained more than 50% of the

overall vote.

Kline could not be reached for comment Wednesday.

Candidates like Robinson and Sandoval will just have to cross their

fingers and play the waiting game until the final write-in votes are

tallied.

“I’m not staying awake until then,” said Sandoval, who joked about her

lack of sleep during late-night election result monitoring. “I’m going

back to my other life. At this point, whatever happens, happens.”

* Lolita Harper covers Costa Mesa. She may be reached at (949)

574-4275 or by e-mail at o7 lolita.harper@latimes.comf7 .

FINAL SUPERIOR COURT JUDGE RESULTS

OFFICE NO. 22

Vickie Ann Bridgman 46.2%

Kelly Mac Eachern 36.1%

OFFICE NO. 21

Write-in candidate(s) 67.0%

Ronald C. Kline 33.0%